JTrain Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 I see similarities here. OK, let me explain before you jump on me. Would '09 UF win the head-to-head? Definitely. Probably by a couple scores. That said, I think it is a useful analogy based on how Florida has played thus far. 2001 Nebraska was very highly touted in the preseason, ranked 4th in the AP poll. Their schedule was pretty soft for the most part, and it was very tough to tell how great they really were, although everyone just assumed they were indeed great. Their first big test was against a very overrated Notre Dame team (ranked 17th at the time, finished 5-6), and they won 27-10 giving the fan base a lot of false confidence and making Crouch the Heisman front-runner. They also beat Oklahoma, their most impressive win of the season, by playing a smart game and using a brilliant trick play. However, they turned out to have plenty of flaws, and got handled by CU and Miami to end the season in a terrible fashion. 2009 Florida was very, VERY highly touted in the preseason, ranked 1st in every poll known to man. Their early schedule has been pretty soft, and their only win against a ranked team has been against an extremely overrated LSU team (that should have lost to Miss. St.). Tebow is being handed the Heisman by default, despite having done very little to deserve even being mentioned as a candidate. Fan base is full of false confidence as everyone still worships Tebow and thinks the win at Death Valley was a great feat. Even though they play in the very good SEC, they don't have to play Alabama (at least in the regular season), the only other legit top 15 team in the conference, IMO. Now, Florida does have the clear advantage of WAY more talent on defense and a much better offensive playcaller than '01 NU. But I still think the similarities are worth noting, and I think Florida will end up with two losses (one being Arkansas, USC or possibly even Georgia or FSU, and the other being to Bama in the CCG). They then probably slip into a BCS at-large spot because of the Tebow factor, but hopefully slip to the Cotton. Quote Link to comment
zoogs Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 IIRC, Crouch didn't even appear on a lot of folks' Heisman radars until the week leading up to OU, and after that he took charge. I don't think Florida's defense is that week however. The similarities might be a stretch... Quote Link to comment
JTrain Posted October 16, 2009 Author Share Posted October 16, 2009 IIRC, Crouch didn't even appear on a lot of folks' Heisman radars until the week leading up to OU, and after that he took charge. I don't think Florida's defense is that week however. The similarities might be a stretch... You're probably right about Crouch, either way... you can compare the OU game to Florida's LSU game too. That works. I didn't say UF's D was weak... I said they have WAY more talent on defense. I just think Florida is overrated, and they are psychologically slipping into the "play not to lose" mentality, thinking they are the clear #1 and all they have to do is sit on it. Well they're going to get punched in the mouth at some point and need to dig themselves out of a hole, and suddenly Tebow's 4.3 ypc running isn't going to work. And missing Harvin is finally going to show. Quote Link to comment
westgatehusker Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 I see similarities here. OK, let me explain before you jump on me. Would '09 UF win the head-to-head? Definitely. Probably by a couple scores. That said, I think it is a useful analogy based on how Florida has played thus far. 2001 Nebraska was very highly touted in the preseason, ranked 4th in the AP poll. Their schedule was pretty soft for the most part, and it was very tough to tell how great they really were, although everyone just assumed they were indeed great. Their first big test was against a very overrated Notre Dame team (ranked 17th at the time, finished 5-6), and they won 27-10 giving the fan base a lot of false confidence and making Crouch the Heisman front-runner. They also beat Oklahoma, their most impressive win of the season, by playing a smart game and using a brilliant trick play. However, they turned out to have plenty of flaws, and got handled by CU and Miami to end the season in a terrible fashion. 2009 Florida was very, VERY highly touted in the preseason, ranked 1st in every poll known to man. Their early schedule has been pretty soft, and their only win against a ranked team has been against an extremely overrated LSU team (that should have lost to Miss. St.). Tebow is being handed the Heisman by default, despite having done very little to deserve even being mentioned as a candidate. Fan base is full of false confidence as everyone still worships Tebow and thinks the win at Death Valley was a great feat. Even though they play in the very good SEC, they don't have to play Alabama (at least in the regular season), the only other legit top 15 team in the conference, IMO. Now, Florida does have the clear advantage of WAY more talent on defense and a much better offensive playcaller than '01 NU. But I still think the similarities are worth noting, and I think Florida will end up with two losses (one being Arkansas, USC or possibly even Georgia or FSU, and the other being to Bama in the CCG). They then probably slip into a BCS at-large spot because of the Tebow factor, but hopefully slip to the Cotton. The similarity is okay, but you run into trouble when you reveal how biased you are by saying "but hopefully slip to the Cotton." Quote Link to comment
JTrain Posted October 16, 2009 Author Share Posted October 16, 2009 Make no mistake, I can't stand the Tebow love and hope Florida loses every game. Quote Link to comment
AngryHusker88 Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 Florida's offense is overrated IMO but that defense is cold. They'll be hard to beat if only for their defense Quote Link to comment
J_2_THA_BONE Posted October 16, 2009 Share Posted October 16, 2009 I don't see many similarities, they got a way better defense and the offense overall has more options to work with and more playmakers. Quote Link to comment
JTrain Posted October 17, 2009 Author Share Posted October 17, 2009 Maybe I should have made my points more succinct. What I meant to convey was not that there were any major similarities between the teams themselves, but between the context of each team in their particular season and how each was viewed by its fans and to some extent the media. And possibly the psychology of protecting the top spot and playing not to lose, as opposed to really attacking and dominating their opponents. We got our wakeup call against CU... I think Florida will experience something similar (although it won't be that ugly). Quote Link to comment
sstruck Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I think you bring up some very valid points. After being so highly touted, Florida has been underwhelming this season. But in my opinion, you leave out one very important fact in comparing each team in the context of their particular season. In '09, there is no Miami of '01. So I'm not so certain that Florida '09 will be exposed like Nebraska '01 was. Quote Link to comment
irafreak Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 But is there an 01 Colorado? Quote Link to comment
sstruck Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 But is there an 01 Colorado? Yes, I think there are several '01 Colorados. But I think most of the time '01 Nebraska beats '01 Colorado. But '01 Miami beats '01 Nebraska 9 times out of 10. Quote Link to comment
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