Florida football will face some hard truths in the coming weeks following a 18-16 loss to USF on Sept. 6 at The Swamp.
The No. 15 Florida Gators (1-1) made too many physical and mental errors and didn’t resemble a program ready to turn the corner under fourth-year coach Billy Napier.
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“Players make mistakes, it’s part of the game, but I do think that ultimately it’s my responsibility,” Napier said.
Florida has plenty of issues to clean up in practice before it begind SEC play on Sept. 13 at No. 4 LSU (7:30 p.m., ABC)
“We’re all on a one day contract,” Florida senior cornerback Devin Moore said. “We treat every game the same. Every day of preparation is so important because those plays out there, our point of attack plays that slide the game one way or the other, when the opportunity comes, we’ve got to have the preparation behind the scenes to make those plays.”
Here’s what Florida learned from the USF loss:
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Florida football QB DJ Lagway has gone from extraordinary to ordinary
Lagway dropped to 7-2 at a starter at quarterback for UF following the 18-16 loss. He couldn’t make the big throw when he needed it, firing a pass down the sideline just a stride too long for Eugene Wilson III for an incompletion on third-and-eight from UF’s 42-yard line. That forced the Gators to punt the ball back to USF with 2:25 remaining, setting up the game-winning drive for the Bulls.
The 6-foot-3, 247-pound Lagway went 23 of 33 for 222 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception, missing several throws high.
“It’s football,” Lagway said. “I’m going to miss some throws. It’s all about how you bounce back. Next week I’m going to continue to work on our connection, continue to work on our timing.”
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Lagway insists he’s fully healthy after being limited in the spring and fall camp with core, shoulder and calf issues.
“I feel great where my body’s at right now,” Lagway said. “I’m still working on some things mechanically. Like I said, I’m just excited for the grind. I’d rather — good teams don’t peak in September, they peak in December. I’m ready to continue to work hard and continue to take strides for greatness.”
Penalty free Florida football performance against LIU was just an abberation
Florida reverted back to sloppy, undisciplined play with 11 penalties for 103 yards against USF. That included UF putting 12 on the field on an illegal substitution penalty on defense and defensive tackle Brendan Bett spitting on a USF player in the fourth quarter, resulted in Bett getting ejected and a critical 15-yard penalty during USF’s game winning drive.
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“Brendan, he’s a heck of a player,” Lagway said. “He made a mistake there. That doesn’t identify his character at all. He’s such a nice guy, nice kid, nice person to have in the locker room. He was in there crying and stuff like that, feeling bad, talking to the coaches, talking to the players, and apologizing for it. We don’t ever hold that against anybody. He’s going to come prepared this week.”
Florida football defense not taking down the QB
The Gators have just one sack over their first two games, by Tyreak Sapp against USF. Florida recorded 39 sacks in 13 games last season, but hasn’t been able to get consistent pressure off the edge from George Gumbs Jr., LJ McCray and Jayden Woods. That needs to change in order for UF’s defense to reach its full potential.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators’ national championship basketball season in “CHOMP-IONS!” — a hardcover coffee-table collector’s book from The Sun. Details at Florida.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Takeaways from Florida football loss to USF at The Swamp
