Tomorrow afternoon in The Swamp, the Florida Gators will square off with the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns in a game in which, well, should be a rather easy Gators victory, to say the least.
The Ragin' Cajuns are your typical Sun Belt Conference team. They can beat up on John Does and play competitive for a bit, but at the end of the day, they never seem to have enough to beat a top-tier team. I don't care how great the Sun Belt was at the beginning of the year with Louisiana-Monroe playing everybody tough, teams in this league don't and shouldn't hang with Florida.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that this one better be over quick.
While the Ragin Cajuns rank 32nd overall nationally in terms of scoring offense (35 points per game), they are 54th in rushing and 44th in passing. Combined, that's good enough for 44th in the country when it comes to total offense. The Gators are 103rd in the country in total offense, but, even with the issues they have, I suspect they'd be higher if they played the Ragin Cajuns' schedule.
As for their defense, well .. let's just say they don't even play good Sun Belt defense. They are 70th nationally in scoring defense, 40th in rushing defense, 118th in passing defense and 91st in total defense. That passing defense number should jump out at you: There are only six teams in the country that are worse at defending the pass than the Ragin' Cajuns.
One of those teams? Our friends in the ugliest orange up in Knoxville. If Jeff Driskel, Frankie Hammond, Quinton Dunbar and company can't get it going tomorrow, then there is no hope.
No hope for tomorrow, the next day or the day after that.
Just for the hell of it, we'll take a look at the Ragin Cajuns' passing game against the Arkansas State Red Wolves. I actually watched almost half of that game live because it was a future Gators opponent. And if I had to sit through that atrocity, so do you!
Play No. 1: Terrance Broadway's 12 yard pass to Javone Lawson
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
Lawson just runs a crossing route (well, technically a stop-crossing route) in front of the linebackers. Before the snap occurs Ragin Cajun quarterback Broadway does a great job in pointing out the coverage.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
Wide open.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
This is one thing that I think some Gators fans have taken for granted. Here, the other Ragin' Cajun receiver doesn't block and it results in the play stopping here. For the most part this season (actually, for the past few years), the Gators receivers down the field have done a great job blocking and allowing for the play to continue.
Play No. 2: Broadway's 32 yard pass to Darryl Surgent
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
Surgent is all about the go-route on this play. Or, as Gators fans know it, the Andre Debose special.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
The pump fake. Oh, and great protection provided by the offense line as well.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
The corner doesn't really bite on the pump fake, but just before making a very nice catch the receiver has about a half-yard of separation.
The catch from another angle:
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
Very nice sliding catch.
Play No. 3: Broadway's 25 yard touchdown pass to Surgent
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
Pretty much the same play as Surgent is again going to run a go-route.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
The only difference in the Arkansas State defense in this play than the play profiled above, is that they bring the blitz this time. Just as the ball (red circle) is released, Broadway is hit. Hard.
(Photo courtesy of ESPN)
As is often the case when the ball is under-thrown like this, the receiver is at the advantage. Here, Surgent just adjusts nicely before the defender can even turn around. At the end of the play he just basically falls into the end zone for the touchdown.
I've tried for a while now to think of anything that the Ragin' Cajuns can do to either a) make this a game or b) even really score some points on the Gators. I just don't think they can do it, especially in non-garbage time.
This should be an easy win for the Gators.