Florida football: 3 reason the Gators will beat Kentucky in Week 5
By Caleb Hall
2. Florida is better than you may think
The Florida Gators are ranked 22nd coming into this game and after the Utah game where they lost 24-11, I think the media stopped taking them seriously. Utah looks to have one of the better defenses in the country and will likely be in contention to win the Pac-12 this year, so just because Florida wasn’t up to snuff against them doesn’t mean they’re a bad football team. The way they dominated was very impressive, and that is due to their solid defense.
Since then, however, they have beaten all of their opponents soundly. The most important win was against Tennessee.
Florida is top 25 in points allowed, top 15 in yards per game allowed, and allows under 100 rushing yards per game. The only thing that might be a bit of a heel for the Gators would be their passing defense where they rank top 60. Florida will be a tough challenge for good offenses and Kentucky will have to step up if they want to beat them this weekend.
The Florida offense is also something that isn’t talked about as much as it should be. Transfer quarterback Graham Mertz is completing 77 percent of his passes for 951 yards, four touchdowns, and an interception. Mertz is incredibly efficient and even his yards per pass rating is up there at 8.8. Florida’s rushing offense is also solid, as they ran for 183 yards on Tennessee two weeks ago.
Florida certainly has the pieces to beat Kentucky. If they can keep up their defensive prowess and continue to pass and run the ball effectively, it will be hard to see the Gators losing to Kentucky.