Sep 30, 2009 1:14 pm US/Eastern
The State Of Florida Football
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
For years, football experts have constantly lauded the state of Florida as producing some of the greatest football players in the nation. Back in the 1990's, the University of Miami, Florida State University, the University of Florida along with the Miami Dolphins, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers were all at or near the tops of their game. With the exception of the University of Florida, oh how the mighty have fallen.
The once unstoppable machine that was the University of Miami Hurricanes football team has disappeared from the annual discussion of the national championship and instead a first-tier team in the Atlantic Coast Conference. So far in 2009, the Hurricanes scoring defense is ranked number 84 in the country. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes scoring offense ranks 72nd in the country. Both are a far cry from the dominating numbers the team used to put up.
But unlike most other major Florida football teams, the future is bright for the Hurricanes. The team is probably one year away from re-entering the national championship discussion thanks to emerging star quarterback Jacory Harris and a slowly improving defense.
In Tallahassee, the news is not so good. While fielding an incredibly young team, the Florida State Seminoles have almost become a shell of their former selves. The Seminoles rank 55th in the country in scoring offense and 76th in rushing offense. Defensively, the 'Noles rank 59th in scoring defense, 115th in passing defense, and 37th in rush defense. The days of defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews' defense causing mass headaches for opposing teams are a distant memory.
The Seminoles do have a young and improving offensive line and a potential star quarterback in Christian Ponder. But Ponder has virtually no skill players around him and the defensive secondary for Florida State is getting carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey. This season will likely be head coach Bobby Bowden's last at FSU, which means Andrews will likely leave as well. That means a large coaching turnover may be coming to FSU, which can sometimes be a blessing for a team that is struggling on the field.
Moving to the pro game, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers once fielded a suffocating, dominating defense coupled with a strong running game and a good game manager at quarterback. The motto for the offense was don't mess up, and let the defense dominate. For the Buccaneers, the fall started quickly but may not end anytime soon.
The Bucs released a slew of veterans in the offseason, most notably future Hall of Fame linebacker Derrick Brooks. The multi-time All-Pro still had gas in the tank and could have helped a young defense needing leadership. But the Bucs in a cost-cutting move, released Brooks and the defense hasn't been the same since.
The nadir for the Bucs may have come this past Sunday against the New York Giants. The Bucs mustered a total of 86 yards of offense in the entire game. Running backs Carnell Williams and Derrick Ward ran for 10 more yards than the fans in the stands did. That's not bad, that's an offensive ineptitude of epic proportions. Now, the Bucs were playing a great Giants defense, but 86 total yards sound about like what the Cleveland Browns might put together, but not the Tampa Bay Bucs.
Couple that with the fact that the Giants ran right through the Bucs defense like a hot knife through butter, and the situation in Tampa could get really ugly, really quickly.
In Jacksonville, the city has shown lukewarm support at best to the Jaguars. Of course, the Jaguars have put together lukewarm at best teams on the field, so it's not a shock the city isn't turning out to support the team. The Jaguars have some good pieces to start to build a team around. They have a star running back in the form of Maurice Jones-Drew; a solid set of rookie offensive tackles in Eben Britton and Eugene Monroe; and a couple of improving defensive ends; a solid, but injury prone fullback named Greg Jones; and a good young tight end in the form of Marcedes Lewis.
Still, the Jaguars offense is basically one dimensional and in desperate need of playmaking receivers on the outside. The Jags have swung for the fences and missed horribly in the draft on receivers like Reggie Williams, Ernest Wilford, and Matt Jones. The Jags hoped to get a little bit out of Torry Holt, who is at the end of his career, but he's now a possession receiver and not the explosive playmaker he used to be in St. Louis. Plus, the Jaguars quarterback, David Garrard, has not looked like the superstar he's getting paid to be.
All of the Jaguars games are likely to be blacked out this season, meaning so few fans are buying tickets that the NFL prevents the game from being shown in the Jaguars market in hopes of forcing fans out to the games.
That brings us to the Miami Dolphins. This was supposed to be a breakthrough year for the Dolphins. The franchise had a new owner, the Parcells regime was in its second season and the team was coming off an AFC East Championship, just one year removed from being the worst team in football. But, the Dolphins stumbled out of the gate hard and have now been hit just as hard by injuries.
Starting quarterback Chad Pennington is done for the season, and possibly his career depending on what kind of magic renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews can pull off. That leaves the quarterbacking duties in the hands of Chad Henne, who has as many starts in the NFL as this writer does. Henne has a powerful arm, but much like his Jaguars brethren, he has one possession receiver on the outside in Davone Bess and that's about it.
The Dolphins have yet to go after a solid number one receiver in the first round of a draft or in free agency, and it has shown in the passing game. Most notably, Miami's starting tight end Anthony Fasano could catch the flu easier than he has caught the ball through the first three games.
But all is not lost on the Dolphins. Much like the Jaguars, they have a young, solid offensive line across the board. They have two star running backs, a young quarterback and a pair of future star cornerbacks.
What the Dolphins don't have is a free safety that doesn't get burned like a piece of toast. Free Agent signing Gibril Wilson has showed the same lack of playmaking he showed during the 2008 season in Oakland, leading to the Raiders (yes, the Raiders) releasing him. It's not all on Wilson as he has faced three All-Pro tight ends in a row, but the Dolphins defense is showing a penchant for getting burned deep or by tight ends over the middle, neither of which is going to help generate a lot of wins.
That brings us to the one shining star in the state of Florida's football teams, the University of Florida Gators. All the Gators have done is dominate the recruiting front, dominate the SEC, and win 2 out of the last 3 national championships. Not too shabby a resume for the mighty Gators.
The Gators dominance has been aided by the fall of both FSU and Miami. Still, what the Gators have pulled off during the brief time head coach Urban Meyer has been there is nothing short of spectacular. Of course it doesn't hurt to have one of the best college football players of all-time, Tim Tebow, leading your squad.
It must be noted that on the college football front, as FSU, UF, and Miami rose to dominance, the recruiting battles over Florida talent became much, much tougher. Plus, as Florida State found out last weekend, the University of South Florida program is rising fast behind head coach Jim Leavitt. That adds a layer of difficulty to the big three trying to keep a stranglehold on the top recruits.
In the Deep South, some people like to recite the line that, "the South shall rise again." In the state of Florida, fans shouldn't worry, all of the Florida teams (major college and pro) will once again climb the ladder to respectability and possibly dominance in the not too distant future.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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