Florida Gators offensive coordinator Brent Pease met with the media on Tuesday ahead of the 11th game of the season against the Georgia Southern Eagles on Saturday, Nov. 23. The game is set to kick off at 2 p.m. and air live on pay-per-view.

TOUGHING IT OUT

One of the most understandably criticized units on the Florida football program has been the offensive line, but the patchwork unit played well on Saturday against South Carolina after putting together a lackluster performance just one week earlier versus Vanderbilt.

“I think they did a better job of controlling the line of scrimmage and being physical. I mean, all of our guys, they play with great effort. It’s just a matter of being a body on a body, not letting guys slip you,” Pease explained. “I think Trenton Brown has come on and gotten a lot better. By any means, were they all graded out perfect? No. It’s still, I think we need to be better adjusting along the way of when teams start adjusting to us.”

One of the most recent additions to the line is redshirt sophomore Ian Silberman, who is now the starting left guard with redshirt junior Max Garcia filling in at left tackle.

“I think he’s played a lot better, and we’ve used him,” said Pease. “He’s gotten a lot better in dealing, being nicked up here or there. But he’s gotten a lot better in practice, pass-wise. He’s an athletic kid that can run, so I’m happy with what he is doing. Continue to be more consistent.”

Garcia believes that the Gators were able to take a step forward up front because of some continuity on the line, a unit that has been in constant disarray all season.



“I don’t remember the last time we had the same lineup as an offensive line. We got that. That was the second week in a row we’ve had the same offensive line, so when we can do that, that’s only going to get us better. As far as chemistry, the offensive line is all about chemistry. So I think we will improve from here if we can be consistent,” he said.

He also said the offensive line had a physical mindset entering the game and knew that it would have to step up in a major way if Florida even had the chance to pull off an upset.

“We just knew what we had to do. We knew we had to put the team on our back. We try to do that week in and week out because we know we’ve been struggling. So we kind of had the same mentality,” Garcia said. “I just kind of felt like guys were really locked in and we really wanted to get that win. I felt like guys were all in trying to get that victory. I think that was the biggest part.”

RUNNING WITH AN OPPORTUNITY

Freshman running back Kelvin Taylor has made the most of the chance provided to him by sophomore Matt Jones being lost for the season with a torn meniscus. Though he is only averaging 4.5 yards per carry, Taylor has scored three of the Gators’ last four touchdowns over the last two games and showed better awareness against Vanderbilt.

“I think Kelvin’s improved tremendously … I’m excited about Kelvin. I think he’s really come on with the game experience,” Pease said. “He’s getting all these things, he’s getting indoctrinated as a freshman and that’s hard. But he’s a kid that’s willing to do it, and he’s done a good job with it. And he’ll get better and better. I want to see him in his third and fourth year, he’s going to probably be outstanding.”

Pease admitted that Taylor would likely be sharing carries with Jones if he was still healthy, noting that a team needs to backs to carry the load in the SEC, but also said he is still pleased with what redshirt junior Mack Brown has done as a second-stringer.

The direct snaps are also expected to continue and were actually installed during the spring. Jones was the main trigger man at that time, but with Taylor taking over things should only get better when running out of that formation.

NOTES AND QUOTES

» On whether the two touchdown drives were scripted: “To be honest with you, it was different than before because usually we have a script of what we work off of. This, we kind of had a menu of plays that, OK, we’re going to pick and choose and see kind of down and distance, what’s going to fit maybe what they’re doing. So it was a little bit different from what we’ve done in the past.”

» On if Saturday was his most creative offensive game plan at Florida: “I would say, yeah, I would put it in there as some things we had to do. I mean, I think we probably were a little more abstract than what we’ve done in the past.”

» On whether the Gators showed too much: “There’s something to build on. I think in the game nowadays, as much film you study as other teams, it’s not like we invented it. … There’s always ways, I think, you’re trying to manage, to get, the structure of the defense I guess in your favor.”