What they're saying about the Florida Gators

Following Saturday’s 29-16 win over No. 11 Tennessee at The Swamp, the Florida Gators generated a ton of buzz both from traditional media and via social media. With Billy Napier’s program now sitting at 2-1 overall, 1-0 in the SEC, here’s what people are saying about the Gators.

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-“Do all of those Napier critics out there still think he needs to hire an offensive coordinator? No, it wasn’t an offensive fireworks show Saturday night, but I consider Tennessee’s Josh Heupel to be the best offensive mind in college football and Napier’s offense outgained Heupel’s 281-182 in the first half before the Gators went conservative in the second half. If you’re scoring at home, Heupel’s teams never scored less than 17 points during his three seasons at UCF.

Does anybody still think the offensive line is terrible and the Gators can’t run the ball? Running back Trevor Etienne rushed for 172 yards, including a 62-yard touchdown.

Does anybody still think Mertz is just some rum-bum, run-of-the-mill transfer from Wisconsin. Mertz was a 5-star recruit coming out of high school and played like it Saturday when he efficiently completed 19 of 24 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown. He also deked a defender on a key third-down play and ran for a touchdown as well.

Does anybody still think the Swamp has lost its magic and mystique?” — Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel

-“I’ll say this about Billy Napier, that was as big of a win I’ve seen in a long time because he was really starting to come under fire after the Utah game. And you know now everyone has calmed down and good for him because, you know, his outlook and his stock changed overnight. Credit him with an incredibly significant win.” — Paul Finebaum, ESPN

People are praising Florida Gators QB Graham Mertz

-“Graham Mertz has been terrific for @GatorsFB. He’s made several pinpoint passes on the run. He’s stayed patient and showed his poise on that last TD pass to Montrell Johnson by waiting right until the defender was on him before dumping the ball off to Johnson. All Gators at the half.” — Chris Low, ESPN

-“When the offense clicks, it clicks. And in the first half, it was clicking on all cylinders. The running game was en fuego, and Graham Mertz was extremely efficient en route to four touchdowns (and a missed field goal), giving fans a glimpse of this year’s Gators at their finest.” — Gators Wire

-“(The Gators) shocked Tennessee with a 20-point second quarter that gave the Gators a lead they never relinquished. A lot of that was due to the incredible stat line from Trevor Etienne.

The sophomore back has 23 carries for 172 yards and a touchdown on a 63-yard run in the first quarter to answer the Volunteers’ opening score.

“Ok 7 I see you, Travis Etienne tweeted with fingers crossed emoji after the game. “Turn em’ up!”

The Jaguars back knows a thing or two about dominating college football. Travis played four seasons for the Clemson Tigers, racking up 4,952 rushing yards, 1,115 receiving yards, and 78 total touchdowns.

Younger brother Trevor is starting to build his own impressive resume in college football. Through 16 games, Trevor has 1,000 rushing yards, 92 receiving years, and eight touchdowns for the Gators.

Trevor’s big night helps move the team to 2-1 on the season and sets them up to have an excellent record when they play their biggest rival, No. 1 Georgia, in a few weeks. — Clutch Points

-“A sold-out crowd delighted in a familiar result.

Ten straight times, Florida has beaten Tennessee in this building that’s a Gators temple and a house of horrors for the Vols (2-1, 0-1 SEC).

When I spoke to Steve Spurrier this week, he couldn’t believe some betting lines had listed Florida as a 7½-point underdog.

A touchdown underdog? In The Swamp? To Tennessee? The Head Ball Coach couldn’t believe it. As usual, Spurrier was onto something.

These Gators (2-1, 1-0) may not be reminiscent of the Spurrier era, but this result was. All Gators. A couple of Florida kicking blunders prevented the score from being more lopsided.” — Knoxville News Sentinel

-“Now, by no means does one dominant win over Tennessee — albeit a clearly overrated Volunteers team with that previous No. 11 ranking — make the Gators an SEC Championship contender or a big-time obstacle in Georgia’s pursuit of a third consecutive national title. 

However, what it should do is give Napier’s program real hope that Florida can be a lot more than just another pedestrian opponent for the Bulldogs, LSU or Florida State that can be squashed like a bug hitting a windshield. 

And if there’s one player capable of changing the perception about the Gators being just an average, middle-of-the-pack SEC team, it’s Graham Mertz. …

While it’s been more than 30 years since Shane Matthews led the Gators to the first of six SEC championships and set many league passing records under Steve Spurrier, he still knows a good quarterback when he sees one. 

And long before anyone thought Mertz could be effective operating UF’s offense, Matthews was convinced this merger with Napier would work out just fine. ” — Gene Frenetic, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union

-“Florida football has seen its defense take a massive step forward from last year to this one under first-year defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong.

We’ve talked about how highly they rank in the nation in total defense, but the Gators are second in the country in a different stat that not many people talk about, but is vital to any FBS defense.

In terms of defensive red zone snaps per game, the Gators only allow 2.33 every time they take the field, second only to Michigan at 1.67.” — Fansided