Struggling Gators Defense Stares Down Daunting Task of Monken, Bennett
The 100th rendition (or 101st by Georgia's metrics) of the Florida Gators' annual rivalry matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs is set to write its new chapter on Saturday.
Coming in with the stain of defensive deficiency — an aspect of the unit that received a stern look during the bye week — the Gators face a tall task in stopping a Georgia offense that, after working through growing pains over the past two seasons, is clicking at arguably the highest level during Kirby Smart's tenure.
The ferocious attack the Gators will face features two cornerstone pieces to the overall puzzle in their quest to repeat: offensive coordinator Todd Monken and quarterback Stetson Bennett.
Monken is the mastermind behind the offense. His system immediately broke up the monotony that Georgia's offense grew synonymous with despite powerful rushing games leading the way to present sustainability during even the worst of years for UGA.
Now, just three years into his stint in Athens, Ga., the Bulldogs are operating at a level that slates them as the second-ranked total offense in the NCAA (526.6 yards and 41.7 points per game) behind the uber-productive Tennessee offense.
Gators head coach Billy Napier spoke to Monken's success and the variety the offense presents his sputtering defense in week nine.
"Coach Monken is a well-established, veteran coach," Napier said in the weekly SEC Teleconference on Wednesday. "He's got tremendous experience. He's had a lot of success moving the ball and scoring points at a lot of different stops."
The stops for Monken include various power five programs including LSU and Oklahoma State as well as extended time in the NFL as a position coach and offensive coordinator with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tampa Bay Buccanneers and Cleveland Browns.
He was pulled away from the NFL in January 2020 when the Bulldogs came calling for his services. His previous stops have shaped the dominant pro-style attack he operates.
"[Monken is] certainly a guy we've got a lot of respect for. I mean, he's utilizing his personnel is what I would say. They've done a good job creating variables in a couple different groupings, you know, the tight ends make them really unique relative to the number of variables that they can present," Napier said referencing the impact of sophomore Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington.
"I think when you look at the numbers they're a very efficient team, you know, on first down and certainly, in the red area they do a really good job."
Combatting opposing tight ends in the flats and seams is an area Florida's struggled with particularly this season and dating back to recent years, making that aspect of the Bulldogs' offense a daunting duty for Patrick Toney's defense.
The growing pains that the Bulldogs first experienced under Monken came largely due to the inconsistency at the quarterback position. In his first season, the Bulldogs employed three different starting quarterbacks for the first time in 15 years with Bennett, J.T. Daniels and D'Wan Mathis.
Bennett, who started for the 2020 version of the Florida-Georgia, took firm control of the unit during the Bulldogs' national championship run in 2021. With a storied past as a former walk-on at UGA, Bennett is a familiar face to Napier and other members of the Gators staff who assisted Napier at Lousiana-Lafayette.
Recruiting Bennett to play quarterback for the Ragin' Cajuns in the early portion of their tenure there, Napier spoke on the talents that the Dawgs starting signal-caller presents and his improvements that have drastically elevated Monken's offense.
“I just thought the guy, he had a really good skill set," Napier said of the impressive dual-threat quarterback. "You know, he was a very, very productive player in high school. He was a winner, and he had a little bit of a chip on his shoulder that I respected.
"You know, I thought he would bring a lot to our team, and playing quarterback, you know, there’s a lot more that goes into it than just physical traits, and certainly Stetson’s got those things. His confidence level comes as a result of a lot of hard work.
"He’s proven to be an effective player, and I’m proud of him for it. You know, because I got to know him, and I know him and his family, where they’re from and what they’re about.”
That familiarity will be beneficial as Florida attempts to limit the newly dynamic Georgia offense amid the experimentation of finding the absent formula for success defensively in Saturday's contest.
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