Gators to fight complacency with rugged offseason
Gainesville, Fla.—No one here will come out and say it but I will: Barring a series of catastrophic injuries talent, or the lack of it, will not keep Florida from repeating as national champions. As I wrote after the BCS national championship game last January, this program has separated itself from the rest of the SEC East when it comes to the sheer number of championship caliber players on its roster. While every other team in the SEC has significant holes to fill this spring, Florida may enter preseason practice in August with only one significant position concern—and I’m not making this up—at long snapper.
The major worry here, with the spring game coming up Saturday, is the one that scares players and coaches the most.
“Complacency,” said senior linebacker Brandon Spikes. “We started talking about it as soon as the national championship game was over. And when Tim (Tebow) and I decided to come back, we started talking about it a lot.”
We tend to forget that players and coaches are human beings. And it is a natural human reaction to relax once a major goal has been achieved. Coaches and players alike will talk a good game and swear there will be no letup. And in their minds they really believe it. But complacency is one of those things that silently creeps into team’s psyche. They don’t know it’s there until it’s too late.
“It’s an edge that good teams have and you have to work to maintain it from season to season,” said Urban Meyer, the Florida head coach. “It doesn’t just happen.”
So there is an understanding in place. Meyer will work his coaching staff to make sure they don’t lose their edge. Tebow will challenge the offense, like he always does. Spikes, if necessary, will get in the face of his defensive players if he sees them slacking off.
“I’ve already done it and the other guys are following my lead,” said Spikes.
In truth, the Florida defense has been following Spikes for some time now. Georgia fans will painfully recall how he leveled Knowshon Moreno early in last year’s game in Jacksonville. After the game several players on the Florida defense told me that when Spikes made that hit on Moreno the game was essentially over. Florida won 49-10.
“We play the way 51 (Spikes) plays,” cornerback Joe Haden told me. Florida’s defense followed Spikes all the way to the national championship game against Oklahoma where they held the nation’s No. 1 offense to only 14 points. Everybody on that defense is back and there is talented depth at every position. But Spikes is the heartbeat of that unit.
“Coach Meyer has challenged me to find some more playmakers,” Spikes said. “That is what I’m going to do.”
Spikes said that the Florida players have been put on notice. Their offseason conditioning work is going to be some of the toughest since they got to Gainesville.
“Oh yeah, we know what’s coming,” Spikes said. “Our staff is not going to let us let down. They are going to push us. But that is what this team needs.”
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161 comments Add your comment
Kiffinisatosser
April 15th, 2009
9:10 am
Yeah yeah…if everybody’s offseason workput is always annually harder, does that mean the the previous season’s super difficult offseason workout wasn’t really? Every team every year says this about the off season workout. T
here are a handful of teams that will be able to play the Gators straight up next year. One of those is USC. It’s time for USC to match it against the SEC’s best. The one thing that the SEC champ has not done yet is win an MNC by beating USC.
Corrine Brown (D) FL
April 15th, 2009
9:26 am
I am so happy to hear bout the GATOR and the amazin difence. Coarch Meyers is on track.
Go Gator!
Reebok
April 15th, 2009
9:29 am
i agree, it’s funny that no player ever says, “you know, last year’s offseason training program seemed a lot tougher.”
nothing but injuries or run-ins w/ the law will derail the gators this year.
Miles
April 15th, 2009
9:31 am
Mr. Barnhart, this is the best article you’ve written regarding the various preseason challenges teams face. You’re certainly right that “it is a natural human reaction to relax once a major goal has been achieved.” It seems, though, that Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow, have the ability to overcome this reaction and will thus motivate the Gators to refrain from this behavior. Delving into the psychological aspects of the game, i.e., complacency, is certainly intriguing. Freud would undoudtedly have his hands full with Meyer and Tebow.
SugarHillDawg
April 15th, 2009
9:32 am
And they are due for injuries. Nobody has luck like them. How does TB say that Florida’a talent is head and shoulders above everyone elses. It’s the scheme, not talent.
EDSBS » Archive » CURIOUS INDEX, 4/15/2009
April 15th, 2009
9:39 am
[...] Unless it involves something like eight hour mat drills and Bridge on the River Kwai box sessions, we can’t imagine what could be worse than the misery Mickey Marotti already inflicts on Flori…. Ring that bell, G.I. Jane. It’s ready when you [...]
LSU
April 15th, 2009
9:40 am
UF will not repeat as NC this season. Remember coming off a NC in 2006 with the mighty Tim Tebag they lost 4 games that year, including losing to Michigan team that got beat by Appy State.
LSU
April 15th, 2009
9:40 am
And just for the record I don’t believe LSU will be in the mix for the NC either, LSU will make thier run in 2010.
Brad in Jasper
April 15th, 2009
9:47 am
True the Dawgs had the worst injury bug of last year – but the Gators had their own. I believe UF lost 5(?) starters at the beginning of the season, most notably TE Ingram. I hate to give the devils their due, but they earned the NC fair and square. Tebow is a once in a generation player who I was sure hoping would head on to greener pastures after last year, taking Spikes with him. But alas, they are back and must be reckoned with, so here’s hoping the Dawgs are ready to throw their best at ‘em this year.
Kiffinisatosser
April 15th, 2009
9:54 am
I have an interesting theoretical exercise for rating the SEC coaches. Which one would you feel comfortable having your son play for? Off the top of my head I have stacked them like this:
Comfortable
Bobby Johnson – pure class, improves his players
Gene Chizik – seems to view himself as an educator (still premature to tell though)
Mark Richt – keeps the game of football in perspective in a madhouse environment though not without his flaws.
Uncomfortable
Lane Kiffin – amateur, out for self-aggrandizement
Nick Saban – probably a sociopath, bloodless
Urban Meyer – see Saban
Steve Spurrier – interesting mind with unchecked ego run amok over the decades
Bobby Petrino – seems inherently unstable
Don’t Know
Dan Mullin – seems competent
Houston Nutt – I don’t have a view, perhaps somebody could characterize. Arkansas fans hate him but that has always seemed irrational to outsiders.
Les Miles – definitely an emotional riverboat gambler type. No idea about his influence on players.
Rich Brooks – Spinx-like. Seems solid but he does not have a significant media persona that would be the basis for judgment.
Anybody else got some views?
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
10:06 am
On paper this is unquestionably the best team in the land. They get UT in the swamp in a rebuilding year, they avoid Bama and Ole Miss, and Georgia. Well, not to diminish the dawgs but who really thinks the dawgs have a snowball’s chance against UF this year? That leaves LSU and FSU of which UF will probably win both could conceivably drop 1. Even then a 1 loss UF team will get into the nc game over a 1 loss team from another conference provided they win the seccg. And I don’t see anyone else out there going unbeaten. USC lost 10 starters on D, Ohio State will probably lose 1, and out of Texas and OU one of those 2 will lose at least 1 game and probably both will lose a game. So realistically the only real stumbling block for UF will be the seccg against Bama, LSU, or Ole Miss and UF will probably be favored in that game.
Complacency will be their toughest opponent in the offseason but as Tony points out the biggest ingredient they have is leadership. Spikes on D and Tebow on O mean they will be prepared and will not letdown. Won’t be impossible to beat them. They certainly are not supermen. But it will be awfully hard to beat em.
As Corrine Brown would say go gator.
But Corrine I have a new one just for you. Roll Tides.
differences
April 15th, 2009
10:12 am
LSU fan, in 2007 UF was replacing NINE starters on defense and had NO trouble on offense as Tebow won the Heisman. It doesn’t take a genius to see the difference when you return your entire 2 deep on defense vs. trying to replace NINE starters.
» SEC links: Spring football still in the air John Clay’s Sidelines
April 15th, 2009
10:20 am
[...] Tony Barnhart of the AJC writes that there is no letdown at Florida. [...]
Bamafan
April 15th, 2009
10:21 am
Yes Florida is locked and loaded and should be 12-0 when they get to Atlanta. LSU or Bama will
beat the gators in the SEC championship and most folks will say that guy is stupid, it is going to
be just like when LSU upset the Vols in 2001 in the SEC CHAMIPIONSHIP GAME!!
Corrine just for you ROLL TIDES!!!
DawginLex
April 15th, 2009
10:23 am
UF is loaded but that is why they play the games. Tebow is the “X” factor and will be again this year. He is a superb leader and probably a better person than he is a football player.
That being said, UGA has a chance to be really good this year if the RB issue can get settled with Samuel, King or Ealey. People talk about no must win games but IMO, UGA MUST win the opener at OK State. If they win this game with Joe cox at QB, then you can move on with him and Gray and redshirt Murray.
Repeat 2006 and Murray will be playing early and we are looking at 9-3 again or 8-4. The difference will be that if Murray does have to play because cox doesn’t get it done, the OL will be much better than the 2006 version.
I don’t think anyone in Athens is ready to hand UF anything.
Atlanta Gator
April 15th, 2009
10:24 am
Complacency vs. hunger. Humility vs. believing your pre-season press clippings. Those are the questions for the 2009 Gators.
Clearly, the Gators will be the 2009 pre-season favorites, and for good reason. To be sure, they are a very talented team, with a lot of depth at most positions. Twenty-one out of 22 players on the defensive 2-deep chart are returning, including senior linebacker Brandon Spikes, the emotional leader of the defense. Eight out of 11 offensive starters are returning, including 2-year starting quarterback and Heisman winner Tim Tebow, the emotional leader of the offense. Three solid running backs have evolved, and the cup runneth over with young wide receiver talent. They have made strides to replace their graduating offensive tackles. The Gators could still use a stronger power runner, but the formula of speed and great moves seems to have worked so far for them. On paper, the Gators rate an A or A-minus on both sides of the ball.
Will the Gators repeat as BCS champions? Maybe, but even as the favorites, the odds are against them . . . . perhaps even more so as the favorites, since they will have the bull’s eye on their backs for 12 or 13 games.
As other bloggers have noted, the Gators have an easy out-of-conference schedule, but that cuts both ways. Three out of 4 OOC games should be gimmes, but if the Gators lose any single game (like they have in each of their three previous MNC seasons), their title hopes will be over. With their weak OOC schedule, several other undefeated or one-loss teams will likely have as good or better claims to one of the two berths in the BCS title game.
Bottom line: the Gators are the favorites, but to win a BCS title you not only have to be very good, play well and win consistently, you also have to be a little bit lucky, too. They are not unbeatable. In 2009, we will see if the Gators are as lucky as they are good.
NO MORE GAYTOR TALK
April 15th, 2009
10:25 am
Please tony ,STop already with the florida football talk!!!!!!!!!ITS A GEORGIA PAPER!!! I DONT CARE HOW BIG THE PAPER IS!!
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
10:30 am
Atlanta gator,
Corrine Brown would say “go gator”
If she were a Bama fan it would be a big “Roll Tides” Its sweeping the nation Rollll Tides
TigerMan
April 15th, 2009
10:31 am
I’m getting tired of reading about Tebow and Urban Meyer. After Tebow leaves next year, I’m hoping Meyer heads to Notre Dame and leaves Florida with another Ron Zook, so they don’t win the SEC every year. This has got to stop at some point!
Saint Nick
April 15th, 2009
10:32 am
BAMA VS. FLA IN SECCG!!!!!!!!!!!!ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Keep dreaming
April 15th, 2009
10:34 am
It’s funny people have resorted to hoping Meyer takes another job or that the Gators will drop off when Tebow leaves. Pretty pathetic if you ask me.
Erk
April 15th, 2009
10:37 am
Bama will not beat Florida in the SEC championship game if Bama makes it. Bamafan, Florida in 09 will be considered much stronger than the 01 Vols you mentioned above. Florida is too strong on both sides of the ball.
Florida News - 4/15/09 | MrSEC.com
April 15th, 2009
10:42 am
[...] are your Gator headlines this morning:Tony Barnhart of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Florida is combating possible complacency with a rugged offseason.UF coaches want to see a bigger impact from receiver Carl Moore in [...]
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
10:42 am
keep dreaming.
Yep. It is pathetic for someone to base all their hope on Meyer leaving. I for one hope he stays at UF. It will keep the conference standards high for years to come and frankly I don’t mind the competition. I even hope Chizik does well at Auburn and restores them to a stronger program. Hoping for a coach to leave reminds me of JB coming on every other day with his usual post that Saban will be gone in a year or 2. People like him have been saying that for 3 years now. They can always hope though.
TS
April 15th, 2009
10:44 am
Florida will be tough to beat. So will BAMA, LSU, and OLE Miss. KY will probably be the worst team in the SEC but watch out for Vanderbilt, they just might surprise some folks and they give UF heart burn every year. We will take UGA by 20 this year in Jax. Florida is loaded with seniors and none of them have forgot the endzone dance that happened two years ago. That is all the motivation we need.
I think everyone in the SEC can agree with this- DAWGS DO NOT LOSE TO TECH AGAIN!! What an embarassment to the SEC.
Corrine Brown (D) Florida
April 15th, 2009
10:45 am
No Saint Nick.
Its Roll Tides! Just like Go Gator. Its sweeping da nation.
Gatornes
April 15th, 2009
10:46 am
Glad to see some positive comments about the Gators. It’s great to be pre-season favorites, but what makes this conference so tough is that every Saturday you better be ready to play a very tough opponent, in the end you still have to go play and win. If I remember correctly everybody had the Dawgs winning the SEC last year..
By the way, “sugarhilldawg” why dont you call up Tubberville and tell him how he should have won with “the scheme” and if it is as you say, “all in the scheme” why dont the Dawgs fire Richt and get a “scheme” to win the SEC!!
Saint Nick
April 15th, 2009
10:48 am
sorries Corrine!!! ROLLS TIDES!!!!!
bull-gator
April 15th, 2009
10:48 am
Talk is cheap. Let’s see how the Gators really play when the chips are on the line, and on the wrong end of the score and the hitting is ugly and hard. How bad do you have to want it? Bad enough to die for, that’s how bad you need to want it. Anything less and you lose. I predict a one loss season…in the BCS game against a left coast opponent on the left coast. Too far away from home and too much media hype.
Sheila Jackson Lee (D) Florida
April 15th, 2009
10:50 am
Hook em horn!
BTW, do anyone know if they picked up the us flag the astronauts planted when they went to mars?
Atlanta Gator
April 15th, 2009
10:51 am
bama12*titles—-Corrine has had her unofficial “spoke-person” credentials revoked. It’s not exactly fair to pick on unfortunate/underprivileged souls who were not raised in a family that emphasized the grammar and pronunciation of standard English, but it is difficult to believe the “congress-woman” was an education major with a master’s degree and specialist’s certificate. . . .
Lord of the Lizards
April 15th, 2009
10:51 am
A HUGE part of the success Florida has had, and you can ask Urban himself, is its training staff…Strength, Speed and Conditioning. Mickey Marotti will work those guys like rented mules over the summer. He has the rare ability to squeeze the players to the point of breaking down and then building them back up…and everyone loves the guy! Urban has already said that it’s gonna be so brutal this year that players wont even be thinking about trophys and rings…only about survival. What worries me most? The one thing you have least control of, injuries, which they were able to overcome last year. Last years spring game, Tebow had to play virtually the whole game (despite fighting the flu) because he was the only healthy QB and the O-Line had to play on both teams they were so decimated. This spring there have been many injuries which is always a concern…
Atlanta Gator
April 15th, 2009
10:54 am
Sorry, but we’re not taking responsibility for U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. She represents Texas in the U.S. Congress, and she graduated from Yale and UVa Law. Rep. Lee’s excitable speech, mistaken “facts” and poor diction are not a Gator problem.
Erk
April 15th, 2009
10:55 am
Maybe history will repeat this year and GA will beat UF the year following a UF national championship.
Tide rising
April 15th, 2009
10:55 am
Bull-gator,
I think I saw you post the other day that you thought UF beats UGA 38-14 this year. Seems kinda modest don’t it? I woulda thought 60-7 would have been more realistic.
BTW, I think if you make it to the national title game again it will be against Texas and probably not a left coast team. Texas has a lot of great players back too like Colt McCoy and I think they are the one team on paper that has enough ammo back to compete with UF.
Saint Nick
April 15th, 2009
10:57 am
ATL Gator,
Shutup!!!!!!!!!!!! Being a state rep. is not exactly being underpriviledged now is!!!!! She was talking straight up gangsta biotch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Otto
April 15th, 2009
11:00 am
UF will be just as good as last year and Bama will be better. The SECCG was close last year. If it is a rematch this year the team with the least injuries wins. McElroy will be far better than JP.
JustCallMeChamp
April 15th, 2009
11:00 am
Have you seen the Go Gator??? It’s a little bit the Obama dance mixed in with some “push ups” and finished off with some Conan O’Brien style Gator Chomping…pretty cool, and….It’s Sweeping The Nation!!! (Although it’s not nearly as hott as the “gatorvictory pole dance”)! (google)
Huh?
April 15th, 2009
11:00 am
I don’t think Florida has to worry about complacency with Charleston Southern and Troy to open up the season. That murderer’s row will keep them sharp and focused.
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
11:01 am
Atlanta gator,
Can you really be picking on Corrine if she don’t know she being picked on? In any event I don’t really believe that was her posting. I think that was probably just a relative or someone who is or was a constituent in her district. I find it difficult to believe a congresswoman or someone who has the degrees you speak of could abuse the English language in that manner. I could be wrong but I would truly be shocked if that really was a congresswoman with a masters degree posting that.
TS
April 15th, 2009
11:02 am
Corrine Brown is the reason I love my Gators so much… FROM AFAR!
Go Corch Meyers and the Gator!
Sheila Jackson Lee (D) Texas
April 15th, 2009
11:02 am
I from Houston, Texas not Florida you idiot. Did they get the flag from Mars or not?
Mikey
April 15th, 2009
11:06 am
As Percy Harvey watches the game in JAX on TV while hitting his blunt, he wishes he could spoon with coarch urban meyers just one more time.
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
11:07 am
Justcallmechamp,
I like the go gator but we have our own motto now at Alabama. It called Roll Tides or Rolls tides and its sweeping the nation also.
Atlanta Gator
April 15th, 2009
11:08 am
bama12*titles—-Have you seen the “gradulations” video of Rep. Brown on the floor of the U.S. House? Unfortunately, it’s not difficult to believe that Rep. Brown really does speak that way. The evidence is posted for everyone to watch on You Tube.
The flag
April 15th, 2009
11:09 am
No Sheila. They didn’t pick up the flag. It still be on the moon where we left it.
Atlanta Gator
April 15th, 2009
11:10 am
Saint Nick—Can you spell “facetious?”
dan
April 15th, 2009
11:14 am
Kiffinisatosser:
Here are my thoughts on the following coaches.
Bobby Johnson- Good coach who has made Vandy VERY competitive. But doesn’t have the backing of the University/resources to be a consistent player in the SEC which is too bad.
Gene Chizik- no opinion yet.
Mark Richt- Great coach and a Great man. Richt has as good of a football mind as any coach out there from an X’s and O’s standpoint. Richt has coached some great teams but what he lacks is an understanding of how to build a great program. Great Programs consistently compete at a high level and reload every year, and Georgia isn’t a great program. That’s not to say that Good teams can’t eventually win championships, but to be a player year in and year out you need a great program and UGA isn’t there yet.
Lane Kiffin- No opinion yet.
Nic Saban- make no mistake about it, as a player there will be times that you HATE playing for Nic Saban. But you’ll also have a chance at playing for a championship if you can deal with his ego. Love him or hate him, Saban knows how to build a program, and he’s a proven winner. It’s all in how you take him: some players can’t.
Urban Meyer- Proves that innovation can go a long way in building a program. That Spread offense is revolutionizing the college game. Florida has a Great program, and Meyer has great assistants which makes him a better head coach than a guy like Mark Richt even though Richt is probably better than Meyer in the X’s and 0’s. Meyer and AD Jeremy Foley deserve a lot of credit for the success they’re having right now. As a Bulldog fan, I’m envious.
Steve Spurrier- like Richt, an X’s and O’s genius.But unlike Richt, Spurrier’s ego has become a liability for his team. Not sure how great of a recruiter Spurrier is either. Like Bobby Bowden, his time has passed.
Bobby Petrino- horrible pro coach, but a decent college coach. He win a program some games as long as the AD can deal with his mercenary mentality.
Dan Mullen- no opinion
Houston Nutt- a good coach who can win with great talent. But even with the talent, his teams will never do better than 10 wins.
Les Miles- I like Les. He’s a passionate guy who players want to play for. I think that he took over what Saban started at LSU, so I won’t call him a great coach in terms of creating a program. But he’s maintained the standard of excellence at LSU, which isn’t an easy thing to do.
Rich Brooks- brilliant offensive football mind. When Brooks has his players running the offense, the Wildcats are VERY tough to beat. Brooks will never win more than 8 or 9 games at Kentucky, but I think that’s fine for Wildcat fans.
bama12titles
April 15th, 2009
11:16 am
Atlanta gator,
No. I did not see the “gradulations” video of Rep. Brown but I’ll check it out tonight on youtube when I get home. This was funny and we’ve all gotten a lot of mileage out of it. But on a more somber note I’m now not sure I want to see this video if its just going to be a sad indictment of the state of our great nation and the sorry state of some of our chosen leaders. Signing off now.
Gator Growl
April 15th, 2009
11:17 am
Hey bama12titles…Speaking of abusing the English language, have you been to south Alabama lately???