Gators Q&A: Why is Tennessee game in November? Did DJ impress Lane Kiffin?
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GAINESVILLE — Florida prepares to host Tennessee while looking to keep the good times rolling against the Vols in the Swamp amid a tough stretch for the Gators.
UF (3-7, 2-5 SEC) has lost three consecutive games away from home, but the Vols could provide a panacea.
Tennessee has dropped 10 straight at UF and won just three times since 2005 during the longstanding series. Josh Heupel’s Vols (7-3, 3-3) have won two of the past three but lost by a combined 67-30 in his two trips to the Swamp.
A November game between the school kicks off burning questions ahead of Saturday night’s showdown.
Why is this game so late in the season?
A Florida-Tennessee showdown in September highlighted the early SEC schedule for decades — except on rare occasions.
The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the Northeast pushed the 2001 game into early December when the Vols stunned Steve Spurrier’s club 34-32, perhaps the most crushing of the Head Ball Coach’s five homes losses during his 12 seasons. The rivals squared off at noon in Knoxville on Oct. 4, 2014, during a sleepy 10-9 Gators’ win led by freshman backup quarterback Treon Harris.
Otherwise, the two schools played in September every season from 1992 until 2024 when Florida fell 23-17 in overtime Oct. 12 at Tennessee.
Times have changed.
The annual matchup will end its 35-year run in 2026, with the schools next meeting in 2027.
Even edge rusher George Gumbs Jr., a native of Chicago, said it just doesn’t feel right Florida-Tennessee won’t meet every season.
“When you think Florida, there are some teams you always play and one will be Tennessee, so it is a little weird,” he said.
The Gators-Vols in November also feels off.
Did DJ Lagway impress?
With Lane Kiffin looking on, Lagway found his stride at times during last Saturday’s 34-24 loss at Ole Miss.
If Kiffin become Florida’s next head coach, he’ll need a playmaking quarterback to run his well-oiled attack, currently averaging 37.2 points and in the top three in total offense every season since he arrived in 2020.
Lagway’s sophomore slump, including five interceptions at LSU and three at Kentucky, would give Kiffin pause if he lands in Gainesville.
Kiffin offered a tepid assessment of the state of Lagway’s game leading up to Florida’s visit.
“I don’t know that I’ve seen growth,” Kiffin said. “I do know this: I watched the guy beat us last year and play great and have one of the highest yards per completion of any player in the country last year. I know the guy can play as well as anyone in the country at times.
“We gotta make sure that’s not against us.”
Lagway didn’t beat Ole Miss again, but he gave the Gators a chance and played much better than he has.
Lagway showed dual-threat ability, along better arm strength and accuracy on the deep ball against the Rebels. A 43-yard hook-up with TJ Abrams followed a 10-yard run by Lagway on 3rd-and-9. A 12-yard scamper followed the completion to set up a 5-yard Lagway touchdown run.
Later, he easily connected with J. Michael Sturdivant on a 57-yard touchdown throw to the pylon, stirring memories of 2024 when the long ball made Lagway one of the nation’s most promising young signal-callers.
Kiffin might have seen something to work with. Or he might decide to bring along his own quarterback, be it redshirt sophomore Austin Simmons, a one-time UF commit, or Trinidad Chambliss, a 23-year-old who could garner another year of eligibility.
Lagway, at least, gave Kiffin something to ponder.
Will the Gators handle Tennessee’s tempo?
Heupel’s attack likes to play fast and catch defenses flat-footed.
Florida will have to be ready. Too often the Gators don’t get defensive calls and line up in time.
“If we’re going fast and then you wait on the call, and it gets sent, then you start getting a little bit stressed like, ‘OK, these guys are setting right in front of me, and I don’t have a call,’ so that will be the thing,” Gumbs said. “As long as everyone’s cleats are in the ground, we play good ball.”
The Gators have faced three up-tempo teams: USF, Mississippi State and Ole Miss. Each time, Florida’s defense struggled to keep up.
USF ran just 67 plays, or seven below the Bulls’ season average, during an 18-16 upset Sept. 6 in the Swamp. But at key moments the Bulls caught Florida defenders waiting for a defensive call and lining up late.
Mississippi State ran 80 plays and would have upset the Gators to snap a 14-game SEC skid if not for a late interception while in field-goal range during a 23-21 loss Oct. 19 in Gainesville. Ole Miss ran 83 plays, holding the ball for 37:57, while outscoring UF 14-0 during the fourth quarter.
The Vols will look to put the Gators on their heels again.
Where are the halftime adjustments?
Another game, another no-show during the game’s second half.
Saturday’s loss marked the ninth consecutive game Florida has been outscored in the second half and sixth time the Gators failed to score a point in the game’s final 15 minutes, including a week earlier at Kentucky.
Opponents have outscored UF 115-47 during the second half — one more sign the coaching has not been up to snuff.
Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com
Up next …
Tennessee (7-3, 3-3 SEC) at UF (3-7, 2-5)
When: 7:30 p.m., Saturday
Where:Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville
TV: SEC Network
Favorite: UF by 1.5 points
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