Published Dec 27, 2018
Michigan Wolverines Football: Previewing Florida With A Gator Insider
Austin Fox  •  Maize&BlueReview
Staff Writer

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Michigan will face Florida in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Saturday, looking to cap off its season with an 11-2 record.

Projected Starters On Offense

• QB Feleipe Franks (redshirt sophomore) — His 23 touchdown passes were tied for the fifth most in the SEC, but his 58.5 completion percentage checked in at 10th in the conference. After tossing at least one pick in six of the team's first eight games, Franks finished the regular-season with a 7-0 touchdown-to-interception ratio in the club's final four contests.

• RB Jordan Scarlett (redshirt junior) — His 717 rushing yards were the second most on the roster, behind junior Lamical Perine's 750. Scarlett averaged 5.9 yards per carry, but only eclipsed the century mark twice this year.

• WR Van Jefferson (redshirt junior) — He was the Gators' top wideout, leading the club in both receiving yards (439) and TD grabs (six). Jefferson surpassed 35 receiving yards just once in the team's final five games, however.

• WR Josh Hammond (junior) — His 308 yards were the third most on the team, along with his four touchdown receptions. Hammond ended the regular season with a bang, hauling in at least one TD catch in three of his last four contests.

• WR Tyrie Cleveland (junior) — After reeling in 410 yards in 2017, Cleveland regressed in a big way this season by only compiling 212 yards on 18 catches. He is a large physical target at 6-2, 205 and his three touchdown receptions were tied for the fourth most on the team.

• TE C'yontai Lewis (fifth-year senior) — He wasn't much of a factor in the passing game in 2018, only accumulating 100 yards on eight catches with no touchdowns. Although he served as Florida's primary tight end, Lewis only played more than 39 snaps just four times.

• LT Martez Ivey (senior) — According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), he has graded out with just a 59.1 overall mark (64 is considered average), which is the second lowest of any of the team's five starting offensive linemen. The publication actually tabbed him as a superb pass blocker (66.1), but a subpar run blocker (58.1).

• LG Tyler Jordan (senior) — Like Ivey, PFF also graded Jordan out below average on the year, with a 59.9 overall tally. They slapped him with an even lower run-blocking grade than Ivey, though, at 56.

• C Nick Buchanan (redshirt junior) — His 57.9 grade is the lowest of any of the team's starting offensive linemen. Despite the apparent subpar play, Buchanan started all 12 games this year and played at least 44 snaps in each of them.

RG Fred Johnson (senior) — PFF had high praise for him, rewarding him with a 77.2 grade as a pass blocker and a 71.5 tally in the run blocking department. One negative for him was that he committed five penalties this season, which were the third most of any of Florida's offensive players.

• RT Jawaan Taylor (junior) — PFF declared him as the Gators' best offensive lineman, tagging him with a 79.9 mark. The outlet also rated him as Florida's third best overall offensive player, and gave him an 81 tally as a pass blocker and an 81.8 grade as a run blocker.

Projected Starters On Defense

DL Kyree Campbell (sophomore) — His numbers don't necessarily jump off the page — half a sack and 2.5 tackles for loss — but PFF has given him an above-average grade of 65.9. The publication revealed that Campbell is at his best when he's stopping the run, giving him a 70.8 tally in that area.

• DL Adam Shuler (fifth-year senior) — After coming off the bench for the first two games of the year, Shuler earned the starting job for the final 10 contests. He only compiled half a sack and 2.5 tackles for loss, but his five quarterback hurries were the second most on the club.

• DL Jabari Zuniga (redshirt junior) — He had a monster year on the Gator defensive line, racking up 11 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. His durability was also one of the most impressive aspects of his game, with his 561 snaps on the year checking in as the fifth most on the entire defense.

• LB Vosean Joseph (junior) — He was a tackling machine in 2018, leading the club with 87 stops (tied for ninth most in the SEC). On top of that, his nine tackles behind the line of scrimmage were tied for the third most on the roster, while his four sacks were also third most.

• LB Jachai Polite (junior) — He was the star of the Gator defense this season, leading the team in both TFLs (16) and sacks (11). As a result, PFF rewarded Polite with an incredibly high 90.2 overall rating.

• LB David Reese (junior) — His 78 tackles were the second most on the team behind Joseph's 87. PFF actually revealed Reese was better in coverage than against the run, checking in with a 70.4 grade in the former and a 65.1 in the latter.

• CB C.J. Henderson (sophomore) — PFF stated that he was one of the best players on Florida's defense this season, awarding him with an 81.5 overall grade (fifth highest of any Gator defender). His seven pass breakups led the team, while his two forced fumbles were tied for second.

• CB Trey Dean (freshman) — Despite being just a freshman, Dean started eight of Florida's contests, including the final five. He racked up six pass breakups (second most on the team) and was rewarded with a 65.4 mark from PFF.

• CB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (junior) — He recorded 66 tackles, nine tackles for loss and three sacks from Florida's secondary, resulting in an 82.0 overall mark from PFF (fourth highest of any defensive player on the roster). Gardner-Johnson also tied for the team lead with two interceptions and ended with an incredible 85.2 overall grade in pass coverage.

• S Jeawon Taylor (junior) — He registered 56 tackles from his safety spot and finished with a 74.4 mark from PFF against the run. He also ended the year with a slightly above-average grade in pass coverage, at 64.6.

• S Donovan Stiner (sophomore) — The youngster concluded the regular-season with 47 tackles and two interceptions after starting 11 of the team's 12 contests. PFF tabbed him as an solid pass defender, rewarding him with a 73.4 overall mark.

Projected Starters On Special Teams

• K Evan McPherson (freshman) — He had a phenomenal freshman campaign, connecting on 15 of his 17 field goal attempts including a perfect 9 of 9 from inside 30 yards. He was 3 of 4 from beyond 40 yards, and made all 45 of his extra point attempts.

• P Tommy Townsend (redshirt junior) — He averaged 44.9 yards on 49 punts, with the former checking in as the fourth-best mark in the SEC. Townsend was especially effective during the second half of the season for the Gators, averaging at least 45.5 yards per punt in five of the last seven games.

Biggest Offensive Strength

Jacquie Franciulli of GatorsTerritory provided background info on this year's Florida team, while giving her final score prediction.


"Florida’s backfield is loaded with playmakers in Scarlett, Perine and [freshman running back] Dameon Pierce," she explained. "The Gators have faced some physical defenses and still managed to run the ball well, averaging about 210 yards per contest.

"A lot of their success on the ground is due to their run blocking and O-line play — the men in the trenches have only yielded 15 sacks this season. UF has also managed to not hurt themselves much in the way of turnovers, giving the ball away just 14 times."

Unsurprisingly, three of UF's four lowest rushing outputs have occurred in its three losses — 128 yards against Kentucky, 170 yards versus Georgia and 113 yards on Missouri. The Gators tallied 4.6 yards per carry or fewer in all three of those losses, and compiled a clip of 5.0 yards a rush or more in eight of the other nine games.

It should also be noted that both Scarlett and Perine averaged 5.9 yards per carry on the year, while Pierce posted 6.5 — the trio also combined for 12 touchdowns.

Franciulli noted UF's impressive ball security — the Gators' 14 turnovers ranked as the 20th fewest in the nation. Michigan is also one of the best teams nationally at holding onto the football, with its 10 giveaways checking in as the third fewest in college football.

Biggest Offensive Weakness

"Florida has struggled to take advantage of every scoring opportunity," the analyst noted. "The Gators have struggled to score inside the 20, failing to cash in on nine trips to the red zone this year."

Statistically, UF's red-zone numbers aren't pretty. The Gators have scored a touchdown on just 58.8 percent of its red-zone trips, which is tied for 91st in the FBS.

Michigan's offense is all too familiar with this problem as well, with its 60.0 touchdown percentage in the red zone standing at No. 76 nationally.

Including field goals, UF has only registered points on 82.3 percent of its red-zone trips, which ranks 80th nationally.

As stout as U-M's defense was this season, though, it frequently allowed its foes to find pay dirt once they reached the 20. Opponents scored touchdowns on 68 percent of their red-zone appearances against the Wolverine defense, which ranked 100th in the FBS.

Biggest Defensive Strength

"Jachai Polite," Franciulli bluntly stated. "The Florida defensive end finished with 43 tackles, 16 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks and five forced fumbles. Simply put, Polite is a game changer for the Gators defense."

Florida's defense is one of the best in college football at getting in opposing backfields — its 32 sacks are tied for 33rd nationally and its 79 TFLs rank a respectable 49th.

Michigan, however, did an incredible job at protecting its quarterbacks this season, only yielding 18 sacks (tied for 24th in the land).

UF's opportunistic defense also led to 24 takeaways, which is tied for 14th nationally and more than any other team in the conference. Florida forced two or more turnovers seven different times this year, including a season-best six against Tennessee on Sept. 22.

Biggest Defensive Weakness

"The Gators have allowed a few big plays a game, while also struggling to cover tight ends," the expert noted. "In addition to that, UF has also dealt with some depth issues at defensive back this year after one of their best players, [sophomore defensive back] Marco Wilson, went down with an ACL tear.

"Several young players stepped up and have done very well for the Gators, but sometimes their lack of experience has proved costly."

UF has surrendered 12 plays of 40 yards or more in 2018, which is tied for ninth in the SEC.

Despite the loss of Wilson, the secondary has performed incredibly well, only surrendering 175.1 passing yards per game (tied for 10th best nationally). On top of that, teams are only completing 53.4 percent of their passes against the Gator defensive backfield, which is tied for 12th best in the nation.

U-M junior quarterback Shea Patterson, meanwhile, has been known for his efficiency in 2018, connecting on 65.1 percent of his throws, while only tossing five picks.

Franciulli's Final Score Prediction

"I think this could be a matchup where Florida surprises a few people, especially since it seems like the Gators are eager to play in this game, while Michigan is lamenting how they missed on the College Football Playoff, with several of their stars sitting out from the game," she explained.

"I don’t see this as a good matchup for Florida, and I think Michigan will only control the clock, and force Franks into making mistakes.

"I think Florida ultimately gets the win, and am picking the Gators 27-21."

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