Monday ‘Dawg Bites: Missed it by this much. Yet again.

Welcome to the one thousand, one hundred and first day since Florida beat Georgia in a collegiate football game!

It was a pleasant afternoon in Jacksonville, and if you want to keep the fun going, might I suggest checking out the post-game reaction from our SB Nation sister site Alligator Army?

I find the veiled whining about penalties pretty funny.

But otherwise I think the big picture analysis is spot on. Florida has demonstrated this season that it’s an improved squad under Dan Mullen. But the Gators also pretty clearly aren’t on Georgia’s level, either. The Blue and Orange threw a good, solid effort out there and it not only wasn’t good enough to win, it wasn’t good enough to ever even grab a momentary lead.

It’s also entirely possible that the Gators will be losing as many as 6 starters on offense and 7 on defense from this team, replacing them with members of the 2018 and 2019 recruiting classes which averaged a #12 national ranking (Georgia’s classes in those years were ranked #1 and #3). In short, the talent gap between these two teams may only be beginning to widen.

On that note, Orlando Sentinel writer/y’all radio hack/Mullen apologist Mike Bianchi never ceases to entertain. On a further related note, if a frog had wings it wouldn’t bump its butt when it hopped.

For all the talk of Kirby Smart being a professional recruiter whose team wins in spite of his in-game coaching, it was Dapper Dan who blew two timeouts in the first five minutes of the game, was yelling at his assistants because players weren’t lining up properly, and lost a nice gain to an illegal procedure penalty. It was also Smart’s team that remained poised when the Gators drew within 6 and Florida fans got back into the game.

One of these guys has been a head coach for 11 seasons. The other is in his third. Which do you believe is closer to his head coaching ceiling?

Looking ahead to this weekend the Bulldogs open as a 14.5 point favorite at home against the Missouri Tigers. It’s a lower line than some would have expected, and the AJC’s Mike Griffith thinks that may be due to the ‘Dawgs struggling with South Carolina coming off a bye earlier this season.

I’m more inclined to put it on Georgia’s difficulties defending a patient passing game, the Dawgs’ relatively pedestrian running game, and an expected Cocktail Party hangover. Vegas thinks the Tigers can get some cheap points, doesn’t expect Kirby and James Coley to open up the playbook ahead of Auburn, and believes the Red and Black will have trouble putting their big win behind them. All are valid concerns.

But whatever concerns the boys in the desert may have about Georgia’s readiness for this weekend, they pale in comparison to those of our friends at Rock M Nation. It’s worth noting, however, that the Tigers are actually second in the SEC in scoring defense and 5th in total defense. If the Bulldog offense continues to look functional against Missouri, it’s okay to view that as a good sign. Go ahead.

Until later...

Go ‘Dawgs!!!