'A great steppingstone': Gators defense recovers from Miami debacle for best showing in a year

Few players on the Gators proclaim their love of their teammates more than Tyreak Sapp.

“I like football. I love my team. That's just the honest-to-God truth,” Sapp said. “I want to make sure I put something out there that they can be proud of, and I want to be somebody they can trust.”

Last week vs Miami, Sapp and the Florida defense didn’t do that. The Hurricanes carved the Gators up to the tune of 41 points and 529 total yards.

This week, things for Sapp and the unit would be different.

“We just wanted to show the Gator faithful that we actually have this team, and the things that we preach about, we can actually put that on tape and perform for them,” Sapp said.

Florida did just that in Saturday’s 45-7 win over Samford . That’s the fewest points allowed since the seven last season vs McNeese.

Turnover sets tone

Samford picked up its first first down two plays into the game. It looked like the Gators defense, the unit that’s acquiesced 39 points per game in Florida’s last seven games.

Then, Jason Marshall changed everything. He knocked the ball out of Bulldog receiver DJ Rias on a six-yard pass, and UF had its first fumble recovery of the season.

The offense didn’t score any points on the ensuing drive, and that kept the defense motivated and hungry.

“I love about us, we're never satisfied,” Sapp said. “We understand we can do so much more, and I think tonight was a great steppingstone to doing that.”

Samford punted every drive following that before halftime — five drives in total.

Coach Billy Napier said execution was a big emphasis for the defense after the Miami debacle.

“They gave us a ton of wrinkles early, a lot of loose plays on the perimeter,” Napier said. “I thought that the defensive staff did a good job of adjusting, getting to the right concepts based off of how they were playing offense.”

Offensive explosion inspires defense

Florida put up yardage offensively in the first half but only scored 14 due to turnovers and turnover on downs.

That changed in the second half when QB DJ Lagway began firing.

He threw TD passes of 36, 41 and 85 yards in the third and early fourth quarter.

The defense did allow its only points of the game during that stretch, but the Gator lead had exploded to 38-7.

“It's uplifting,” Sapp said of the offensive explosion. “You go into a game like this, I always tell my guys don't disappoint them because when you disappoint them, you give teams like that hope."

What Florida did after the opening drive Samford touchdown was give the Bulldogs no hope.

Their last four drives ended in punts.

This doesn’t mean everything is rosy with the defense. They still committed multiple after-the-play penalties, including a personal foul after the Samford PAT.

“That's not acceptable. We have to eliminate those types of things. Those are personal decisions, and you compromise the entire team when you do those types of things,” Napier said. “We're not going to tolerate it. Nothing frustrates me more than things like that.”

Sapp also knows improvement is needed with SEC play commencing with Texas A&M next Saturday at home.

"I think this confidence, we're going to let this boost us, but when our head comes off our pillow in the morning, it's going to be a whole different mindset,” Sapp said. “I think everybody understands that from a leadership standpoint all the way down to the younger guys.”

Napier has already said he expects Graham Mertz to start vs A&M if he clears concussion protocol, with Lagway receiving some time as well.

That might not sit well with fans, but it’s quite alright with Sapp.

“I say pick your poison. You want to get bit by a rattlesnake, or you want to get bit by a king cobra? Pick your poison," he said. "Either way, I think you're going to die.”

Noah Ram covers Gainesville-area high school sports and University of Florida athletics for The Gainesville Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at Nram@gannett.com and follow him @Noah_ram1 on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: 'A great steppingstone': Gators defense recovers from Miami debacle for best showing in a year