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Oct 23, 2009 8:49 pm US/Eastern
Gators Looking To Reverse Fortunes Against Miss St
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
The Florida Gators haven't had much luck in Starksville, Mississippi.
They've lost their last four games to Mississippi State on the road and fell, 38-31, during their last trip in 2004.
Florida could have trouble on Saturday, and the Gators could be without three defensive starters because of injuries.
Linebacker Brandon Spikes and defensive tackles Jaye Howard and Lawrence Marsh practiced sparingly this week and Coach Urban Meyer doesn't know if any of them will play.
The Gators are already thin on the defensive line because Justin Trattou has a biceps injury that could keep him out for weeks.
Meyer is more worried about his team's offensive slump.
Since scoring 31 points in the first quarter at Kentucky on Sept. 26, the Gators (6-0, 4-0) have scored 46 points in 11 quarters. Last week, they squeaked by Arkansas, 23-20, on a field goal as time expired.
Florida is ranked No. 2 in the Top 25 and No. 1 in the BCS standings, and is clearly an elite team. But they are struggling like never before in Tim Tebow's three-year run as starter, and have a lot of questions to answer on this tricky trip.
Players and coaches believe there are several factors contributing to the offensive slump, including turnovers, dropped passes and sacks. The blame has been spread among receivers, offensive linemen, offensive coordinator Steve Addazio and even Tebow.
But Meyer insists the problems are mostly red-zone related.
The Gators scored 92 percent of the time when they moved inside the 20 in 2008. This year, they're scoring just 80 percent of the time, and only 50 percent of them produced touchdowns.
Florida is 76th nationally in red-zone efficiency. The most alarming stat of all: The Gators have scored only six touchdowns in 20 red-zone trips in Southeastern Conference play.
"Two areas where we're usually very good is turnover margin and scoring in the red zone," Meyer said. "Those are our biggest issues right now. We're leading the league in offense, but turnovers and the red zone -- they are critical."
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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