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Published Sep 22, 2017
Staff Roundtable: Florida-Kentucky Predictions
Inside the Gators
Staff

Inside the Gators staffers Andrew Olson and Mark Wheeler take a closer look at this weekend's match-up between Florida and Kentucky, including predicting a winner.

1) Heading into game three, which position group concerns you the most?

Olson: Linebacker stands out as the biggest concern to me right now. The three healthy starters – David Reese, Vosean Joseph and Jeremiah Moon – are the only reliable players at the position. With Kylan Johnson’s hamstring problems, anything the Gators get from him is a bonus. With the lack of depth, linebacker will likely be the most worn down position group on defense on a weekly basis.

Wheeler: There's a couple to choose from including safety, linebacker, tight end and offensive line. However, to me the one that sticks out the most is defensive tackle. We knew there would be a drop-off to some degree at the position with the departures of Caleb Brantley and Joey Ivie to the NFL. I don't believe anyone thought though that it would be this big of a drop-off. With Florida lacking in talent and depth at linebacker, one way to help that position group out was for the defensive tackles to step up. However, not only have Khairi Clark and Taven Bryan shown no ability to collapse the pocket in pass defense, they are getting pushed around in the run game. The good news is Tedarrell Slaton and Kyree Campbell have provided some spark. How long before they see more and more snaps though at the expense of the two starters?

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