The Florida defense didn’t cover itself in glory in the win over Ole Miss. It was adequate, but it’s a stretch to assign it a stronger adjective than that one.
Dan Mullen said after the game and this week that he wasn’t surprised. The team has practiced tackling twice since the Orange Bowl, and, well, it’s a skill that requires practice. The coaching staff also had no idea what to expect from a team whose head coach and coordinators had never worked together before, and it showed. The defense seemed hesitant early on, and it sometimes had a hard time getting lined up before the snap due to the Rebels’ tempo.