From Pro Football Focus
Why Tennessee has the edge over Florida:The Gators have won 11 games in a row in their series with the Volunteers, including 2015’s dramatic fourth-quarter two-touchdown comeback. So it’s understandable why Florida’s players, when speaking at SEC Media Days Monday, weren’t ready to concede the SEC East title to Tennessee, which has already been named as the division favorite in several preseason publications.
Earlier this offseason, we wrote up the five reasons why Tennessee could win the SEC, so count us among the believers in the Vols’ potential. Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara make up the best returning running back duo in college football, which, when combined with the rushing ability of quarterback Josh Dobbs, gives Tennessee an excellent backfield. The defense is bringing back a lot of talent as well, led by a top-5 player nationally in defensive end Derek Barnett.
Florida isn’t without returning talent of its own, as the Gators’ secondary is loaded, with a pair of stars in cornerback Jalen Tabor and safety Marcus Maye. There are also some potential standouts along the defensive line, including Bryan Cox Jr. and Caleb Brantley, and linebacker Jarrad Davis graded well both as a pass-rusher and in coverage last season.
But the Gators have massive room for improvement on the offensive side of the ball. Players on Monday cited new presumed starting QB Luke Del Rio and an experienced offensive line as reasons for optimism. While we don’t have any performances to go off of with Del Rio, the line graded out as one of the worst units in the country last season (bottom 10 in both run-blocking and pass-blocking grades), so UF fans better hope that another year of experience for those contributors equals a significant jump in performance.
Until that happens, and until Del Rio can improve upon the passing numbers of Treon Harris from last season, it’s understandable to see why Tennessee is considered to have the brighter outlook entering 2016.
Why Tennessee has the edge over Florida:The Gators have won 11 games in a row in their series with the Volunteers, including 2015’s dramatic fourth-quarter two-touchdown comeback. So it’s understandable why Florida’s players, when speaking at SEC Media Days Monday, weren’t ready to concede the SEC East title to Tennessee, which has already been named as the division favorite in several preseason publications.
Earlier this offseason, we wrote up the five reasons why Tennessee could win the SEC, so count us among the believers in the Vols’ potential. Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara make up the best returning running back duo in college football, which, when combined with the rushing ability of quarterback Josh Dobbs, gives Tennessee an excellent backfield. The defense is bringing back a lot of talent as well, led by a top-5 player nationally in defensive end Derek Barnett.
Florida isn’t without returning talent of its own, as the Gators’ secondary is loaded, with a pair of stars in cornerback Jalen Tabor and safety Marcus Maye. There are also some potential standouts along the defensive line, including Bryan Cox Jr. and Caleb Brantley, and linebacker Jarrad Davis graded well both as a pass-rusher and in coverage last season.
But the Gators have massive room for improvement on the offensive side of the ball. Players on Monday cited new presumed starting QB Luke Del Rio and an experienced offensive line as reasons for optimism. While we don’t have any performances to go off of with Del Rio, the line graded out as one of the worst units in the country last season (bottom 10 in both run-blocking and pass-blocking grades), so UF fans better hope that another year of experience for those contributors equals a significant jump in performance.
Until that happens, and until Del Rio can improve upon the passing numbers of Treon Harris from last season, it’s understandable to see why Tennessee is considered to have the brighter outlook entering 2016.
