Gator Gridiron Responds to Reader About the 2011 UF Football Team

Recently, a reader asked me what my thoughts are regarding the 2011 Gator Football Team. With new staff and a challenging schedule, can Gator fans expect the same excellence they've come to know year after year?

I want to share my response to him with my blog following as well.

I'm optimistic about the 2011 Gators. I hope Brantley does well, but I'm not all that confident.

On other fronts, I'm very confident. I think Muschamp was a good hire, plus he's an accomplished Defensive coach.

Weis was a great hire! He's been successful everywhere he's coached, even in high school. He knows how to mix run and pass; he's a great QB coach; and he brings that "down-the-field passing game" Gator fans crave. Weis also knows how to use talent he has. I predict Burton and Josh Reed TE will be utilized and will have big years. The same goes for DuBose, Omarious Hines, Frankie Hammond, Demps, Rainey, etc.

The Gator's defense is loaded, especially with D-Linemen! Plus Muschamp is a defensive guy.

This season promises a whole new atmosphere, a new fresh start. Meyer was a negative motivator and an extreme grinder. That obviously worked big time, I'm not knocking it or complaining, but he burned himself out and he burned everybody else out. He had a string of really good players in the dog house, like DuBose, who couldn't even get on the field.

Running back is loaded, WR is loaded. Defense is solid, at the least, new, positive, upbeat atmosphere. best OC in football.......this "Old School Gator" predicts 8-9 wins despite brutal schedule.

(Don't tell Coach Muschamp, but I think 6-6 or 7-5 would be a pretty good year.)

Saban Rude to Coach Muschamp's Mother

I particularly enjoyed this recent article from the Palm Beach Post. It was interesting to read about the way in which Nick Saban treated Coach Muschamp's mother a few years ago.

Just counting down the days until we can watch Coach Muschamp run through that tunnel and make his first appearance as the Gator's head ball coach during a regular season game.

Photo Credit: Palm Beach Post

Blundering Mediocrity Esiason Slimes Tebow

GATOR GRIDIRON
ROGER FRANKLIN WILLIAMS

As the anti-Tebow avalanche of national media attacks continues to explode, a particularly lame shot came from a likely source---former journeyman NFL QB Boomer Esiason.
"He can't throw", chirped Boomer...., wait a minute, isn't venerable ESPN analyst Chris Berman known as Boomer?....anyway, Esiason claims Tim Tebow can't make it in the NFL because "he can't throw".

Funny, he (Tebow) managed to throw for almost 10,000 yards (more than Dan Marino in his college career) and 88 TDs in the toughest conference in college football. What did "the other Boomer" do in college (at Maryland,btw, during an era when the ACC was little more than flag football)? The Great Boomer Esiason had 6,000 yards and 42 TDs... Less than half the touchdowns and 3,000 less yards than Tim, in 3 years as a starter for the Terrapins. Rushing yards? Well, the Great Boomer...or "the other Boomer"...whatever, had net negative career rushing yards.

Well what about the NFL? Good question, "the other Boomer" has a career sub-.500 win percentage in as a starting QB in the National Football League.

And this stiff declares Tim Tebow doesn't have what it takes to play QB in the NFL?

What can Gators expect this season?

According to Gainesville Sun columnist Pat Dooley, the future of the 2011 - 2012 Gator football team is unknown, but some truths remain...

"You know someone will say something on ESPN’s GameDay that will make you talk to your television set. You don’t know if it will be Lee Corso or Kirk Herbstreit."

"You know this is a special time of year. You know there is nothing like college football season." 

     Photo Credit: SaintPetersBlog

GATOR GRIDIRON OPTIMISTIC ABOUT 2011 GATORS

Roger Franklin Williams
Gator Gridiron

As Gators across the nation eagerly await Saturday's kick-off of the 2011 season at the Swamp against Florida Atlantic, many Gators are wisely keeping expectations for Will Muschamp's first Gator team in check. While Gator Gridiron has a personal ethic of maintaining conservative expectations, we must admit that Gator Gridiron finds much to be optimistic about in terms of the rapidly approaching 2011 season.

We'll state some of those reasons for optimism below:

1. A FRESH START AND POSITIVE, UPBEAT ATMOSPHERE. New Head Coach Muschamp has brought a much needed burst of positive energy to the Florida Football. Obviously, the hard-edged, white knuckle, stomach churning intensity of former Head Gator Urban Meyer brought extraordinary success to Florida Gator Football. Gator Gridiron, as well as all Gators, should forever have a huge spirit of gratitide and respect for what CM achieved; however, that infamous Coach Meyer 24/7/365 grinding intensity eventually took it's toll. In a nutshell, Coach Meyer not only famously burned himself out, he burned out the remnants of the post-Tebow era Gators as well. A new HC with brand  new assistant coaches with  new schemes brings not only a fresh attitude for the players, but also the opportunity for a fresh start for many talented Gators, who for whatever reason, did not fit into the Coach Meyer plan for playing time.

2, ADDAZIO IS GONE. Perhaps the best thing to happen to Florida Gator Football, other than signing Tim Tebow, in, at least, the last 20 years or so, is the departure of the most incompetent "coach" to ever set foot in Gainesville, Steve "Meathead" Addazio. Addazio, as skilled a careerist, resume' builder and apple polisher as has ever lived, parlayed an asset as Urban Meyer's best friend into the role of Assistant Head Coach (even, perish the thought, Interim Head Coach at one point!!!???) AND, most destructively, Offensive Coordinator, a position he used to severely damage the NFL prospects of one Gator QB (Tim Tebow) and virtually destroy the career of another highly touted young QB (John Brantley), not to mention take the famed Florida Gator offense to the bottom tier of the SEC and NCAA. Thankfully, "Meathead" is gone now, to Temple to destroy the winning program that Coach Al Golden has built over the past few years. Without the albatross of Steve Addazio around their neck, the 2011 Gators truly have an opportunity for success, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

3, CHARLIE WEIS. The Coach WM regime not only swept out the worst OC in college football (and possibly college football history), he replaces  him with one of the best offensive minds in the GAME of football----Charlie Weis. Weis has had nothing but success in a long career that has scanned the highest levels of the NFL (multiple Super Bowl rings with multiple teams), college and even high school (Weis bagged a state championship as a high school coach in New Jersey as he was just starting his career). Weis not only brings a lonnnnnggg track record of success to Gainesville, he also brings a balanced, "pro-style" offense that features an aggressive "down-the-field" passing game that compliments the talent in the program and that he has orchestrated to virtual perfection wherever he has been.

THE WAR AGAINST TIM TEBOW

GATOR GRIDIRON
ROGER FRANKLIN WILLIAMS

In the past several weeks an unprecedented, full-fledged flame war against Tim Tebow has broken out among national sports media pundits. The overt anti-Tebow "noise in the national media system" is now a daily roar. From ESPN analyst Merrill Hoge, to former Cincinatti Bengal QB Boomer Esiason, to a quick "kidney kick" by the Orlando Sentinel's Mike Bianchi (".....one QB 'Tebow' who has accomplished nothing as a pro QB....") to assorted pathetic media dweebs, dorks and pencil-necks, most notably ESPN'S Colin Cowherd and Michael Silver of Yahoo Sports, the attacks are now omni-present, hard-edged and personal. Gator Gridiron has one question; Why?...Why?....Why?

Why does a player who has accomplished so much ON THE FIELD generate so much negative feedback from the national media?

Why is the anti-Tebow chorus so pervasive and so MONOLITHIC?

Why isn't ANYONE on the national stage stepping up to defend Tebow, especially anyone from the Broncos organization?...or the University of Florida for that matter?

Why has an overt religious sarcasim now seeped into the "commentary" on Tebow? For example, Silver's piece included the gleeful phrase, "Savior's wings get clipped".

And most obvious; Why don't the excellent results Tebow achieves on the field seem to count for anything?

All this negative "analysis" about a QB who has done nothing but succeed ON THE FIELD in the NFL.
 For example in just three starts in 2010 Tebow:

*  Did something only 2 other QBs in the entire history of the National Football League have done---run for 40+ yard TD and pass for a 30+ yard TD in the same game.

*  Engineered a dramatic come-from-behind win when the Bronco's trailed 0-17 at half-time. Tebow passed for 308 yards and scored on 6 yard run with 3 minutes in the game to put Denver over the top 24-23.

* Accounted for a total of 11 touchdowns passing and running in a back-up role with only 3 starts while the other QB Kyle Orton accounted for 20 touchdowns in 13 starts.

Why don't all these brilliant pundits write about that? (Because there is an underlying, or not so underlying, anti-Tebow bias in the national sports media, maybe?)

For those who are interested in accurate, informed analysis of what Tim Tebow can do for a football team, here it is: Tim Tebow will bring 3 specific elements to your offense---1) he can change field position and score touchdowns with big plays, both passing and running 2) he can consistently move the chains and allow your team to maintain the football and control the clock by grinding out first downs in crucial short yardage situations and 3) he can score in the red zone, again by both passing or running. Hey, you NFL idiots; does scoring touchdowns count in your "analysis"? In addition to all that he will bring passion, leadership and focus that will inspire the other players and lift your team.

One more question...

Why wouldn't EVERY team in the NFL want a quarterback like that?

MAGIC OF '69 GATORS CONTINUES AT DEL FRISCO'S OLD SCHOOL GATOR EVENT

Gator Gridiron
Roger Franklin Williams

The special magic of the fabled '69 Gators was in full force last Monday at Del Frisco's Orlando where Gators of all eras come to pay tribute to recent College Football Hall of Fame electee Carlos Alvarez and teammates from the famed 1969 Florida Gators---fellow Super Soph John Reaves, Offensive Captain and All-SEC OT Mac Steen and SR DB Larry Williamson. Reaves, Alvarez and the guys re-counted their personal recollections of some to the most spectacular, dramatic and poingant events in Florida Gator Football history. From the incredible 70 yard bomb from Reaves to Alvarez on the first pass of their careers, to the improbable 59-34 blow-out of Number 1 ranked (by Playboy) 27 point favorite Houston in the 1969 season opener, to the stirring 14-13 upset of SEC regular season Champion Tennessee in the Gator Bowl, which gave the '69 team the distiction of posting the best record in Florida football history to that point, to the bizarre, ill-advised, previously denied coaching change announced by President Stephen O'Connell on the day after the Gator Bowl, Super Sophs Reaves, Alvarez, Co-Captain Steen and senior leader Williamson re-counted the whole wonderful, fantastik story of the overlooked, unheralded team that brought immeasurable and almost indescribable joy to Gators of their era and, sadly, brought and end to the Ray Graves Silver Sixties era.

In the days ahead, Gator Gridiron will post photos and videos of the first hand history and special magic that was captured that exciting evening at Orlando's premier upscale fine dining venue with the men who as youngsters created some of the most wonderful, dramatic and significant moments in the annals of Florida Gator football.