The Enemy's Perspective

#1
rexvol

rexvol

The Minister of Defense
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
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#1
Take advantage of Tennessee’s inexperience

The Vols start three seniors, two juniors, three sophomores, and three true freshmen on defense. Obviously Charlie Weis is good at creating mismatches, so expect him to target some of the young Tennessee defenders. Of the three freshmen starters, Curt Maggitt and A.J. Johnson are linebackers. I expect Weis will call a lot of play-action passes to try and confuse the young linebackers and get Chris Rainey, Jeff Demps, and Jordan Reed (if healthy) matched up one-on-one. The starting Tennessee defensive line averages 270-pounds where the Florida offensive line averages 302-pounds, so Florida could also try to take advantage of the size difference and try to hit some runs up the middle.
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If it ain’t broke…

Don’t fix it! Keep giving Rainey and Demps the ball until Tennessee stops it. These guys are clearly two of the most dangerous players in the SEC. The Vols are tied for last in the SEC giving up 4.9 yards per rushing attempt. Feed Rainey and Demps the rock until they are exhausted, then bring in Mike Gillislee, Trey Burton, or Hunter Joyer and continue to pound it. This will likely open up the passing game and the chance for a home run down the field.
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This ain’t Memphis or Vanderbilt

Bray is 6-1 as the starting quarterback for Tennessee, but his starting experience came against Memphis, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, North Carolina, Montana, and Cincinnati. Of those seven games, only Memphis and Vanderbilt were on the road. Though Vanderbilt was technically on the road, there were more Vols fans than Vandy fans in Nashville. In the loss to North Carolina, Bray threw for three interceptions.

Bottom line – the sophomore has never experienced anything like the atmosphere in the Swamp he will face on Saturday.
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Can Florida's corners man up Tennessee's receivers?

Make no mistake: This is the most important part of the strength vs. strength match-up between Tennessee's offense and Florida's defense that will likely decide the game. Justin Hunter and Da'Rick (DAY-rick, in case you need to say it like a four-letter word on Saturday) Rogers have size and skills that should be challenging for Marcus Roberson, Cody Riggs, Moses Jenkins, and ... really, whichever of the quick and undersized cornerbacks Will Muschamp and Dan Quinn can throw at them. If Florida comes out in man coverage and largely succeeds, it frees up a fair few blitzing possibilities; if Florida gets burned, then the Gators have to decide whether to gamble for sacks or switch to zones that could leave holes in coverage.
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I received this in an email from one of my best friends that is a gator alum.
 
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#2
#2
Regarding Bray, I am not sure the Swamp will rattle him. He does not lack confindence
 
#3
#3
I hate to be negative so I'll call it being cautious, but the Vols are young....very very young and not very deep.....this is going to be a HUGE test for them. THe Florida roster is still loaded with good athletes even if they aren't the Gators of old.
 
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#4
#4
Bray played in sc and throw a Int for a TD on his first pass. And it did not even seem to bother him, we will see how he does in the swamp.
 
#5
#5
Would you expect any other analysis? I don't disagree with much there, but there are a lot of if's. It is definitely a blue and orange tinted look at the matchups. I see it playing out slightly different, especially at the WR vs. DB matchup.

We'll see in 51 hours. Go Big Orange!!!!
 
#6
#6
For whatever reason, people seem to forget what Bray did at South Carolina. He made a big mistake, but followed it with some huge throws. He also made some incredible throws late in the game against Georgia.
 
#7
#7
Everyone forgets that, Bray almost brought us back to beat SC last season. he came in later in the game and I feel like if we started him in that game we would have won it.
 
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#8
#8
As always, this game will be decided by the front lines. If we can block their front four on defense and at least control the damage of their running game, we will win. If we cannot force them to have to blitz and throw the football, it will be a long day.
 
#9
#9
I'm not sure our WR's versus their DB's is a strength vs strength - don't they start 2 frosh and 2 soph?

seems more like a strength vs weakness matchup to me

I watched the first half of the UAB game last night and saw nothing that led me to believe they could keep JHunter and Darick from getting open
 
#10
#10
Our Bray is an awesome Bray... not too worried about him getting rattled this Saturday.

He has the perfect QB personality. He is confident with some swagger. Doesn't care too much about throwing INTs or incompletions. He just wants to win. Period.
 
#12
#12
Florida is "hopeful" that Bray will fold under the pressure because if he feeds off of it and performs, they know they are in for an absolutely painful and grueling fight. If the line can give Bray time, he will find holes in their secondary. When they compensate the cover over the top, the Vols will absolutely have to punch them in the mouth with some semblance of running game -- the run game need not be dominant, just effective enough to keep the UF D imbalanced and tentative.
 
#14
#14
SCvol333 said:
I'm not sure our WR's versus their DB's is a strength vs strength - don't they start 2 frosh and 2 soph?

seems more like a strength vs weakness matchup to me

I watched the first half of the UAB game last night and saw nothing that led me to believe they could keep JHunter and Darick from getting open
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I was thinking the same thing. Our 2 freshman linebackers are going to be easy to confuse but their youth just goes unmentioned? Aren't they just as young as we are?
 
#15
#15
I think everything said is fair, looks like it may come down to who can best contain the other team's best weapon.
 
#16
#16
Good Post....This would be a focus of the practice week.....I would think that we will see some unusual wrinkles and schemes for the game....Not as worried about Bray as I am about receivers and routes....Blitzes and audibles called at line of scrimmage. Checking into the right play offensively. The what-ifs.....Defensively if we can show them enough variation of formations that causes their QB to hesitate...question. Prepare for the obvious and plan for the unusual. We have the staff that is capable of doing it and will.......NO Second guessing....
 
#17
#17
If Bray has one thing in common with Casey Clausen, it's they're both "California Cool" and aren't rattled very easily. Granted, this is going to be his biggest test to date and will be a defining moment in his career at UT, but I don't think he's going to allow the Swamp to get to him.
 
#18
#18
Carl Pickens said:
I hate to be negative so I'll call it being cautious, but the Vols are young....very very young and not very deep.....this is going to be a HUGE test for them. THe Florida roster is still loaded with good athletes even if they aren't the Gators of old.
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Kudos on the avatar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :yes: :yes: :yes:
 
#19
#19
Honestly, the pressure is on Florida. They are the superior team on paper and in the eye's of the voters. It is their game to bring to us, not the other way around.

The Florida fan base can hem and haw and dance around this fact and that fact about Tennessee being weak here and there, but the bottom line is that Florida has a lot more to lose in this game compared to the Vols. Can the Gators keep their composure and bring the game to the Vols or are they the ones that will ultimately crumble when adversity strikes?

The ball is in Florida's court. They have no excuses.
 
#20
#20
I disagree with the idea that their little backs will be successful running it up the middle. I'm more afraid of them getting outside and having a little space.
 
#21
#21
Carl Pickens said:
I hate to be negative so I'll call it being cautious, but the Vols are young....very very young and not very deep.....this is going to be a HUGE test for them. THe Florida roster is still loaded with good athletes even if they aren't the Gators of old.
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A voice of reason........and an avatar this married guy tries not to look at
 
#22
#22
The thing about Rainey and Demps running it up the middle is this:

They won't break tackles, but if they are given a good hole to run through, they can reach the 2nd level before you have time to blink. That's the danger for UT. Not missing tackles, but not being in the right position to make those tackles. That's where the youth at LB is critical.

That's just one more reason why it is so imperative for UT to win right at the point of attack, because if Demps and Rainey make it through the big trees, it's all over but the shouting, because in space it'll be damn hard for UT's DB's to clean up the mess without, at times, giving up big big plays.

People talk about the UF running game like it's ALL on the RB to create. It's not. UF's OL is the most important piece of the puzzle this year. They do their job and open vertical running lanes for the RB's and UF's offense will be scary good and Rainey and Demps will continue to average 7 YPC. If they don't, UF will be extremely limited.
 
#23
#23
That was a pretty good analysis.

Seriously, if we can contain and limit the big plays of Demps/Rainey, plus keep Bray upright, then we will win. Period.

If we can't make good decisions regarding Demps/Rainey and our OL folds, then we are screwed.
 
#24
#24
PeytonBerry said:
For whatever reason, people seem to forget what Bray did at South Carolina. He made a big mistake, but followed it with some huge throws. He also made some incredible throws late in the game against Georgia.
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It's because he didn't start. It was only after he started playing that UT really became a threat to win the game. Matt Simm's 2 (iirc) fumbles really killed that game for UT. Bray made some spectacular throws to give UT a chance. If not for the pick 6, UT might have come back to win.
 
#25
#25
To be fair to Sims in that USC game, UT with Sims at the helm played USC to a 10-10 tie at halftime.
 
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