On the positive side, however, I was exposed to a gameday environment unlike any I had previously experienced. If I tried to address everything, I'd ramble on for thousands of words, particularly if I didn't compartmentalize my thoughts into a few general categories. So what follows is a collection of aphoristic thoughts about the town, the teams and the game itself.
Gainesville and the pregame environment
Part of me expected the tailgate scene at an SEC school to resemble a riot at an early-90s Guns N' Roses concert -- extreme intoxication, lawlessness, flying chairs and the occasional perm mullet. The first item on that list was actually true; come to think of it, so was the last. But for the most part, societal norms held -- open-container laws aside. (I suspect my original vision is a more accurate description of Baton Rogue.) But that's not to say that the tailgate scene wasn't lively, fun and blurry-drunk. It was certainly on a scale that I hadn't seen before -- a far cry from the West Coast, where any and all pregame activity is unappologetically packed into a tiny parking lot. I came away very impressed with the Florida campus, and I liked most of what I saw of Gainesville. The only negative was oversleeping Gameday. Oh, and the Miami fans. Certain Miami fans, anyway. Everything you've ever heard about them is true. Even the part about every other male 'Cane fan looking like Vanilla Ice circa 2001.
The stadiumCalling a stadium "the best" or "the loudest" is always a tricky proposition. The former certainly has no definitive quantitative measure, and even the latter goes beyond pure decibel-level and into questions of duration, consistency and venue architecture. So while I wont' say that Ben Hill Griffin is necassarily at the top of either list, it certainly must be very, very close on both counts. I can say with 100 percent certainty that it was the best football venue I have ever seen. On the Sunday after the game, I got a chance to go back and check it out in the daylight. Also, I was sober. Walking down to the very first row on the 50-yard line and looking up at the steep slopes of bleechers, I could see why The Swamp might be the most intimidating venue anywhere. Most longtime Gator fans told me that Saturday's game wasn't even that loud relative to how it can be. If that was considered a down-game volume wise... wow.
The game
For transperency's sake, I have a rooting interest in Florida, so I was somewhat frustrated by the anemic offensive production (on both sides of the ball), but the game was far from being a disappointment. I sat (stood, rather) near the very top of the student section, within obscene-gesture range of the visitor's section. In some venues, being in the nosebleeds can make it hard to remain engaged in what was admittedly a boring game, but my attention was nonetheless held throughout. The worst part was Miami's drive in the first and second quarters that burned nearly nine minutes of clock. I haven't seen a replay of the game yet, but at the time it certainly seemed like the Hurricanes were (rightfully so) milking the new clock rules. This deserves its own post, particularly as the available sample size becomes larger, but so far, I don't like the new rules. Beyond that, the atmosphere during Florida's first scoring drive was electric, and its always good to see high-level football in person.
On Florida
Few teams, if any, do special teams as well as the Gators, and it was a delight to see them in person, as the TV cameras never cover enough of the field do these units justice. Even taking away Florida's punt block and downed punt inside the one, this unit made an impact and will be instrumental if the Gators are to make a push for any kind of a title, conference or otherwise. The offense sputtered throughout much of the game, which I thought was mainly due to a few protection problems on the line. The adjustments made by the Florida coaching staff were nice, but they'll need to come sooner against tougher opponents. I also still don't believe there's "a book" on stopping the Gator offense, and the talent level is startling (even more so in person) so I don't see any lasting concerns here. It's also tough to criticize a defense that yielded just 140 yards of offense and three points to BCS-conference opponent, but if the Gators have a weakness it's still the defensive line. They got good penetration stopping the run, but the three sacks were of the "coverage" variety, and the line seemed to have trouble breaking through on obvious pass-downs. The secondary is much improved, but the real litmus test for the run- and pass-defenses could come against Tennessee, which has a road-grading running attack and a quarterback capable of executing a play-action pass.
On Miami
First the good: This is a Miami team that has a chance to win the ACC. The defense looked burly and well-coached, and the running game showed promise despite being largely shut down against the Gators. Even if you attribute the game's relatively close score (9-3 at the start of the fourth quarter) a result of some trepidation on Florida's part, you have to credit Miami for showing some moxy after opening the game by punting and surrending a quick-strike TD. But can we stop it already with the "young team" talk? Yes, Miami has something like 105 freshmen on this year's roster, but the 'Canes started seven upperclassmen on defense and six on offense against Florida. By contrast, the Gators started three juniors and exactly zero seniors on defense. Where the 'Canes' youth becomes a weakness is at quarterback where Robert Marve and Jacory Harris showed promise but still looked like the freshmen they are.
Final thought
For people raised in the South (or a few Big 12 and Big 10 environments) the atmosphere before a Florida football game is probably nothing new. But to someone who spent 90-plus percent of his life in the Northeast, Pacific Northwest and Missouri/Kansas-B.S. (that's "Before the Spread" made football relevant inthose parts), the raucousness I observed on Saturday was unprecedented. I can't wait to see it again.
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