The Florida Gators are rich with history. The football program has won three national championships and eight conference titles. It plays in one of the toughest conferences and calls the 88,000-seat Ben Hill Griffin Stadium home — but that’s not intimidating the Vandals.
Nathan Romans | Argonaut
Junior linebacker Irving Steele practices Tuesday with his fellow linebackers. Steele and the Vandals open the season Saturday at Florida. The game marks the start of coach Paul Petrino’s second season.
“Victory is what our mindset is on right now,” said defensive coordinator Ronnie Lee of Idaho’s first game Saturday in Gainesville. “We’re going down there to win and we’ll let the chips fall where they may.”
Despite the impressive history, Florida finished last season with a disappointing 4-8 record. Injuries didn’t help, as the Gators had six key players suffer season ending injuries.
Notably, Florida’s quarterback situation got progressively worse as the season went on. After star quarterback Jeff Driskel went down with a broken leg, backup Tyler Murphy sprained his shoulder, which forced Florida to play its third-string quarterback.
The Gators will have a different look on offense this year. Along with Driskel making a full recovery, coach Will Muschamp hired new offensive coordinator Kurt Roper during the offseason.
Roper, formally the offensive coordinator at Duke, brings his unique up-tempo spread attack to Florida. The new scheme will be a change of pace from the pro-style, ground-and-pound offense Muschamp tried to implement in his first three years.
“We’ve watched every Duke game,” Idaho coach Paul Petrino said. “I assume — you don’t know for sure — but you assume he’s going to do what he did at Duke, mostly no huddle, go-fast, read zones, split zones, one-back power. He’s done a good job and he’s a good coach.”
Lee said everything starts up front on defense. He said Driskel is a great quarterback and the Gator offensive line will be tough, but the Vandal defensive line is up for the challenge.
“They’re an SEC powerhouse team,” sophomore defensive back Jordan Grabski said. “Jeff Driskel is a pretty big quarterback and he’s got wheels, so we’re just looking to stop him. Communication is pretty much the key to that. As long as everybody on the field is on the same page, then we can keep up with them with ease.”
Last season the strength for Florida was its defense, which only gave up 21.1 points per game — good for 15th in the country.
The Gator defense is led by defensive end Dante Fowler, who has been pegged by many as the best pass-rusher in the SEC. The 6-foot-3, 261-pound junior will be more than a handful for an Idaho offensive line that led the nation in sacks allowed last season with 52.
“I just want to see them go out and fight and be tough,” Petrino said. “The Swamp is an awesome place to play, it’s a great atmosphere … So we’re going to go out and play and have fun — we’ll see.”
Korbin McDonald can be reached at [email protected]