College Football Predictions – Florida Gators 2020 College Football Preview
2019 Recap
Record – 11-2
ATS – 7-6
Yes, guy.
If the Gators aren’t “back”, they’re certainly getting close. Florida booked their 2nd consecutive double-digit win season under the tutelage of HC Dan Mullen, and note that their only two losses came to the CHAMPS from Baton Rouge and the Georgia Bulldogs. Let’s check in with the team and see if they have what it takes to win the SEC East, and maybe go a bit further.
2020 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating
East Division – #2
SEC – TBD
Florida Gators 2020 Outlook
OFFENSE
The Gators scored well over 30 PPG for the second straight year but probably relied a bit too much on the THROW GAME in order to SCORE the FOOTBALL. They managed a meager 130YPG on the ground (2nd last SEC) but got a great season out of QB Kyle Trask (2,941, 25-7 TD to INT). Trask’s WR group was hit hard by graduation but he’s got one of the best TEs in college football at his disposal in Kyle Pitts (649, 5 TD LY), and we wouldn’t be surprised if the young WR group ends up being better than expected. Hopefully, the ground game will be able to provide more balance, and they have a decent 1-2 RB combo returning in Dameon Pierce and Malik Davis. The OL returns three starters and will a key to this offense taking another step forward.
DEFENSE
Florida made big strides a season ago and allowed a mere 15.5 PPG and 305 YPG (#2 SEC) whilst booking an impressive 49 (!) sacks (#5 FBS). Their fine DC Todd Grantham has six returning starters to work with but will need to craft his defense without LY’s leading tackler LB David Reese, #1 sack man Jonathan Greenard (9.5, NFL – Houston), and #1 CB CJ Henderson (NFL – Jags). There’s a lot of raw talent on board but it’s unclear if they have many all-SEC caliber starters remaining after the aforementioned departures are taken into account. We’ll call for overall performance more similar to the good (but not great) 2018 defense.
SPECIAL TEAMS
The Gators will have to find several new faces in the special teams unit including a replacement for their excellent punter Tommy Townsend. The good news is that they have an elite PK in Evan McPherson who nailed 17/19 FG attempts in 2019.
Schedule Analysis
Overall – They should be able to get off to a good start (at Ole Miss, South Carolina) and note that they avoid ROLL TIDE.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – Missouri (October 24)
Might be a spot to avoid Florida after a pair of big games (at Texas A&M, LSU).
Season Win Total
TBD
MEGALOCKS says:
TBD
MEGAmazing Tidbits
Florida has a 24-21 all-time record in bowl games, and as you would expect, their most successful event has been the GATOR BOWL (7-2).
MEGALOCKS Outlook:
This should be a fun season. We have great expectations for the offense and look to be a legit contender for all the SEC marbles if the defense can play at the same level as one of the last two seasons.
Want more Florida football ?
WEBSITE
http://www.floridagators.com/index.aspx?path=football
FORUM
http://florida.247sports.com/Board/Florida-Gators-Message-Board-Forum-14
http://gatorchatter.com/forums/main-sports-forum.20/
http://www.secrant.com/rant/gator-sports/
http://gatornation.proboards.com/board/3/gator-football-forum
http://www.gatorenvy.com/forums/gator-football.14/
https://florida.forums.rivals.com/forums/alligator-alley.8/
http://www.gatorcountry.com/swampgas/forums/gator-insider-bullgator-den.10/
NEWS
https://www.alligatorarmy.com/
http://www.gatorsports.com/category/football/
http://www.espn.com/college-football/team/_/id/57/florida-gators
http://www.onlygators.com/category/football/
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/florida-gators/
TWITTER
Hashtag – #GoGators
Accounts to follow