• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

Game Thread Gator Bowl: tOSU vs. Florida, Mon. Jan 2, 1 ET, ESPN2

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. ? Urban Meyer is not here. Not on the Ohio State sideline yet. No longer, obviously, on the Florida sideline.
When the Gator Bowl is played on Monday, Meyer won?t even be in town. But his shadow will be hard to escape.

Ohio State players know that as soon as the game ends, they will become Meyer?s to mold.

Florida players have had a year to adjust to his absence. Many Gators fans have been angered by Meyer?s return to coaching not even 12 months after he stepped down ? for the second time ? citing health and family reasons.

They feel betrayed by his change of heart. They cast much of the blame for this year?s 6-6 season on his departure. Florida?s only victories after September came against Furman ? and the Paladins of the Football Championship Subdivision threw quite a scare into the Gators ? and Vanderbilt.

Florida?s two national championships under Meyer seem long ago.
But Florida?s players don?t seem to share their fans? vitriol.
?Everybody wants us to be pumped up about the Urban Meyer thing,? sophomore guard Jon Halapio said. ?(But to us), he?s just long gone. We?re moving forward as a football team.?

Like almost all of Florida?s players, Halapio was recruited by Meyer. Although he might have expected to play his entire career for him, Halapio didn?t take Meyer?s exit and subsequent reemergence at Ohio State personally.

?I don?t feel betrayed,? he said. ?I think the fans feel that way because of our record. Obviously, if we were undefeated, the fans wouldn?t feel that way.?

Many of the players Meyer recruited for the current Gators haven?t panned out as anticipated. Quarterback John Brantley has struggled as Tim Tebow?s successor. The defense is ranked ninth nationally in yards allowed, but it has forced few turnovers and hasn?t been able to overcome a sluggish offense. In Florida?s six losses, its offense has scored a total of five touchdowns.

Coach Will Muschamp has a defensive background. Meyer?s expertise is offense. Florida fans are stunned by the dysfunction the Gators have experienced without Meyer.
Click to expand...
more
http://www.buckeyeplanet.com/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&noquote=1&p=2073796
 
Upvote 0
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ovTS3y79DI"]Ohio State team on go carts Dec. 28, 2011 - YouTube[/ame]

Looks like someone missed the no bumping rule & took out Fickell & his son :lol:
 
Upvote 0
How Brantley plays, and how the good guys attack him, will be a key story line. At times and when healthy Brantley has been passable at QB. With some decent playmakers around him they can do enough while riding a solid D to give OSU problems.

With that said, I am looking forward to the progress of Braxton Miller. He made some strides in the 2nd half of the year and I am hoping he can continue against a solid SEC D.
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top