Talking UCF Secondary Play Against Florida's Quarterback and Top Receivers

UCF must slow down Florida’s passing game to help the defense focus on the Gators’ rushing attack.

Brian Smith | Dec 9, 2021

When the Knights take the field against the Gators, they will face the best overall wide receiver unit they have gone up against the entire season. It’s a group with talented players both in size as well as speed.

Here’s a look at the quarterback and the two key Florida players out wide, statistics and matchups to know.

The first component to know would be quarterback Emory Jones. The senior signal caller has been a roller coaster this season when it comes to consistently passing the football. He had tremendous games against Vanderbilt and Samford, but struggled against better competition like Alabama and Kentucky.

If Jones wants to add to his 2,563 yards and 19 touchdowns and also help the Gators win against UCF, he needs to do so without also adding to his 13 interceptions. That’s been the problem for Florida.

When Jones made good throws, he threw to a bevy of different receivers. The two to keep in mind that UCF’s secondary will likely focus on would be Jacob Copeland and Justin Shorter.

Copeland has 39 receptions for 607 yards and four touchdowns. Shorter caught 38 passes for 496 yards and three touchdowns.

For UCF to be successful, the Knights need to disrupt the timing of Florida’s passing game against these two players. Mixing and matching zone and man coverage is a basic start, but the intricacies of getting hands on during bump-and-run coverage, keeping receivers inside towards the middle of the field when playing zone, and closing on the football with as much timeliness as possible.

Yes, it’s all about technique, the same things that coaches discuss at press conferences and during defensive back meetings. It’s just that this game brings heightened awareness because if Florida’s passing game is working, that also helps a really talented Florida rushing attack, too.

Florida rushed for 244 yards against No. 1 Alabama earlier this season. To say the least, it’s a rushing attack that can be formidable.

Simply put, if the Gators are able to run the football against a six or even five man box because UCF struggles with stopping the pass, there’s really no chance to slow down Florida’s offense in general. To that end, a couple of challenges for UCF defenders needs to be noted.

The improved play of the UCF secondary from roughly the midpoint of the 2021 season was obvious in October. Now, players like Davonte Brown and Corey Thornton and Brandon Adams, among several, will be challenged with making plays on the football to help make the Gators a one-dimensional offense.

🔒 pic.twitter.com/TNOsNMuJyT
— Davonte Brown ™️🦅 (@DBrown__7) December 2, 2021

Being physical with Florida’s top two receivers is one thing, but also setting up opportunities to get in Jones’ head as a passer by jumping routes and taking opportunities to make interceptions when available. That’s especially important during the early portion of the game.

When Jones struggled during the first half of games, that often carried over into the second half of those same contests. He became tentative, at times, to throw, making late decisions that led to interceptions during the 2021 regular season. That certainly impacts his wide receivers too.

Once the timing of a passing game is disrupted, that’s when performance tends to decline. It’s even hard to hit basic routes once doubt comes into the mind of any given quarterback, Jones included. With that in mind, a statistical goal for the Knights.

UCF needs to keep these two receivers away from the end zone and under 100 yards combined. If the Knights are able to do that, then the defense can stay balanced and not have to load the box with seven defenders.

In sum, UCF has to be extremely consistent against Florida’s passing game if it wants to win the Gasparilla bowl. Defensive back technique is priority No. 1, along with playing sound fundamental defense.

No free passing plays for the Gators because of any form of poor technique or mental error. If that can be accomplished, along with making a couple of timely early plays on the football that causes Jones to hesitate when he passes the football thereafter, UCF’s defense will have a good chance to help the Knights pull off the upset against Florida.

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