Arkansas at Florida: A Must-Win Game With an Incredible Cause Behind It

After losing to the Georgia Bulldogs 43-20, the Gators are welcoming the 2-6 Arkansas Razorbacks to The Swamp this Saturday at Noon on ESPN2.

Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier said of Arkansas in his press conference on Monday, “Although their record doesn’t reflect it, this is a team that has been in a lot of close games.”

Arkansas did not play last week as they were on their bye, so the Gators will be facing a well-rested Razorbacks team. Also, Arkansas let go of their offensive coordinator, Dan Enos, after their 7-3 loss to Mississippi State. Arkansas promoted quarterbacks coach Kenny Guiton to be their interim offensive coordinator.

Napier commented on the coaching change and how the bye week “magnifies” it.

“I think it’s a big part of the story this week relative to the prep…what flavor do we get?” Napier said.

This matchup against Arkansas is the definition of a must-win game for the Gators if they want to secure bowl eligibility. The remaining schedule for Florida (as of this week) after Arkansas includes three top-15 teams in the AP Poll, which are LSU at 13, Missouri at 14 and Florida State at 4. 

The Gators have played much better in The Swamp this season and will need another good performance to secure a bowl bid against the Razorbacks.

Gators Wearing All-Black Uniforms for First Time Ever for Salute to Service Weekend 

The Florida Gators will be wearing all-black uniforms in honor of the Salute to Service weekend that the University of Florida will be hosting.

This will be the first time ever in school history that the Gators will wear all-black uniforms it makes it that much more special that they are attached to a great cause. The uniforms the Gators wear will be auctioned off and the proceeds will go to military families in need. 

Napier commented on the Gators wearing all-black uniforms for the Salute to Service Weekend.

“We’re going to honor all of our military members, our veterans, local first responders, included in that group…I know everyone is excited about the uniform, but I do think it’s important, I don’t want to lose sight of the intent here relative to what were are trying to do,” Napier said.

Napier expanded further on the significance of what the all-black uniforms represent.

“Really want to create awareness and show gratitude and appreciation for these people who chose a life of service and ultimately put their life at risk to protect some of these freedoms that I believe, sometimes we ultimately take for granted.”

Napier said that the team worked with military branches in the state and locally to decide which five core values would be present on the nameplates of the jerseys and those values are honor, courage, commitment, excellence, and integrity.

Florida will also be carrying out the Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Flag onto the field prior to the game.

Keys to Victory for Gators

Keeping Arkansas QB KJ Jefferson Contained on QB Runs and Scrambles 

Arkansas QB KJ Jefferson leads the team in carries with 112 on the season. The Gators defense needs to make sure that Jefferson stays contained on QB runs and scrambles out of the pocket. 

If Jefferson does run or scramble, the Gators’ defense needs to swarm to the ball, as one defender likely won’t be enough to bring down the 6’3, 247-pound quarterback. 

If the Gators can keep Jefferson in the pocket, they can give themselves opportunities to get sacks, as Jefferson has been sacked 31 times on the season. 

Shutting Down Arkansas WR Andrew Armstrong 

The Gators’ defense allowed 315 yards passing (including 135 to Georgia WR Ladd McConkey) against the Bulldogs, which was a season-high. The Gators passing defense will be looking to bounce back and they can do that by shutting down Razorbacks WR Andrew Armstrong. 

Armstrong has 43 catches for 520 yards and four touchdowns on the season, which leads the team in all three categories. 

The Gators have been burned by opposing teams’ number-one receiver a few times this year (Xavier Legette of South Carolina and the aforementioned McConkey of Georgia), so shutting down Arkansas’s number-one receiver in Armstrong will be high on the priority list for the Gators defense this Saturday. 

Ensure that QB Graham Mertz’s Jersey Stays Clean 

After Florida QB Graham Mertz was sacked four times against the Bulldogs and was under pressure for the majority of the game, the Gators’ offensive line needs to keep his jersey clean against Arkansas. 

Arkansas comes into this game with 22 sacks on the season, so they have been able to get after opposing quarterbacks. It’s up to the Gators’ offensive line to bounce back from a rough game against Georgia and protect Mertz.

Keeping Mertz’s jersey clean doesn’t have to just come from pass protection, though, as the Gators should look to run the football more against the Razorbacks too.

Get the Running Game Going Early and Often

The Gators were not able to get the running game going against Georgia as the score got away from them and forced the offense to go pass-heavy, but against Arkansas, the Gators had a chance to go back to running the ball effectively. 

RB Montrell Johnson actually had a good game against Georgia, rushing for 82 yards on 9 carries, but, again, the Gators had to go away from the running game due to the score.

Arkansas ranks 51st in the NCAA in rushing defense, allowing just 131.6 yards per game and 3.66 yards per carry, so they are somewhat stingy against the run.

That being said, Florida still needs to run the football more often than not against the Razorbacks to allow the offense to fully open up.

Final Thoughts

Arkansas has struggled this year but has been in almost every game they have played in, with every one of their losses this season being by 12 points or less. The Razorbacks will be rolling out a somewhat new offense called by interim offensive coordinator, Kenny Guiton, coming off a bye week. The Gators will need to play mistake-free football and lean on the home crowd to give them some energy in what is a must-win game.