YOUR UGLY WINNING STRATEGY BROUGHT TO YOU BY URBAN MEYER
Houston Nutt, professional coach. This is only marginally about him, but the picture is too good not to lead with here. Thanks: J.
The current turnover total for Florida on the year: zero, a number instructive for those of us kvetching and kvelling about the offense thus far, and its lack of Krakatoa-like eruptions a la 2008. The Gainesville Sun, a.k.a. Pravda: Swamp Cabbage Edition, addresses those concerns in typically sunny but timely fashion below. Warning: corrected to do away with the plague of one sentence paragraphs.
The Gators are the only team in the nation with zero turnovers.UF is one of only five teams in the nation that has not trailed at any point in the season. The Gators lead the SEC in total defense (213.0 yards a game), scoring offense (37.3 points a game), kickoff returns, punt returns and punting. The special teams have scored 14 points, only five shy of opposing offenses. Opposing offenses have not started a single drive on Florida’s side of the 50.
So, in short: they haven’t been good yet because they haven’t had to be good? A sobering thought if you, like us, are wondering if and when they’re pressed to actually score points, and if they will be able to do so. To be perfectly frank about the offense for Florida thus far, it still looks like a live dress rehearsal that someone accidentally sold tickets for: Miami was the audition for receivers (Louis Murphy, come on down,) while Tennessee was the audition for running backs (Emmanuel Moody, 55 yards on nine whole carries! Cue rain of frogs.)
Ole Miss and Arkansas probably won’t test this ongoing dry run on the field for the Florida offense; in fact, Ole Miss makes a particularly disastrous matchup with Florida, and not in a sense of pending Florida doom because Ole Miss is last in time of possession in the conference, and it’s not because they’re scoring scads of points in flashes. Then again, consider the next worst team in terms of time of possession: Florida. Stats are fun, and endlessly misleading!
P.S.: Houston Nutt in crazier than a sack of rabid weasels.
1
Wow, he looks like he is pushing 80 there.
Why my team gladly and desperately offered him $2+ million, God probably doesn’t even know.
Comment by meatybob — September 23, 2025 @ 11:38 am
2
Ah, but you must factor in the disproportionate number of Ole Miss fans that will be in Gainesville this weekend, if for no other reason than to escape the red-tape-hell that is Oxford during Presidential Debate Week. You think being drunk in public in Oxford is hard now? Mix it with 3,000 drunken journalists and a shitload of FBI, CIA and Secret Service. Being beaten by Tebow will be a warm hug compared to that nightmare scenario.
Comment by the croominator — September 23, 2025 @ 11:39 am
3
ETA: and all the wack-job left-and-right wing looney toons that these political events inevitably draw…plus the two State fans that will only show up to ring cowbells and yell “Ole Piss Suuuuuuuucks!”
Comment by the croominator — September 23, 2025 @ 11:40 am
4
Fuck that stat shit. Will Florida cover the spread? Urb seems like he might be aware of the line. He took care of the gamblering alumni vs. Miami.
Comment by Crabapple Buck — September 23, 2025 @ 11:49 am
5
Crossing my fingers for the Houston Nutt inexplicable thrashing of an obviously superior team.
Comment by Biggus Rickus — September 23, 2025 @ 11:51 am
6
Complaining Weasels Dept:
The sack of rabid weasels just complained big time about being in the same sentence w/Houston Nutt.
Comment by Stacy Keibler Luvs Me — September 23, 2025 @ 11:54 am
7
I hope it doesn’t come to this, but I’m already imagining metaphors for this year’s offense if it turns out as disjointed and peculiar as the 2006’s “handgun with a bayonet”. I propose “sledgehammer with laser-guided scope”.
Comment by rjsplow — September 23, 2025 @ 11:55 am
8
That photo is almost as good as the one at the end of the UPig/Bama game last year where Nutt has a sheet-eatin grin on his face after Bama scored to win.
Think if there were only 1 skool in Miss & how they would do - and compare w/ Arky over the years. If you took an allstar team from MSU/USM/Ole Pi$$ and had Fedora to coach it, you’ve got a top 10 if not top 5 team.
Comment by yoyofutbawl — September 23, 2025 @ 12:10 pm
9
looks like he’s about to drop an f bomb on that ref
Comment by alanon — September 23, 2025 @ 12:17 pm
10
What’s the O/U on Vols SEC wins now? 3?
It had to burn them up.. all those Gator fans in their jorts, packing the waterfont deck at Calhoun’s.
Comment by Brewdog — September 23, 2025 @ 12:22 pm
11
When the Dolphins kept using Nutt’s playbook to score touchdowns against the Pats, I pictured him sitting on his couch, grinning and clapping like one of those wind-up monkeys with the cymbals.
Comment by JD — September 23, 2025 @ 12:26 pm
12
I was thinking more along the lines of a shithouse rat, but I split hairs.
BTW, what’s this “giggetty images” business?
Comment by OhioDawg — September 23, 2025 @ 12:48 pm
13
I gotta say, while everyone nationally likes Georgia, their schedule is significantly more difficult than what Florida face down the stretch, starting with Bama this weekend. UGA go to LSU, go to Auburn, and have the BEEEEESSS!! Meanwhile, UF dodge most of the heavy hitters in the west, aside from LSU, who they get at home, and a Florida State team that increased their point total at home over WF from the previous meeting there by 300%, to a field goal…
Comment by beckett929 — September 23, 2025 @ 1:14 pm
14
isn’t 300% of zero. zero?
Comment by rj — September 23, 2025 @ 1:42 pm
15
How difficult is Georgia’s schedule? They are the, or a if two are shown on the same Saturday, CBS game 5 out of their last 7 games of the season.
LSU had something similar last fall, but Georgia will not be so lucky with at least USC making it to the BCS game as an unbeaten, and maybe someone else like Oklahoma.
Comment by Coop — September 23, 2025 @ 1:43 pm
16
Florida is winning by playing defense, field position and not turning the ball over. Sounds like what the Big Televen tries do, except with New! Improved! Ess-eee-see speed!
Comment by HeadThief — September 23, 2025 @ 1:43 pm
17
Now Orson, please be fair.
Did you look at the drive chart for the UT game? The Gators only punted once. The only other drives where the UF offense didn’t score was on kneeldowns to end the half and game and a failed fourth down conversion where Urban felt sorry for UT and didn’t want to run up the score with a FG.
Forget the yards. Forget chucking the ball downfield. It is whether our offense puts points on the board when it gets the chance. By that standard, the UF offense is doing just fine.
Comment by Mr. Flibble — September 23, 2025 @ 1:52 pm
18
Way too early to talk about it, but i will anyway! As long as Georgia only loses one game (can’t be to Florida, or in the SECCG) and Oklahoma is unbeaten or has one loss (not in the Big 12 CG), I would argue USC’s schedule isnt strong enough to keep em 1 or 2, even unbeaten. That OSU win looks weaker all the time and nothing is scary about the rest of their slate. Don’t get me wrong they are probably the best team in the nation but come January i doubt their schedule will have given them the oppurtunity to prove it.
I doubt this argument holds water to the voters. Of course their gonna wanna see USC play for the natty if they are unbeaten but it makes you think…
Comment by C-Train — September 23, 2025 @ 1:52 pm
19
Coop,
The schedule’s difficult, but not impossible to navigate. Still, getting through without at least one loss would definitely beat the odds. LSU and Florida back to back looks like the biggest problem. A lot will depend on how healthy they stay down the stretch. LSU was banged up badly by the second half of the 2007 season and struggled, especially on defense. Hopefully the same won’t happen to Georgia.
Comment by Biggus Rickus — September 23, 2025 @ 2:02 pm
20
Biggus,
People tend to forget in 2006 Florida had the same SEC slate we have and got through it with one loss. Granted they didn’t have the young O-line we have and their virtually their entire defense was taken in the first round that year but I think we are talented, balanced, and deep enough to do it.
Comment by C-Train — September 23, 2025 @ 2:15 pm
21
I actually was wondering what would happen if USC, OU, and the SEC champ were undefeated at season’s end. Assuming the SEC champ is in, I tend to think that the coaches would put USC ahead of OU, even with a stronger schedule out of pedgree and history. If Missou wins the Big XII, w/o the previous OU bowl disasters, they previous history doesn’t really exist b/w the two teams and maybe Missou gets the nod ’cause of the schedule.
Comment by meatybob — September 23, 2025 @ 2:28 pm
22
Well, at least we know who is going to play Nutt is “The Houston Nutt Story.”
Meatloaf.
Comment by Two Dogs — September 23, 2025 @ 2:31 pm
23
Meatybob,
I think it depends on who the SEC champ is. If its Georgia then they def get the nod cuz of the schedule. But If its Florida, im not sure they are necessarily as much of a lock to get in as their schedule isnt head and shoulders harder than OU’s.
Wait…nevermind, they won’t “Auburn” an undefeated SEC champ ever again. Especially if the alternative is USC/OU.
Comment by C-Train — September 23, 2025 @ 2:40 pm
24
Coop @ #15…What? I know I’m dense, but I didn’t get that…
And how does a pro-Gator thread suddenly turn all slippery-gooey UGA?
Comment by sb — September 23, 2025 @ 2:59 pm
25
It’s so much funnier to see Hootie Tootie on another sideline. As everyone in Arkansas is fond of saying, Thank God for Mississippi!!
Comment by OpineOnSwine — September 23, 2025 @ 3:00 pm
26
The offense that MIami is running isn’t Nutts, it’s Gus Malzahns. The show is now at Tulsa. Check their stats. Nutt and big brother Nutt are the QB KIllers, and don’t have sense enough to call good plays. One thing Nutt has for him a good agent! Ole MIss got hosed!
Comment by kw — September 23, 2025 @ 3:06 pm
27
Responding to #13, regarding Georgia’s schedule:
CBS gets #1 choice for SEC conference games and OOC games if the SEC team is the home team. Thus, CBS picks the best game, or at least the game between the two best teams.
Enter Georgia, almost every week.
I then referenced LSU, who had a murderous route to the BCS title game last season and seemed to be on CBS a great deal, themselves.
I don’t see Georgia going undefeated, but 1 loss is doable. Hopefully for Georgia, only USC will go undefeated, and the loss will not come against Florida, but on the road at LSU, who loses at Florida and to someone else, anyone else.
Comment by Coop — September 23, 2025 @ 3:59 pm
28
It looks too me like he has shat himself………if it’s that bad with Vandy, Florida will put Houston in the Oxford General anal reconstruction surgery center…….
Comment by Old Myth Scat — September 23, 2025 @ 4:26 pm
29
I think the extra possessions are being lost in substiutions (and in long drives against our defenses, but that’s another topic).
It could be that our offensive abundance is particularly vulnerable to the vagaries of the new clock rules. After seemingly *every* play, we run in a new set of personnel. Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick. Then we look over the D and see if we need to audible.
In its current version the Mullen/Meier spread is efficient everywhere except in its game efficiency. (Call it the Illmatic approach - only 9 tracks, but every single one is successful).
Do we even have base personnel? Much like last years Auburn game, if we’re down 2 scores in the 4th, do we have the ability to go to the hurry-up? It’s one thing to have an offensive mindset looking for matchup mismatches and another to say we have our 5 best skill people out there (Tebow+5OL=11) and keep ‘em out there and just run the fuck by/through/around a defense.
I’m hoping that if Urban can prioritize giving his senior kicker some work before he really needs him, that he can also prioritize giving his 2 minute offense an opportunity some week soon, too.
Otherwise, we’re going to find ourselves lining up the laser scope on our sledgehammer as the clock runs out on a national championship season.
I’ll post more after I get to watch the ‘film’ of the game I have saved on my TiVO.
Comment by dogtown gator — September 23, 2025 @ 6:45 pm
30
Shoot my aiss for these early sezon preidcs:
1. We suck at MSU. Thank you Woody McCorvey.
2. FL & LSU are the most impressive so far. DUH.
3. If Bear beats Vince at UGA Sat, they are the chief interloper. You cannot lose that much OL talent to the injury list and win the NC, IMO.
Vandy might make the Peech Bowl. And beet Clemmons U. ACC this weekend was an aberattion.
USChikin will have new coach in 2 years. Woofford gave dem a tough game until the 4th qtr and only lost bt 10. For those of you unfamilar, Woofford has all of 1,100 stoodents. All of whom will have USChikin stoodents as employees, as will The Citadel.
Comment by yoyofutbawl — September 23, 2025 @ 9:56 pm
31
Be patient my Ole Miss brothers. Houston Nutt is a professional and a solid DIV-1 coach. This program will be a top 20 contender year in and year out. Give him time to get his own recruits and develop an offense.
I thank you.
Comment by BigDeal — September 23, 2025 @ 11:43 pm
32
This is front page worthy in my opinion….a video of clips from ole nutty’s press conference this week.
http://palestra.net/videos/play/15890
It’s fan-fucking-tastic.
Comment by Rick Shaeffer's Stylist — September 24, 2025 @ 8:59 am
33
This picture is obviously showing how El Dorko aka Nutt pulls plays out of his ass.
The ref walks up and tells him to hurry up.
Nutt grunts.
Out comes the plays:
Run left, run right, run up the middle, PUNT.
Comment by Reaganite — September 24, 2025 @ 9:20 am
34
As a Razorback fan, let me say this for every single person I know,”Thank God Almighty we are free at last!”
Comment by dacskc — September 24, 2025 @ 10:25 am