Recap of Bulldog Hotline,.......

Bulldog Hotline - Oct. 24, 2005

By Jim_from_duluth on Monday, October 24, 2005 - 8:04 pm:

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Dawg Treasures: Bulldog Hotline Reports (1999-2005): Bulldog Hotline - Oct. 24, 2005

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Munson opened tonite thinking college football sifted some things out this weekend, with Auburn, Texas Tech & Virginia all getting beat. UGA almost went down as injuries struck all over the field, including the QB. We ran into a buzzsaw with Arkansas who blitzed every play and broke down our blocking schemes. It looks like we were saved by the secondary and by the punter. And the kicker looks bigger and bigger. We looked like we might have up to 7 starters out for Florida but now maybe only 4 or 5.

Munson is even more concerned to CMR about the defense. CMR said he tried to tell everyone about Ark’s speed last week. He thought they were also about as physical as any team he’s seen. When you turn the film on its easy to see what you’re up against.

Munson kept waiting for us to come down the field and control the clock. This game we could only muster one first down and field position but couldn’t finish the game. Give credit to their DC. They were twisting and blitzing and its hard to run into that. We also had trouble getting off jams. They decided our WRs weren’t good enough to beat them so they locked up.

Joe T is now in a tough situation. But it is one he’s been waiting on for a long time. No one gets excited when a teammate gets hurt. Joe T already has a good feel for the fronts and coverages Florida has played to date. We’re starting to give him a game plan he can work with.

#5 for Ark can really run. Richt repeated he thought Ark. was the fastest team he’s seen. Our plan was to score enough to get them out of their plan. We weren’t able to get far enough ahead.

CMR thinks Anderson will be back this week. But Dixson is probably out and Golston is not ready yet. Hopefully we’ve got enough to play this week and make some plays.

Jeremy from Memphis opened the callers wants the OL challenged. CMR agrees. As for the defense, he noted what LSU & Bama did to Florida, affecting Leak by blitzing. He also suggested some things to do against Florida blitzes.

Sonny in Evans thinks we need to emphasize the running game, thinking we’ve relied on defense & special teams too much. He is very concerned how inconsistent the ground game has been. CMR cited the offensive stats which were good until this past game and said we’ve been a balanced and complete team most of the year. We do have to make sure we can move the ball on the ground. If we don’t run the ball well it may be because the passing game doesn’t open it up, and vice versa.

Hank in Ila reminded CMR he was the guy who tried to imitate Pat Dye before the Tenn. game. He also said Finish the Drill was very inspirational. (He also asked if the team had ever seen The Junction Boys.) Hank also issued a challenge to the OL & DL, and the RBs as well .. nothing wrong with breaking a tackle.

Bob in Covington thinks Arkansas is the best 2-5 team in the country. CMR notes they’ve been at home getting booed. And they got caught by Vandy. But we know Vandy is better than they’ve been. Sometimes you’re going to get caught. If you don’t have a strong foundation of character you will get beat on a day like this. But we were strong enough to survive the scare.

Bill in Cordele cited a quote that the greatest pleasure in life is doing what others say can’t be done. CMR said the coaches try to look at the bright side of things. For example, its not good DJ will miss the Florida game but good will be back for Auburn. Anderson and Taylor are coming back and it won’t be long until Golston is coming back. He also noted Riggs is out for the year at Tenn.

Lewis in Hawkinsville asked if we’d considered using Johnson & Thompson in the middle some? CMR thinks Charles could jump inside and play a little at 3-technique. It almost came to that in the last game. We still have Q Moses & Marcus Howard outside if we had to work Charles inside. Owens, Swain and Gant along with Anderson might be enough. We also have Elmore there.

Michael in Lovejoy wondered about Florida’s offense. CMR says they have a fine running game from the shotgun, including the zone play and shovel pass. You have to stay fundamentally sound and get the numbers right against the running game. We need a happy medium with that and getting a pass rush. It will come down to how well we tackle.

Chris in Rome said Alltel Stadium is really the hot seat, citing talk of the hot seat and coming out arm-in-arm. Also, what about differences in blitzing between VanGorder and Martinez? CMR thinks we’ve already proven we’re a unified team. The defensive philosophy is about the same as before.

Pat in Cumming was pleased to see the long passes. If Bailey can reel a couple in we would look even better. He also thinks we should study what Kines did at Bama to handle Urban’s offense. And how close is Barnes to being ready? CMR says he’s not too far off, and is now one play away. Right now we think Joe is the best guy for the job. Blake is now getting more reps as the backup. And we moved Cox off the scout team to the offensive side of the field.

Eddie in Statham wanted to follow up regarding Barnes. If Joe T really struggles, is there a chance we would see Barnes? CMR said we could if Joe struggles really badly, but we expect him to do a good job. He needs a good running game and good pass protection. He can do a good job but can’t put the team on his shoulders. We could still lose if everyone else doesn’t do their part. This entire team has got to suck it up and play its best ball of the season to win this game and secure the SEC East title.

Paul in Jesup dared CMR to shave his head if we went undefeated. CMR said sure, what the heck. Maybe CMR will make the bet if the whole team does it as well.

Kevin in Valdosta wants Joe T to know the team and fans have his back. He expects Florida to blitz often. He also made notes from the Bama game – quick slants, and play action w/rollouts, worked for Bama. UF’s DEs pursue too quickly. Also, Leak will often feel pressure and run into the pocket to draw the safety up. Warn Blue not to get sucked in too quickly. CMR appreciates all the extra help he’s getting tonite.

Eddie in Acworth – thrilled with 7-0 but every week gets harder and harder. He wonders how Milner is doing. CMR said Milner will be able to play. He should be full speed by Wed. Eddie also asked about screen passes to Browning and Brown. CMR said last week was a game you may want to call a screen pass, but Ark. had intercepted a screen vs. Auburn. They do a great job of snugging up tight and keeping discipline.

Mark in Peachtree City asked about the play where we fake to the FB. Also mentioned the kicking game. CMR thinks both kickers are having all SEC years. Coutu is making about every kick and kicking off well, and Gordon has just been bombing the ball with great height, plus we have guys like Gillam and Henderson ready to pounce on fumbles or down the ball. As for the FB play, you have to find the right coverage and call it.

Al in Baxley wanted to pass along more info – a station in Baxley will have a coffee/doughnut break for fans traveling down for the game.

John in Valdosta wonders what CMR thinks of the spread offense. CMR noted Urban’s record is his first year at a school is that offense struggles, then it really hits stride its second year. The caller also mentioned Fla. DE Ray McDonald would be back and to expect to see more of Josh Portis subbing for Leak at QB. (Was this guy a gator fan?)

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Many thanks to Jim_from_Duluth and Dawg Treasures for reporting HotLine info.!!!

GO DAWGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!