The wide receiver room for the Florida Gators was seen as the biggest strength, but it hasn't been at 100% all season.
When the Florida Gators
take the field against the Georgia Bulldogs
on Saturday afternoon, it will mark their first game out of the bye. It also gives Florida a chance to pick up its third top-10 victory of the season, which would be a massive statement in a rivalry game.
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One thing the Gators haven't had all season, outside of a handful of plays, is their star wide receiver trio. Dallas Wilson
, Eric Singleton Jr., and Vernell Brown III
have played only five snaps together this year. One of those snaps turned into a 49-yard touchdown on a screen pass to Brown, but Singleton injured his ankle blocking on that play.
Now, with Brown expected to return this weekend, Florida could create a lot of problems for a Georgia defense that hasn't been as elite as it has been in years past.
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Why the Florida Gators' wide receiver trio matters
Whether it's Aaron Philo or Tramell Jones Jr.
at quarterback, having all three weapons on the outside gives the Gators a real advantage over the Bulldogs. All three can attack vertically, win at the intermediate level of the field, and pick up a lot of yards after the catch. Defenses usually have to pick one or two receivers to worry about. Florida's offense won't let them do that when everyone is healthy.
The skill sets also fit together nicely. Wilson is more of a traditional X receiver, while Brown and Singleton can play both on the outside and in the slot. That flexibility allows the Gators to move players around the formation and find the matchup they want on a given snap.
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When you have three players at that level, you can isolate mismatches and create opportunities that simply wouldn't exist with only two of them. A defense can roll coverage toward one receiver, but rolling it toward three isn't realistic, especially if offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner
uses bunch formations. Someone is going to be left in a one-on-one situation, and that's exactly where this group thrives.
Faulkner knows how to run a ball control style offense, and that could be key to beating Georgia. Keeping the Bulldogs' offense on the sideline and sustaining drives is a proven way to stay in a game like this one.
The important part is that ball control doesn't have to mean conservative. Getting the ball into the hands of your playmakers, even in short spaces, can do wonders against this Georgia defense. A quick screen or a short crosser turns into a big gain when the player catching it can make people miss. That 49-yard touchdown to Brown is the perfect example of what that looks like.
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Along with that, the Gators do a good job of creating explosive plays when they do throw the football. Brown is the headliner in that area, already having two punt return touchdowns, along with multiple touchdowns through the air. Any time he touches the ball, there's a chance it ends up in the end zone.
Florida hasn't had a real chance to see what this offense looks like with all three receivers on the field at the same time. Five snaps isn't much of a sample, but the one that ended in a touchdown showed the ceiling. Adding that kind of talent back into the lineup coming out of a bye week is a significant boost.
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The Bulldogs have a lot of experience making life difficult for the Gators. This version of the Georgia defense has shown it can be had, though, and Florida's receivers are built to exploit exactly that kind of vulnerability.
If the Gators are able to get it done against Georgia, it will likely be on the backs of those three wide receivers. Whether they can stay on the field together for an entire game is the biggest question, and the answer could shape the rest of Florida's season.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Florida Gators' secret weapon against Georgia Bulldogs is staring us right in the face, and we haven't seen it in action
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