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Welcome back to A Peek Inside Gator Football. I'm Allie Peek.
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This is brought to you by PrizePix. Don't forget, new
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If you win, you'll get $ 150 in lineups instantly. Florida
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coach John Summerall met with the media today following that
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ugly 27-8 loss to Georgia. And I think this was
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one of the more revealing press conferences we've gotten from
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him all season, which is interesting because I feel like
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he's always pretty candid.
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But today, he didn't just talk about what went wrong
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against Georgia.
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He acknowledged some pretty significant problems within the football program itself.
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He talked about an offensive line that isn't protecting its quarterbacks,
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a quarterback competition that is very much alive, a roster
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that may have been behind before he ever coached a game,
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and a team that continues to make winning harder than
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it needs to be. He even suggested that if Tom
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Brady had been playing.
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Quarterback for Florida on Saturday, it may not have mattered.
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I think that's a pretty remarkable statement from your head coach,
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But here's what stood out to me the most. Summerall
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clearly understands that Florida has problems. He's not ignoring them.
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He's not pretending everything is fine. The question now, though,
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is whether he can actually fix them. This is a
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Florida team sitting at 5-3, coming off its sixth consecutive
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loss to Georgia, with Oklahoma coming to Gainesville this weekend.
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And what happens over these last four games is going
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to tell us an awful lot about where this program
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is heading. We're going to get into what Summerall said
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about what I think he was really telling us, and
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what needs to change. Let's start with the biggest conversation
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coming out of Saturday, and that's obviously Florida's quarterbacks. Aaron
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Filo struggled against Georgia. Tramell Jones came to the game,
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and they brought him in to provide a spark, but
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he wasn't immune to mistakes either. And today's summer all
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made it clear he hasn't publicly committed to either one
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moving forward. Both quarterbacks practiced Monday. Both are listed as
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potential starters. Samaral said he already has a plan in place,
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but he doesn't see any advantage in announcing his starter
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right now. Now, here's where it gets a little bit
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interesting to me. He didn't excuse the quarterback's mistakes. He
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specifically acknowledged Philo's first interception was just an absolute terrible decision.
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He said Philo knew it immediately, but he also pointed
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out that Philo's second interception wasn't entirely on him because
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that ball was catchable. And Jones, well, Samaral said he
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had multiple throws that could have resulted in turnovers, including
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one on third and 20 and another in the end zone.
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So Neither quarterback separated himself on Saturday. But Semerle's larger
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message was that the quarterbacks aren't getting.
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Nearly enough help.
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And I think that might be the single biggest takeaway
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from this press conference. He said it's difficult to evaluate
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the quarterback position when the other 10 offensive players aren't
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doing their jobs consistently. And that's where the Tom Brady
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comparison came in.
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He said he wasn't even.
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Sure if Tom Brady would have helped Florida on Saturday
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because of the pressure and the duress that the quarterbacks
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were facing. So, I mean, I don't know that I agree,
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but think about that. He's essentially saying that Florida's problems
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up front are so egregious that simply changing quarterbacks isn't
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going to fix the offense. And I do agree with
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that assessment to a point. You can debate whether Philo
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or Jones gives Florida the best chance to win. You
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can debate which quarterback has the higher ceiling or which
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one handles pressure better, who's better with their feet. But
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Load full transcript
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if the offensive line can't consistently protect either one, what
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exactly are we evaluating?
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Are we evaluating a.
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Quarterback's ability to execute the offense or Or are we
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evaluating how well he can survive when things break down
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around him?
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Those are two very different things.
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And maybe we are evaluating the latter and maybe that's
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what we take into consideration, but it's not a great
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outlook against Oklahoma, which some are described as an incredibly
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talented and cohesive defensive unit. Florida has to figure out
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how to make life easier for whoever is behind center,
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because otherwise we're going to be having this exact same
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conversation about.
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This time next Monday.
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Now, The offensive line discussion was particularly interesting to me.
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Summerall was asked directly whether Florida misjudged the offensive line
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when assembling this roster.
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And his response was kind of interesting.
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He explained that when the new staff arrived, the first
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priority was retaining the players already on the roster. Then
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they had to evaluate the transfer portal and determine who
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they could realistically afford to bring in. He even pointed
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out that offensive tackles have.
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A market price.
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In other words, finding quality offensive linemen through the portal
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isn't as simple as just like, hey, You're somebody I want,
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and let's go ahead and bring you to Gainesville.
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Here's the important part.
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Summerall admitted that Florida needs to continue upgrading that room,
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and he didn't stop there. He said every position group
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needs upgrades if Florida is serious about competing for championships.
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I don't think that that's going to be surprising to
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any of you watching at home, and this is year
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one of a rebuild. We knew that there would be
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personnel deficiencies, but here's what I found most telling. Summerall
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said Florida can win with this offensive line.
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It currently has.
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He just needs them to play more consistently, and he
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acknowledged that the coaching staff needs to do a better
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job helping him. I think that's an important distinction. The
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solution for the next four years can't be transfer portal.
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Florida can't bring in a new offensive tackle before Oklahoma.
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It can't magically reconstruct the offensive line in November.
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So how do you fix it?
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You have to improve protection communication. You have to identify
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where your breakdowns are happening. You may have to help
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your tackles more with tight ends and running backs. And
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you have to consider whether your offensive approach is putting
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the quarterbacks in unnecessarily difficult situations. Those are the practical
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adjustments that I want to see.
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Here's another thing.
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If you know protection is a problem, you can't keep
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asking the offense to operate as though protection is consistently reliable.
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That's where I think the coaching staff has to take
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some ownership. Recognizing your personnel limitations is only the first step.
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Adjusting your scheme to account for those limitations is what
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actually gives you chance to win. We're going to take
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a quick break from this video because I want to
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tell you guys about our new audio options. We are
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available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can check us
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out over there. Make sure you're subscribed. Sometimes I drop
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things on audio-only platforms, so make sure you are tuned
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in over there as well. You guys have been asking
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for a year or so for an audio-only option, so.
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Here we are.
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Thank you so much for supporting us and consuming your
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content any way you choose to listen. Okay, so I
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think one of the more revealing parts of the press
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conference as a whole really didn't actually have anything to
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do with Georgia. It was
somehow explaining what happens behind
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the scene when he took the job at Florida. Now, remember,
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he was still coaching his previous team through a conference
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championship and college football playoff run while making that transition
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to Florida. And today, he did acknowledge that splitting his
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attention between two jobs may have hurt Florida's roster construction.
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He explained that while the transfer portal officially opens in January,
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the groundwork for building next year's roster begins months earlier.
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He said that process, ideally, starts around September. But Florida's
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new staff didn't begin that work until December. And by then,
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other programs were already aggressively pursuing players on Florida's roster.
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So I'll describe what happened as essentially a feeding frenzy.
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The new staff wasn't just behind in identifying transfer targets,
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but they were behind in convincing their own players to stay.
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I found that significant.
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It helps explain some of the depth issues and roster
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limitations we're seeing today. I also think we have to
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be careful about treating that explanation as like some kind of, hey,
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this is a permanent excuse. Yes, he arrived late in
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the process. Yes, the roster transition was difficult. And yes,
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building a championship caliber roster takes time. But that makes
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the upcoming offseason even more important. Summerall said he's already
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meeting weekly with Florida's personnel staff to identify the needs
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for 2027. And now there really shouldn't be the same excuse.
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He has an established staff. He knows what his roster
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looks like. He watched these players compete against SEC competition
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or not. And he's had an entire season to evaluate
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where Florida is deficient. So this upcoming transfer portal cycle
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is going to tell us a lot about how quickly
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Summerall can get Florida where he wants it. Because I
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think we've seen enough to understand that Florida needs more
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than simply better execution. Florida needs more consistency, more depth,
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and in some places, better personnel. Now let's talk about
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something positive because I thought Summerall's comments about the defense
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were actually encouraging. Florida gave up 318 total yards against Georgia.
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The Bulldogs won 27-8, but I don't think the defense
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deserves to shoulder the majority of the blame for that loss.
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Summerall pointed to several specific areas of improvement. First, he
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talked about what coaches call the population of helmets around
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the football. He said he showed his players multiple clips
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where eight, nine, even 10 defenders were converging on the ball.
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That's important because it reflects effort and pursuit angles and
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a willingness to play together. Second, he highlighted improved perimeter defense.
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He said Florida's corners, safeties, and nickel defenders were attacking
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screens more aggressively. defeating blocks, and making tackles. Third, he
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thought Florida competed better on downfield throws. And he specifically
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mentioned Bryce Thornton, Ty Jackson, and Emmanuel Obadejo as players
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who really had an impact that he visibly noticed. And
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it was very clear that Florida isn't where it needs
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to be defensively, but it's better than it's been. The
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communication isn't as fast or as seamless as what he
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sees from teams like Georgia or Oklahoma, and that is
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a factor in all of this. He describes Oklahoma's defense
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as a unit where the collective performance is even better
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than the individual talent. That is the standard that Florida's chasing.
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Eleven players who understand the system, communicate quickly, and execute
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as one.
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Florida isn't there yet.
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But I do think there's some evidence that this defense
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is beginning to develop an identity. And that might be
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one of the more encouraging things we can take away
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from Saturday. If the defense continues improving, it could give
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Florida an opportunity to compete in games where the offense.
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Is
still trying to find itself.
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Now, there is another issue Summerall addressed that has frustrated
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Gator fans throughout the season.
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Penalties.
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And what I found interesting was that he doesn't necessarily
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believe the total number of penalties tells the whole story.
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I've done a video on this, but he pointed out
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that Urban Meyer's championship teams were sometimes heavily penalized. They
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were basically always heavily penalized, truly. And his point was
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that not every penalty is equal. A defensive pass interference
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penalty on an aggressive attempt to make a play, he
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can live with that. An unnecessary roughness penalty or in
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sports and light conduct, he feels like that's a different story.
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But the specific penalty he discussed from the Georgia game
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was the roughing the punter situation. He actually explained that
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Florida had a well-designed punt rush, and they did. They
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created a free rusher, but the execution was off. He
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said Florida doesn't teach players to leave their feet on
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a punt block unless they're getting to the football while
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it's still in the punter's hand. And that mistake did
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cause a major momentum swing. Now, this is where I
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think the conversation gets a little bit more complicated, though,
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because I understand what Summerall's saying about aggressive penalties. You
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don't want your players afraid to compete. But when you're
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a team with a small margin of error, discipline becomes
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even more important.
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And Summerall acknowledged that.
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He even pointed out that he received a sideline penalty himself,
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and he raised his hand in front of the team
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when asked who made mistakes.
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And I appreciate that accountability.
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But at some point, I need that accountability to transfer
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into or translate into less self-inflicted wounds. Because here's the
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frustrating reality for Florida. When you play a team like Georgia,
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you're
already facing a talented opponent. You can't give them
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additional opportunities because of errors that you yourself can control.
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And that applies to Oklahoma this weekend too.
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Let's touch a little bit on the injury updates because
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there was some significant information today.
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First, Vernell Brown III.
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Summerall was emphatic that Brown is doing absolutely everything he
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can to get back on the field. Brown was progressing
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well early last week before experiencing a setback in practice
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on Wednesday. That led to increased swelling and a.
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Reduced range of motion.
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He received another treatment Monday, but he did not practice
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and somehow wouldn't commit to a return date. He also
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pushed back very strongly on any suggestion that Brown simply
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doesn't want to play. And I think that's important because
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whenever frustrated fans get upset about this offense and they
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start questioning an injured player's commitment.
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To without evidence, that's not fair. Now, there was some
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good news.
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Duke Clark practiced Monday, and Summerall said he's optimistic that
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he will play against Oklahoma, assuming there isn't another setback.
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I think we've got to put that asterisk there, given
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what happened last week.
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That's a big deal.
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Summerall acknowledged that losing both Brown and Clark has significantly
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limited Florida's ability to generate explosive plays. He specifically talked
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about Brown's ability to create offense on screen and short passes.
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Those plays can serve almost like an extension of the
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running game. And when your offensive line is struggling in protection,
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having somebody who can take a short throw and create
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a big play is incredibly valuable. One other name to
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watch is Justin Williams. He played just five offensive stops
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against Georgia. And Summerall said he expects now he's going
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to get an increased role on offense and special teams
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because of how he did in those reps. Giving Florida's need,
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I think, for additional playmakers, I think that's something worth
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keeping an eye on. And I am all for getting
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anybody who can be a playmaker the ball. And finally,
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I want to get into what I thought was the
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most important big picture message of this press conference. Summerall
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talked about what November means for this football program.
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Florida's 5-3.
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They're 3-3 in the SEC. And while the dream of
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an undisputed season is obviously long gone, Summerall wants his
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players to understand that there's still something meaningful to play for.
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In fact, he gave them a very simple comparison. What
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does 9-3 feel like compared to 5-7? Think about the
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difference between those two records. A team that loses four
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straight to close the season is heading into the offseason
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with some major questions. A team that wins four straight
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heading into December has momentum, a winning SEC record, and
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a much stronger foundation for recruiting. Now, I'm not suggesting
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Florida's automatically going to win its remaining four games. That
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would be a pretty bold prediction, given what we just
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watched against Georgia.
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But Summerall made an important point.
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Florida hasn't had a winning SEC record since 2020. And
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that opportunity, that one's still in front of them. And
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here's what makes this weekend even cooler. Urban Meyer's returning
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to Gainesville to be inducted into Florida's.
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Ring of Honor. And Summerall revealed that the two actually
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have a pretty close relationship.
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He said Meyer texts him nearly every week. He even
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invited Meyer to address his coaching staff earlier this year
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about standards and expectations of Florida football. I thought that
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was fascinating because Meyer represents an era when Florida wasn't
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talking about how to become a championship program. Florida was
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a championship program. This
week's opponent, Oklahoma, happens to be
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the program Meyer defeated to win the 2008 national title
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in January of 2009. There's something incredible about the fact
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that he's coming back for this and that they're playing Oklahoma.
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And it's just such an interesting weekend to watch. But
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I do think that there's a challenge there for Summerall.
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You can't recreate Urban Meyer's success simply by talking about
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the standard.
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You have to build a team capable of meeting it.
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And that's going to require better quarterback play, better offensive
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line performance, fewer self-inflicted mistakes, better roster construction, and continued
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defensive improvement. Summerall said today that he has championship expectations
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every single day.
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But he also admitted Florida's not there yet.
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And he was pretty emphatic about his belief that they
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will eventually get there.
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And I respect the confidence.
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But as we enter November, I think Florida fans need
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to start seeing more of that belief translate onto the
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football field. You know, this team has shown flashes. They
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beat a highly ranked Texas team on the road. They
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demonstrated the ability to compete with quality opponents this season.
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But they also had performances like Missouri, South Carolina, and
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now Georgia, where mistakes and inconsistency have been impossible to overcome.
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And that's the next challenge for Summerall, not simply proving
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that Florida can be a good team on any given Saturday,
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but proving that Florida can become a consistently good closing
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football team, a team that can be down and come back,
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a team that can be in a close game and finish,
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a team that can be consistently good every Saturday. So
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here's my biggest takeaway. I don't question whether John Summerall
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understands what's wrong with Florida. I think he understands it.
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I think he understands it well. I think he knows
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the offensive line isn't playing well enough. He knows the
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quarterbacks are making mistakes. He knows the offense isn't functioning
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the way it should. And he knows his roster still
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needs work. But identifying problems and solving problems are two
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different things. And with four games remaining, we're about to
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find out how much progress this coaching staff can make
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with the players it has right now.
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Because Oklahoma isn't going to make this easy.
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And neither is the remainder of Florida's schedule. But the
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opportunity to still finish with momentum and give Gator fans
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a reason to believe is still an option. It's still
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on the table. So can the Caters do it? So
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now I want to know, what do you guys think?
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What is your biggest concern heading into this Oklahoma game?
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Do you think that Florida's offensive problems are the quarterbacks?
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Or do you think that it's the offensive line or
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the coaching or the play calling?
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Let me know. I want to hear from you. A
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big thank you to PrizePix. Don't forget to download their app.
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And if you're a new user, play a $ 5 lineup
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and use our code.
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It's HMA.
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If you win, you'll get 150 in lineups instantly. I
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appreciate you guys for tuning in. And as always, go Gators.