{"id":479125,"date":"2026-10-28T09:14:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T09:14:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/479125\/"},"modified":"2026-10-28T09:14:53","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T09:14:53","slug":"gators-defense-packs-texas-momentum-for-georgia-trip-wruf-98-1-fm-850-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/479125\/","title":{"rendered":"Gators Defense Packs Texas Momentum for Georgia Trip – WRUF 98.1 FM | 850 AM"},"content":{"rendered":"

Florida football has a test ahead<\/a>. The Gators\u2019 defense may bear the brunt of it.<\/p>\n

Defensive coordinator Brad White has a difficult history against No. 3 Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC). In eight seasons with the Kentucky Wildcats, White went 0-7 against the Bulldogs. No. 17 Florida (5-2, 3-2 SEC) can only hope that fortune changes Saturday.White emphasized that Saturday\u2019s game is about the team, not his personal history.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to win every game we play,\u201d White said. \u201cBut it\u2019s not about me. I just want this defense to continue to grow because I know what they can be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Florida\u2019s defense has grown since the start of the season. Despite inconsistency and mistakes through its first six contests<\/a>, the unit turned in a stronger performance in Texas<\/a>, holding the Longhorns to 272 total yards and 2-for-10 on third down. That may give Florida\u2019s defense momentum to going into a challenging SEC opponent.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe definitely needed [the win],\u201d linebacker Myles Graham said Tuesday. \u201cWe knew that was how we could play\u2026we showed flashes, but we didn\u2019t put together a whole game yet. We needed that so we could build on it for the rest of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Graham noted, the key will be sustaining that level of play Saturday.<\/p>\n

Georgia\u2019s offense will make that difficult. The Bulldogs <\/a>rank third in the SEC in both rushing (197.71) and passing offense (272.14). Their production ranks second in the conference in total offense. Quarterback Gunner Stockton leads the unit and ranks second nationally in passing efficiency with 1,570 passing yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions this season.<\/p>\n

Despite coming off a 27-24 loss against Auburn this past Saturday, marking their first defeat this season, Georgia remains a formidable test. White pointed to Stockton\u2019s ability to move past mistakes as one of the offense\u2019s strengths.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have no doubt that he\u2019s going to be able to put that behind him,\u201d White said of the quarterback. \u201cEverybody on that offense believes in him \u2026 I\u00a0 was able to face him last year, I know what he can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for Florida\u2019s offense, the challenge is similar. However, their biggest question heading into the weekend isn\u2019t necessarily whether they can produce, but who will lead them on field<\/p>\n

Florida\u2019s injury report featured several key players<\/a> ahead of its Oct. 17 victory over Texas, including starting quarterback Aaron Philo. Philo suffered a shoulder injury before the game, opening the door for Tramell Jones Jr. to start. Jones completed 22 of 35 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns, helping lead Florida to an upset road win. Now, with Georgia next on the schedule, the Gators\u2019 starting quarterback remains uncertain.<\/p>\n

During Monday\u2019s availability<\/a>, coach Jon Sumrall downplayed the need to make an early decision, saying the offense wouldn\u2019t change regardless of who started. Wide receiver Eric Singleton Jr. echoed the statement on Tuesday.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m confident in whoever comes out there Saturday,\u201d Singleton said. \u201cI just hope they\u2019re ready to throw it deep.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another focus for Florida\u2019s offense will be staying grounded. The Florida-Georgia rivalry brings more than an anticipated on-field matchup; it also carries the usual SEC fanfare and heightened expectations.<\/p>\n

For a Gators team with several Georgia ties, the game may feel especially personal. Four players joined Florida from Georgia Tech\u2019s offense, and offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner coached the Yellow Jackets from 2023-25. Still, Florida\u2019s approach remains the same as it has throughout the season: go 1-0 every week.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about execution,\u201d Faulkner said Tuesday. \u201cDon\u2019t make it bigger than it is. Playing the game for a long time, it\u2019s still the same game. Don\u2019t forget it\u2019s a game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Category: Feature Sports News<\/a>, Gator Sports<\/a>, Gators Football<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Florida football has a test ahead. The Gators\u2019 defense may bear the brunt of it. Defensive coordinator Brad…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":479126,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-479125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/479125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=479125"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/479125\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/479126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=479125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=479125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=479125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}