Gator Bowl Matchup: Florida Gators vs Ohio State Buckeyes

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Location: Everbank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Time: 1:00 Eastern
Television: ESPN2
Quick facts: Started in 1946. Ties in SEC and Big Ten teams. $2.5M payout.

The 2012 Gator Bowl features two teams vying to maintain winning records. Both the mighty Gators and the Buckeyes roll into Jacksonville with identical, disappointing records of 6-6. As if these teams did not need enough drama, the sideline story to this matchup will be the larger-than-life coach, Urban Meyer. Although Urban will not be coaching for his 2012 team or his 2010 team, his presence will likely cause quite a stir around both storied programs.

This will be the second all-time meeting between Florida and Ohio State, with the last meeting being a 41-14 beatdown at the hands of the 2008 National Champions. This is Florida's 9th appearance in the Gator Bowl (6-2), and Ohio State's 2nd (0-1).

Key Buckeyes to watch:

• Braxton Miller, QB, #5, 6-3, 210 lbs, Freshman. 67/134 (50%), 997 YDS, 11 TD, 4 INT, 133.6 RAT, 144 ATT, 695 YDS, 4.8 YPA, 7 TD. Miller is a dual threat runner and passer out of the Buckeye power I offense. He was forced to take on additional responsibilities after the starting tailback was suspended earlier in the year. With his tailback and fullback behind him, the Buckeyes will present a balanced attack to the Gators.
• Dan Herron, TB, #1, 5-10, 202 lbs, Senior. 122 ATT, 593 YDS, 4.9 YPA, 3 TD. Do not let the numbers fool you. Herron's numbers are down due to an earlier suspension. In 2010, he proved to be one of the top running backs in the Big Ten. Against a similarly ranked Penn State defense he was held to 76 yards on 18 attempts for a 4.2 yard average and no touchdowns. The Gators can stop this guy, but the defensive front 3 or 4 will need to keep an eye on Miller.

Key Gators to watch:

• John Brantley, QB, #12, 6-3, 219 lbs, Redshirt Senior. 132/224 (58.9%), 1912 YDS, 10 TD, 6 INT, 140.0 RAT. Gator fans were no doubt disappointed at Brantley's career. After getting injured in the final game of the regular season, he lost out on his chance at redemption in front of the home crowd. JB gets one last shot at redemption in front of a quasi-home crowd only a few hours from home.
• Jeff Demps, RB, #28, 5-7, 191 lbs, Senior. 91 ATT, 539 YDS, 6 TD, 15 REC, 165 YDS, 0 TD. The fastest man in the Galaxy has been hampered by injuries all year. Look for the bake in Shake n' Bake to blaze a trail through the Buckeye secondary as he scampers, scoots, and shoots the gaps...assuming his injuries truly are 100% healed. He has lacked that last burst in 5th gear for most of the season.
• Chris Rainey, RB, #1, 5-9, 174 lbs, Senior. 155 ATT, 790 YDS, 2 TD, 28 REC, 350 YDS, 2 TD. The second fastest man in the Galaxy has also been slowed by injuries. Rainey appears to be a bit gun-shy when turning the corner, probably as the result of repeated poundings and over-use. When the shake in Shake n' Bake is healthy, he is dangerous in the open field.

Keys to the game:

• Run between the tackles! Florida's #72 total offense versus Ohio State's #26 total defense. Florida likes to score most of its points in the 2nd quarter, averaging 8.2 points after the offense has time to warm up and feel out the opposing defense in the 1st quarter. The problem is that in the 3rd and 4th quarters, the Gators average a paltry 6.0 and 4.7 points as the opposing defenses adjust to the air attack and seal off the corners from Demps and Rainey. Gator fans have been crying for an up-the-gut rushing attack all season. If the Gators do not deploy some kind of running between the tackles, I doubt the Gators escape the game with a win. The Buckeye run defense is suspect, but then again, so is the Gator rushing offense.
• Pass the ball to the orange and blue jerseys! Johnny Brantley has shown great poise in the pocket, completing passes to players wearing all sorts of jerseys. The key for the veteran QB is to focus on the guys wearing jerseys like his. If JB gets injured again, Charlie Weis will need to remind Jacoby Brissett to not emulate the team captain and his penchant for turning the ball over. While we are at it, perhaps we could throw the ball downfield (to the guys with the orange helmets) in order to keep the defense honest. Ohio State has done a great job at keeping opponents under 190 yards passing per game. Florida has done a terrible job at passing for more than 190 yards per game.
• Keep Brantley vertical. The Gators have surrendered 23 sacks this year, and are ranked 65th in preventing the sack. This may explain how the Gators were down to their 3rd quarterback at one time. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes have sacked opposing QBs just as many times this year. By the way, the leading Buckeye sack-master, DE John Simon, will be lined up against oft-injured Florida DT Chaz Green. Let us hope that Santa brings Chaz a healthy ankle for Christmas. He will need it in order to protect Brantley from the rush.
• Win in the trenches. The Gators have been soft, like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man this season. They need to be tough, and they need to do it without S&C Coach Mickey Marotti. Not that the Gators can get any bigger during final exams and Christmas break, but the Buckeye defensive front averages 2 inches taller and 30 pounds heavier. On their offensive line, they are only an inch taller, but weigh in the same. Ohio State does have 300-pound, 6'8" and 6'7" offensive tackles Mike Adams and JB Shugart to slow down 6'4" 248 pound Florida Buck Ronald Powell. Mr. Powell will be without Dominique Easley to help push back that Buckeye offensive line.

We have a couple weeks to debate how this game will go. Either way, this game will define how year one of the Muschamp Era ends, and possibly bring closure to the Urban Meyer Era.