GAME BREAKDOWN
KEY MATCHUP: Florida rushing offense vs. Tennessee front seven. Florida finally broke out and had a good day running the football against Colorado State, rushing for 222 yards and 7.1 yards per carry. The Gators will look to establish the ground game early in their first road game of the season at Tennessee to take pressure off QB Feleipe Franks, who started 0-of-6 against Colorado State before settling in and passing for 119 yards with two TDs and one interception.
Tennessee is giving up 112.7 yards per game on the ground, ninth in the SEC and 31st in the nation. Florida has handed the ball to a number of backs this season, including redshirt junior RB Jordan Scarlett, junior RB Lamical Perine, sophomore RB Malik Davis and freshman RB Dameon Pierce, who had a 68-yard TD run late in the Colorado State win.
DRAFT SLANT
–DB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson continued his solid play early in the early with seven tackles. The 6-foot, 208-pound junior from Cocoa has been solid all season in run support, coverage and on the occasional nickel blitz. Johnson is second on the Gators in tackles with 20, including 2.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
ROSTER REPORT:
–RB Malik Davis is out indefinitely after suffering a broken foot against Colorado State.
–Coach Dan Mullen said he’s hopeful to have LB David Reese(ankle) and CB C.J. Williams (undisclosed) back for the Tennessee game. Both have missed the first two games this season.
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