Spreading the Love: Florida's Impact Players......and Some Clemson Talk

Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin get a lot of love from the national analysts, and rightfully so. However, Florida is 5-1 this year primarily because of an improvement on defense. So far this year, Florida is giving up 96.3 rushing yards per game, 178 passing yards per game, and 13 points per game, good for 17th, 31st, and 10th in the nation for each category respectively. By comparison, last year, Florida gave up 103.3 rushing yards per game, 258.54 passing yards per game, and 25.5 points per game, good for 10th, 98th, and 46th in those categories respectively. See the difference? The defense has stepped up and improved, despite the difference in rush defense rank. Defensive tackles Lawrence Marsh has 3 sacks, and has been the biggest reason for Florida's improvement in rush defense. The linebackers have played well as a unit as well, with Brandon Spikes leading the way while Brandon Hicks and AJ Jones have played well alongside him. However, the biggest improvement has been in the secondary; while there aren't any shutdown cornerbacks in the group Joe Haden and Janoris Jenkins may be the best young CB duo in the nation right now. Haden has been consistently good throughout the year, while Jenkins seems to be more of a playmaker; in 3 games starting, he already has as many pass breakups (5) as Malcolm Jenkins does in twice as many games. Yes, the same Malcolm Jenkins who's going to be a first round draft pick this year. He seems to be more of a natural then Haden, which makes sense given that Haden is a converted wide receiver. Both are good corners, and should only get better with time.

Offensively, who would've thought that Jeffrey Demps would become Florida's go-to-guy at tailback? He undoubtedly has to be after putting up two straight 100-yard games, including 129 on LSU. Chris Rainey should split carries with him as well, giving Florida two freshmen RBs in the backfield. Of course, this may mean that Emmanuel Moody gets left out on the cold, which is a shame given that he's injured and can't actively compete for playing time right now. However, there's no use in fixing something that isn't broken, right?

And now to name Florida's biggest newcoming impact players on offense and defense:

Offense:
- Jeffrey Demps, who leads the Gators in rushing yards and is averaging over 13 yards per rush
- Chris Rainey, who is second on the team in rushing yards and is averaging over 6 yards per carry

Defense:
- Lawrence Marsh, who has 3 sacks, 19 tackles (6 TFL), and one QB hurry
- Janoris Jenkins, who has amassed 22 tackles (1 TFL) 5 pass breakups, a sack, and a forced fumble
- Ahmad Black, who has 28 tackles (1 TFL), 2 interceptions, a pass breakup, and a blocked kick

Switching gears, Clemson's Tommy Bowden got canned today, after Clemson went from ACC favorite, to....well, where they've been ever since Bowden became head coach: mediocrity. Seriously, what the hell was Clemson thinking when they gave this guy an extension to begin the year? Why did they keep this guy around for so long? They've been the most talented team in the conference for years now, and they've got the two most talented tailbacks in the conference as well. There's no reason for a team led by James Davis and CJ Spiller to be .500 right now. Even funnier is Clemson quarterback Cullen Harper coming out and saying that he deserved to be fired. Did you mention that you deserved to get benched for Willy Korn for those 10 interceptions you've thrown so far? Probably not. Back to Bowden, though: he's been the most underachieving coach in the nation for half a decade now. Cullen Harper threw 27 touchdowns and 7 interceptions last year; he already has 10 now. Davis and Spiller were both 1000 yard rushers last year. Aaron Kelly had over 1100 yards receiving last year. None of these guys are doing well this year. Why? Because Bowden seems content to squander the talent he has around him. At least Clemson finally got smart and cut him loose.

However, who do they find to replace him? Personally, I hope that they don't hire from within or grab some retread coach who's only waiting for his next coaching job. Give some young, up and coming coach a chance. Give a non-BCS conference coach a chance. Here's some guys I'd like to see take CU's HC position:

- Craig Bohl, Head Coach at North Dakota State (FCS Team)
- Bronco Mendenhall, Head Coach at BYU
- Jerry Moore, Head Coach at Appalachian State
- Bobby Johnson, Head Coach at Vanderbilt
- Pat Hill, Head Coach at Fresno State
- Gus Malzahn, Head Coach at Tulsa

All of those guys are good coaches, and can bring new life to a stagnant Clemson program. As for the Tigers, the walls already seem to be coming down. 5 star commit Craig Loston has already decommitted and is opening his recruiting again. On the field, it doesn't seem to be getting better. Maybe Cullen Harper can improve his play if he gets another chance to start, but for now, Willy Korn is leading the team. His inexperience will be a negative for the team, and with Clemson's shoddy play from its offensive line, Davis and Spiller aren't going to be effective. The Tigers may just go from being a runaway favorite to win their conference to not even being bowl eligible.