In light of the outcomes of recent Florida/Georgia games and the SEC East championship implications each year, Saturday's Gator victory was just what the doctor ordered for Florida fans. The annual matchup serves as a thermometer for measuring the "health" of both programs. Since 2016, the Gators have been working towards a cure for the Bulldog blues. Each time it seemed Florida was on the road to recovery, Georgia delivered bad news. In this year's game, a more poised (and offensively potent) Florida team survived a very ugly first five minutes of football to overwhelm the Bulldogs with a barrage of 38 first half points. Teams with less poise might have relapsed and thought, "here we go again" when Georgia jumped out to a 14 - 0 lead just 3:16 into the game. As has been the case since he became the starting quarterback, Kyle Trask was unflappable. From that 3:16 point in the first quarter through 3:12 into the third quarter, Trask completed 23 of 27 passes for 389 yards and put 41 points on the scoreboard. The 4 incompletions during this span of roughly one half included a dropped pass and a "pick six" for Georgia caused by a poor Gator route.

Florida's defense, like in last week's game against Missouri was solid, but not great. Georgia scored only 21 offensive points, but overthrew wide open receivers behind the Gator secondary twice. The Bulldogs also dropped several catchable balls that killed drives for them. Still, Florida's defense allowed only 141 yards of total offense and only 7 points after the catastrophic first 3:12 (136 yards and 14 points) of the game. In light of the early season defensive struggles and the more recent lineup challenges associated with COVID, the Gators are much improved. It appears Todd Grantham has the players back into their more natural positions. The defense is playing better and with, in most cases, more discipline (controlled aggression).

This year's game was brutal in terms of physicality and player injuries. At least three players for each team didn't finish the game and both teams had several others miss portions of the game. Georgia, in particular, was impacted by the absence of key players in their defensive secondary.

The depth and versatility of the Florida offense was showcased by the production of players NOT named Kyle Pitts and Kadraris Toney. Pitts was knocked out of the game early and Toney had only one productive play on ten touches. Instead, Florida went to wheel routes that featured the Gator running backs. As a unit, the backs had 10 catches for 212 yards. The running game was just productive enough to keep the Bulldog linebackers close enough to scrimmage to create space behind them for Florida's receivers to work. Trevon Grimes, Kenmore Gamble, and Kyle Pitts (of course) all made nice catches on tough balls to help Trask. The talented younger Gator receivers weren't as good on Saturday, accounting for two two dropped passes and a bad route that caused a "pick six". Georgia dropped another "pick six" opportunity also caused by bad Florida route running.

As Florida prepares for Feliepe Franks and the Arkansas Razorbacks this week, the news regarding the health of Gator players will be a factor. Kyle Pitts left the Georgia game with what looked like a concussion. Three Florida offensive linemen missed parts of the Georgia game. Stewart Reese and Jeremiah Moon each left the game with injuries and didn't return. Safety Brad Stewart was also banged up with what looked like a shoulder injury.

The Gator win on Saturday was critical not only for clearing a good path into the SEC championship game, but also to make the point Florida is relevant again. Recruiting gets easier when teams win marquee games and the Gators and Bulldogs very often recruit the same players.

With a one game cushion and all 5 remaining games against teams in the lower half of the league standings, the media has all but awarded the SEC East to the Gators. The reality, however, is every SEC team has talent and is well coached. That's what makes the SEC the best conference in college football. The mantra at Florida has to be "one game at a time" each and every week.