Hogs facing Gator program that looks far from DBU

Often referred to as DBU, one of several, Florida's defensive strength historically lies in their secondary–not in 2020, however.

The 4-1 Gators are currently giving up 262 passing yards per game, which ranks 92th in the country. It's 60 more passing yards per game than their team let up in 2019 and their worst average in more than a decade. Their coverage grade, per PFF, is third worst in the SEC, just in front of Ole Miss and Vanderbilt.

Despite playing with an experienced group, Florida only has four interceptions through five games and only two were picks by defensive backs. Three of their picks were against Georgia last week, which has struggled with a QB carousel.

It's actually a sophomore, corner Kaiir Elam, a former Arkansas target, that leads the Gators in passes defensed with eight. Elam has more snaps on the season than any other Florida defender.

The deficiency creates a great situation for former Gator Feleipe Franks, heading back to the Swamp less than a year after departing for Fayetteville.

"You've got a quarterback that can run, you've got a quarterback that can extend plays and when he extends plays he can get it down the field for chunk yards," Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said leading up to game day. "Looks like he understands their system really well and what they're asking him to do and he's playing really good, so we understand that we're going to have to play with effort and energy and do the things that we do to be a good team.”