Southern Sports Edition
Brunswick High Pirates Coach’s Show w Garrett Grady September 8
Camden County Wildcats Coach’s Show w Jeff Herron September 6
Chomping Gators
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Florida Gator football started out strong in its season opener against Utah on Saturday, in which the Orange and Blue put up a gritty, 29-26 win.
The victory represents the first for the program in the Billy Napier era, while extending the Gators’ longest-active home-opener win streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision, which stands at 33 straight games.
With the big win now in the rearview mirror, Napier and company turn their attention to their SEC opener against the Kentucky Wildcats at home this coming Saturday.
The ‘Cats, led by Heisman Trophy hopeful quarterback Will Levis, represent another top-25 matchup for the Gators that will test their revamped squad.
The main concern the Cats have going into Gainesville, however, will be the play of the running back and the offensive line.
Let’s first start with the running backs. With the absence of Chris Rodriguez due to suspension, I didn’t think the Cats’ running backs would struggle against Miami of Ohio. On the night Kavosiey Smoke led the rushing attack with seven carries for 32 yards, while the other trio of Ramon Jefferson, JuTahn McClain, and La’Vell Wright all combined for 11 carries and a total of 36 yards.
That won’t be enough to help push the Cats over Florida. Here’s why:
For the offensive-line, it seemed their youth played a huge role against Miami of Ohio. After giving up four sacks on the night, the question now changes to; can they hold up against the Gators front seven?
It will be interesting to see, but Coach Zach Yenser has his work cut out for him this week as he tries to help the young O-line process through the different schemes and stunt recognition they will see Saturday night.
Defensively, it comes down to whether the Cats can contain the run game or not.
Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson stole the show in week one. The highly-touted recruit from Gainesville was only used sparingly as a true freshman under Dan Mullen.
In his first start for Napier, Richardson completed 17-of-24 passes for 168 yards, while he rushed for a team-high 106 yards and 3 touchdowns.
For Florida to reach their ceiling, the young quarterback has to carry the team.
Utah was unable to slow Richardson down and wasted a solid offensive performance due to the defense’s inability to limit quarterback runs.
Kentucky must find a way to make the NFL prospect play strictly from the pocket. With that being said, it’s way easier said than done.
In many ways, the game on Saturday will come down to Kentucky limiting Florida’s ground game. That is only done if the Wildcats can get Anthony Richardson on the ground.
The Gators O-line performed well opening holes for the running game and allowing no sacks.
Florida went 31 years without suffering a loss to the Kentucky Wildcats but has a 2-2 record in the last four games. Credit to Mark Stoops. He took over a program that was second-fiddle to basketball and has built a culture that they recruit and play to consistently win. Stoops has two 10-win seasons and more wins over Florida than his six predecessors combined.
With that said, it is going to be a battle on Saturday night. The crowd, weather (heat, rain & humidity) and overall team talent leads me to pick the Gators by 2 scores.
Florida 31 Kentucky 20
Gator Bait?
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
There is a new era beginning for the Florida Gators football program.
Billy Napier’s era will officially begin on September 3, as the Gators host the No. 7 Utah Utes.
Utah finished the 2021 campaign as the Pac-12 Champions. Kyle Whittingham’s team finished the regular season with a 9-3 record. They beat Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship game and fell three points short of beating Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. They finished 10-4.
Whittingham has a small connection to UF. He took the head coaching job at Utah in 2005, replacing Urban Meyer.
Meyer, of course, left Utah to accept the head coaching job at Florida and went on to win two National Championships in Gainesville.
The Gators don’t have a coach entering their 18th season at the helm, like Whittingham at Utah. Billy Napier was hired 276 days before the game kicked off. There are much easier ways to begin your tenure, something Napier jokingly acknowledged at SEC Media Day.
One of the biggest question marks for the Gators in 2022 is: Can they stop the run? Last season Florida finished 10th in the SEC allowing 163.92 yards per game. That was nearly 100 yards more than Georgia and nearly 78 more than Alabama.
The Gators have a ton of pass rushers but they’re thin on the interior defensive line. Is Florida stout enough to plug up the middle and stop Utah from running it up the gut? It won’t take long to find out what kind of defense the Gators will have this season.
Cameron Rising and Tavion Thomas are a very tough combo to beat. Rising was a 64% passer last season with 20 TDs and just five picks, while Thomas added a school-record 21 rushing touchdowns, third-most in the FBS last season, with a 5.4 ypc average.
Returning that core, which tortured Ohio State’s D in the Rose Bowl, is vital in a cross-country road opener, especially against a soft Gator front.
This game is incredibly conflicting to me. If we know anything about the Pac 12 in recent years, it’s that they will eliminate themselves from playoff contention as soon as possible. The best team in the conference suffers a big loss at the beginning of the year almost every year. This would be that spot.
Last year, however, Florida was one of the worst teams against the spread because they were simply given credit for being Florida; even though they were a bad team. They went 6-7 and played in the SEC, yet they were only a home underdog once.
Now, Billy Napier comes to town after an incredible run at Louisiana and has Anthony Richardson at quarterback. Richardson only attempted 64 passes last year and is already considered a potential first round pick in the NFL draft. That’s how good he is.
Napier brought in a lot of transfers from Louisiana on the offensive line and in the backfield. The team should become familiar with his system quickly and the offense could hit the ground running.
The Swamp will be sold out and the weather should be welcoming. Game time temperature is expected to be 81 degrees with 88% humidity and 50% chance of rain with close to 89,000 hyped up Florida fans.
The weather, crowd and The Gators will make this a miserable trip for the Utes.
The Utes Don’t Care About The Weather or The Crowd, this is the most important opening game in Utah’s history. UTAH 31 FLORIDA 24
MCA Buccaneers Coach’s Show w Bradley Warren August 30
The Rattler Effect
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Coming off a 7-6 season with a win over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, things are looking bright in Columbia, South Carolina.
Shane Beamer has the Gamecock Nation believing that Carolina will be contenders in the SEC East in 2022. I cannot think of a more optimistic fanbase than South Carolina in my history as a college football fan.
South Carolina is still in rebuilding mode; expectations are rising once again until you look at a schedule from hell.
South Carolina has a lot of experience returning this fall, it has a good young head coach and with the addition of Spencer Rattler at QB, the Gamecocks look to make noise in the SEC East.
South Carolina has put all their eggs in the basket of one Spencer Rattler, the Oklahoma transfer at QB. Can Rattler lead this program to 8 wins this fall? Let us look at the schedule.
9/3/22 vs Georgia State: South Carolina is only a 13-point favorite at home over Georgia State currently. Does that mean Carolina could struggle in this contest. Give me Carolina at home 34-17. 1-0
9/10/22 @ Arkansas: The Hogs are expected to be good, and Carolina must travel to NW Arkansas to play this one. This is one of those games Carolina must have if they want to be relevant in 2022. KJ Jefferson will be too much for Carolina on the road. Arkansas wins 35-24. Carolina is 1-1
9/17/22 vs Georgia: Carolina fans point this game as one that will shape a season. I believe it is listed as a noon kickoff in that furnace of a stadium.
September games in Columbia are brutal. If you lose to Arkansas on the road, then how do you expect to beat UGA? They will not. UGA wins 38-20. Carolina drops to 1-2.
9/24/22 vs Charlotte: Carolina bounces back with a 42-13 win to even the record at 2-2
10/1/22 vs South Carolina State: Carolina wins this one easily 49-10. 3-2 on the season.
10/8/22 @ Kentucky: UK thinks the UGA game at home in November will be for the SEC East Championship.
Could the Cats take South Carolina lightly? Carolina puts up a great fight, but they come up short in Lexington 24-21 to sit at 3-3 at the halfway point of the season. 0-3 in the SEC.
10/22/22 vs Texas A&M: This is where Carolina salvages their season when an overrated Aggie team travels to Columbia.
Everything comes together on this day for South Carolina and Sandstorm reigns as it is piped into a raucous crowd. Carolina wins 31-27 to go to 4-3 on the season. 1-3 in the SEC.
10/29/22 vs Missouri: Mizzou gets thumped by Carolina 31-14. 5-3 and 2-3.
11/5/22 @ Vanderbilt: Vandy is awful. Carolina easily 45-10. 6-3 and 3-3 in SEC play. Bowl eligible.
11/12/22 @ Florida: Toss up game. I like Carolina’s depth right now better than Florida’s. Shaky nod to Carolina 28-27. 7-3 and 4-3.
11/19/22 vs Tennessee: Senior night in Columbia. Tennessee is a trendy pick this fall based on their offense. Can they stop anyone is the key?
I like South Carolina’s defense better than the Vols. Give me Carolina in front of a jacked-up home crowd 38-35 in a wild affair. 8-3 and 5-3.
11/26/22 @ Clemson: I will not pick South Carolina to ever beat Clemson again until they accomplish it. Clemson at home 28-21. 8-4 regular season and Shane Beamer could run for office in the state.
Best case: 8-4 as outlined above with a bowl game in Orlando or Tampa on NYD.
Worst Case: 5-7 with losses to Arkansas, Kentucky, Georgia, Texas A&M, Florida, Tennessee, and Clemson.
We will see how the Spencer Rattler experiment transpires.
Frederica Academy Knights Coach’s Show w Brandon Derrick August 24
Brunswick High Pirates Coach’s Show w Garrett Grady August 24
The Knights Conquest
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The UCF Knights play seven home games during the 2022 football schedule; four of the first five games are inside the Bounce House at FBC Mortgage Stadium.
The most attractive home games from a fan perspective are likely Power 5 opponents Louisville and Georgia Tech, as well as in-conference foes SMU and Cincinnati.
The road games feature an in-state battle with Florida Atlantic, as well as trips to East Carolina and USF.
The road game for the Knights against the Bulls might be the last between UCF and USF for quite some time, as UCF heads off to the Big XII on July 1, 2023.
To win the AAC title in the last year of the AAC’s existence, the Knights will need to be very good during the back end of their schedule. Starting with the road game against East Carolina (Oct. 22), UCF played six consecutive conference games that contained their own pitfalls.
2022 UCF Knights Football Schedule
Sep. 1, South Carolina State: The HBCU National Champions are no match for The Knights. UCF wins in a blowout.
Sep. 9, Louisville: This is Louisville’s first ever trip to Orlando. As we learned first-hand in last season’s match-up, Cunningham’s dual-threat ability has been a problem for UCF historically.
The Bounce House will be Rocking for revenge after last season’s heartbreaking loss. This is a measuring stick game for The Knights. The crowd and humidity will play a big role in this game. UCF 31 Louisville 27
Sep. 17, @ Florida Atlantic: This is UCF’s only true road game in the entire first half of the season. UCF flies by the Owls 48-17
Sep. 24, Georgia Tech: This game in Orlando was initially scheduled for September 16th, 2017, but was canceled due to Hurricane Irma. This is Georgia Tech’s first-ever trip to The Bounce House and they’ll get bounced back to Atlanta. UCF 38- GT 20.
Oct. 1, SMU: The Knights kick off conference play against a team that blew them out last year. Tanner Mordecai has found a home at SMU after sitting on the benching at Oklahoma for three years.
He’s a Walter Camp, Davey O’Brien, and Maxwell Award Watch-lister coming into 2022. With that being said, UCF has never lost to SMU at home. UCF 34 SMU 30
Oct. 13, Temple: The Owls new coaching staff will bring a new energy, but this is a bad football team. UCF smokes another parliament of Owls.
Oct. 22, @East Carolina: The Knights first real road game. The Pirates have 14 returning starters, East Carolina is poised for another winning season and will be a tough out in the American Athletic Conference.
This is a trap game with the Knights looking ahead to the showdown with Cincinnati. ECU 30 UCF 28
Oct. 29, Cincinnati: This will be the big one for American Athletic Conference play.
The Bearcats have lost a ton of talent especially at the skill positions.
Who is going to replace Desmond Ridder, Jerome Ford, Alec Pierce on offense and Sauce Gardner, Coby Bryant and Bryan Cook on defense?
There will be an electric atmosphere at The Bounce House and The Knights will feed off the crowd in a shocker. UCF 27-Cincinnati 24
Nov. 5, @Memphis: The 2022 Tigers are full of veterans on offense, Memphis should be strong in the defensive backfield, and overall, they should be just a wee bit motivated by being left out of the BIG 12 expansion. This should be a true American Athletic Conference shootout. UCF 48 Memphis 38
Nov. 12, @Tulane: The Knights will surf the Green Wave. UCF 37- Tulane 16
Nov. 19, Navy: Navy can play! Their offense can still control the clock, the running game was ninth in America, and their defense even finished 34th in the nation and wasn’t bad.
The Knights sail easily by the Midshipmen all things considered. UCF 31 Navy 10
Nov. 25, @USF: The Cows are still crying about being left out of the BIG 12. This may be the final ‘War on I-4” and the Knights will sacrifice the Bulls. UCF 53-USF 13
Gus Malzahn overcame a rash of injuries to put together a solid 9–4 season in his UCF debut. With 14 returning starters and a host of plug-and-play transfer additions, The Knights will leap back into the AAC championship game.
Camden County Wildcats Coach’s Show w Jeff Herron August 23
