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Published Aug 24, 2019
Five things we learned against Miami
Joseph Hastings  •  1standTenFlorida
Recruiting Reporter

For the first time since the 2013 season, Florida and Miami squared off against each other on Saturday night at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.

Both teams were sloppy in the first half, with the Gators turning the ball over twice and the Hurricanes getting called for eight penalties.

Dan Mullen and company regained their form in the final two quarters and were able to escape with a 24-20 victory over UM.

Here are five things we learned from Florida's game against Miami.

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1. The offensive line did not give any push for the run game.

A major question coming into this season is how Florida's offensive line would hold up with four new starters.

The Gators lost Martez Ivey, Jawaan Taylor, Tyler Jordan and Fred Johnson, so the o-line was one group to pay attention to for this game and for the season.

Florida did not get much push from their offensive line in the run game, which was evidenced by the team's 52 total rushing yards on the night. Stone Forsythe also had a couple of penalties that cost the team yardage.

John Hevesy will have a few weeks before they take on their first SEC opponent when UF plays Kentucky on Sept. 14. Getting Lamical Perine, Malik Davis and Dameon Pierce going will be a priority for UF this season. If the o-line holds up and allows the runners to be productive, then it will open up play action for the passing game this year.

2. Adam Shuler Jabari Zuniga, Jonathan Greenard and Ventrell Miller were key contributors. 

The combination of Adam Shuler, Jabari Zuniga, Jonathan Greenard and Ventrell Miller produced 22 total tackles and 5.5 sacks on the night.

Miller, a redshirt sophomore, stood out against Miami by having six total tackles and two sacks on his own. To put that into perspective, Miller only had 15 total tackles and one sack in 13 games played last season.

As for Greenard, the grad transfer from Louisville showed why he's a solid fit at the BUCK position in Todd Grantham's defense. Greenard had two tackles for loss and made his presence known throughout the game.

Zuniga continues to be impressive as a strong side defensive end and blew past offensive linemen on several plays. It's safe to say that Grantham likes what he has to work with as it pertains to rushing quarterbacks this season.

3. Florida took a long time getting their wideouts involved in the offense.

Coming into this season, a storyline surrounding the Gators is the depth that they have at wide receiver. Although UF's roster features a number of talented players on the perimeter, the team did not make them a priority in the first half.

The trio of Trevon Grimes, Tyrie Cleveland and Van Jefferson each had just one catch during the game, with none of those receptions coming in the first half. As mentioned beforehand, Toney reeled in only one catch on the night, which was a momentum changer that gave Florida the lead.

In fact, by the game's conclusion, running back Lamical Perine led the team with six catches versus Miami. Whether it was play calling or Feleipe Franks' decision-making, Florida would like to get their wideouts involved earlier in games as the season progresses.

4. Feleipe Franks was up and down throughout the game.

The stat sheet looked good for Feleipe Franks at halftime as Florida's starting quarterback went 7-9 with 109 yards and a touchdown.

If you take out that big play by Toney in the first quarter, however, Franks was 6-8 with 43 yards (5.4 yards per attempt). He also completed just four passes to wide receivers in the first half.

Although Franks had an interception in the fourth quarter on a high pass and another interception later on, he responded well at times in the second half. Franks went 10-18 with 145 yards and threw for two touchdowns as well.

A significant drive for Franks and the Gators came after Miami missed a 27-yard field goal attempt. Florida responded with a four-play, 80-yard drive that chewed only 1 minute and 30 seconds of clock time. That drive included a 65-yard reception by Josh Hammond after Franks dropped the ball perfectly in the bread basket.

Unfortunately, his next drive ended just as soon as it started with an interception that had no chance for his target to get the ball. Franks turnovers stifled UF's offense at inopportune times versus the Hurricanes.

Dan Mullen and company will like to see Franks be more consistent throughout future game if they want to continue their success from last season.

5. Marco Wilson is back to form.

If there was any doubt that Marco Wilson is back, then those questions were put to rest on Saturday.

Wilson had five total tackles against the Hurricanes, four of which were solo. He did a good job of wrapping ball carriers up and his left knee did not seem to bother him, which is a positive sign after he tore his ACL a year ago.

The former American Heritage defensive back piled up 34 tackles, 10 pass breakups and was named to the Coaches Freshman All-SEC Team in his true freshman campaign.

Torrian Gray and the rest of Florida's coaching staff should be licking their chops with both Wilson and C.J. Henderson in the secondary. Getting Brad Stewart back after he was suspended for the Miami game will be crucial for UF's defensive back corps as well.

Stay tuned to GatorsTerritory.