Veterans Give Florida a Chance for Defensive Turnaround at LSU

Florida faces an uphill battle on Saturday, but Jaden Robinson and Tyreak Sapp could be the catalysts for an upset.

Florida Gators linebacker Jaden Robinson made his first start of his career last year against LSU. | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

While the freshmen and transfers get accustomed to SEC life, the veterans truly understand what the bright lights signify. For the Florida Gators, linebacker Jaden Robinson and edge rusher Tyreak Sapp will keep things in their proper perspective.

Florida needs to win this game to regain momentum and start conference play off on a good note. However, neither Sapp nor Robinson will allow the bright lights of Death Valley to fool them or the hype surrounding LSU to deflate them.

Robinson, who has started the last six games dating back to last season, made his first career start in Florida's 27-16 win over the Tigers last year.

"Honestly, I have grown so much from that game, being able to, like, communicate with players better and just, like, understand what concepts will be coming at me in the game," he said Wednesday. "Communication can improve to another level, and also playing at LSU is going to be a very loud, hostile environment, so communication is going to be key."

Florida Gators linebacker Jaden Robinson started the last four games of the 2024 season. | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Robinson's growth is easy to see. He looks mentally quicker, meaning that while he still uses the "see ball, hit ball" rationale, Robinson can read his keys better, using less wasted motion and false steps to get to the point of attack and the ball carrier.

As a result, he plays a sharper brand of football at this point.

Meanwhile, Sapp, one of the loudest leaders on the team, got even louder after last week's loss to USF. The senior has been extremely vocal this week in practice with the motivation of proving themselves right.

"I think this is a phenomenal opportunity," he said on Wednesday. "I think the best thing about it is that we get to prove to ourselves who we really are. I didn’t want to get the whole team worried about proving it to everybody else on the outside.

“We just want to prove it to ourselves because we know what we can do. That was just the main thing, coming out and just proving it to ourselves. We know what we can do. So, we’re going to go do what we know, and we know how to go out there and play football and line it up and tee it up, and that’s what we plan on doing.”

Tyreak Sapp held the entire team accountable after last week's loss to USF. | Kyle Lander / Florida Gators on SI

Sapp, instead of being blinded by the moment, focuses on the work ahead. However, what plays right into his hands is LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier. When pressured, his reactions lead to bad decisions.

Either you will see him freeze or lob passes of unfathomable origin. That is to say, he gets happy feet and does not look comfortable or calm. Last season, Florida dropped Nussmeier to the turf seven times, with Sapp tallying one himself. On top of that, he tallied four tackles for loss and looked unblockable.

As mentioned, Florida sits in a must-win position. With their hopes of a big season teetering, this is where defenders like Sapp and Robinson come up big and set the tone. Despite the sentiment of many, LSU is not an undefeated juggernaut.

The two veterans know this and want to show this.