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Tennessee football vs. Florida: 5 Vols to watch for against Gators

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Darrin Kirkland Jr. #34 of the Tennessee Volunteers returns an interception for a touchdown during a game against the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Darrin Kirkland Jr. #34 of the Tennessee Volunteers returns an interception for a touchdown during a game against the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
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Looking at Florida’s stats through three games, it may be weird to have a quarterback who is a game manager as the No. 1 player to go against them. After all, the Gators’ biggest weakness right now appears to be their rush defense, despite the way they shut down the Colorado State Rams in that regard.

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However, the key to the rushing offense getting a lift is the quarterback being a major threat with his legs and arm. Against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers and Kentucky Wildcats, the Gators gave up 72 and 105 rushing yards to the starting quarterbacks respectively, London Johnson and Terry Wilson.

That means when it comes to this game, Ty Chandler, Madre London, Jeremy Banks and Tim Jordan will need Guarantano’s aggression to get their attack going. With a developing offensive line going against a struggling 3-4 still learning the system, it will all come down to Guarantano’s playmaking ability.

So far, despite being hyped as a guy who could run, Guarantano still hasn’t showed off his mobility this year. He has run it minimally. But Tennessee football needs him to do that a lot more to get that rushing attack going Saturday.

When you add to that the simple fact that he is the quarterback already, the Vols are going to need a big day from Guarantano no matter what. Up to this point, he’s been a safe player making the smart throws. Saturday, he needs to be a playmaker.

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If Guarantano is playing and can’t facilitate numerous big plays against the Gators’ defense, the Vols will not win this game. They can’t afford the game manager anymore, even if Jeremy Pruitt says that counts as a playmaker. That’s just Pruitt being vague in a press conference. Guarantano doesn’t have to be Joshua Dobbs from 2016, but he has to make lots of plays for the Vols to win. And he needs to show enough of a dual-threat ability that we know he has to get the running game going.

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