Gators focused on boosting production in passing game

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- There's not a season that goes by without some head coach or offensive coordinator using the line.

The time-tested phrase is part of Football 101 when the starting quarterback struggles.

Michigan offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier may have been the first to use it this season when Wolverines starter Devin Gardner came under fire from fans.

''The backup quarterback is always the most popular guy in town,'' Nussmeier said.

First-year Gators offensive coordinator Kurt Roper can relate. Since Florida managed just 200 yards of total offense in a 42-21 loss at Alabama 10 days ago, true freshman backup Treon Harris has been the Gators' most popular player.

If not around campus, certainly on social media.

Fans want the Gators to #FreeTreon.

Roper refrained from quoting Nussmeier on Tuesday. Instead, he tried to offer some perspective on where Harris is in his development compared to starter Jeff Driskel.

''His understanding is not where it needs to be, and that's not because he doesn't work hard at it or he's not getting reps," Roper said. ''It's just simply age and number of repetitions and practices he's had. So when he goes in, we're going to ask him to do things that we think that he's mentally prepared for.

''But the reason that decision wasn't made (at Alabama) is because we feel that Jeff gives us the best opportunity to win football games."

As the Gators prepare to face Tennessee on Saturday at Neyland Stadium, Driskel remains firmly entrenched as the starter.

A week after throwing for a career-high 295 yards and three touchdowns against Kentucky, Driskel was 9 of 28 for 93 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions at Alabama.

While he is aware of the fan frenzy surrounding Driskel, Roper has not lost confidence in the redshirt junior from Oviedo, Florida.

Roper took some of the blame for the offensive struggles against the Crimson Tide. Florida averaged just 3.6 yards per play and finished 2 of 13 on third-down conversions.

''Played too many bad down and distances,'' Roper said. ''I don't think we ever kept ourselves in good situations that way, which created a bunch of third-and-longs rather than obviously the third-and-shorts and third-and-mediums.

''I made so many aggressive calls on third-and-longs. It's not just him. He threw a couple of interceptions on third-and-longs when I put him in an aggressive call in the mindset of trying to make a play. So it's all around. It's me as a play-caller, it's him as a decision-maker, it's the route-running. All of it together we've just got to get better at.''

In Florida's first two games since Roper arrived, the Gators averaged 593.5 yards per game in wins over Eastern Michigan and Kentucky.

They knew Alabama's defense would provide a much stiffer test and were right. Still, Roper expects crisper execution Saturday in Knoxville than what he saw in Tuscaloosa.

''We've got to be more productive in the passing game,'' Roper said. ''I think that's the biggest issue.''

Junior running back Matt Jones said the Gators remain confident in Roper's offense despite their struggles at Alabama.

''Everybody is touching the ball,'' Jones said. ''Nobody is complaining about anybody getting carries and catches and stuff like that. Everybody is working as a team because he does spread the ball around.''

As for the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Harris, he hasn't played since going 2-for-2 for 148 yards and two touchdown passes in mop-up duty against Eastern Michigan.

It was certainly an impressive debut for the two-time state champion from Booker T. Washington High in Miami. But it wasn't in front of more than 100,000 fans on the road like the Gators will face Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

UF head coach Will Muschamp said the plan for Harris remains the same.

''We go into every game considering some situational things, especially the red zone, to put him in the game,'' Muschamp said. ''If that opportunity presents itself -- in the Kentucky game and the Alabama game it never did -- we would do that.''

Roper is pleased at the way Harris has handled the transition to college and the buzz surrounding his potential.

''He is a grounded young man,'' Roper said. ''He is a guy that understands that he's just trying to get better every week and I don't think he's really getting caught up in that. He is one of Jeff Driskel's strongest supporters. He loves being in that room, loves being around Jeff, supports Jeff and knows he's working every day to get better.''

During their evaluation since the Alabama loss, Roper said the coaching staff reviewed 37 drop-back pass situations for Driskel on third down in the first three games. Of those, Driskel deserved criticism on eight of the plays and made good decisions on the 29 others according to Roper.

While Driskel hasn't been perfect, the Gators need to help him out more than they have to win at Tennessee.

''It's a team thing. We've got a guy that understands the game that's a tough-minded guy and has the ability to make plays for us,'' Roper said.