Bentley faces toughest challenge yet in stout Florida defense

True freshman quarterback Jake Bentley’s first three games commanding the South Carolina offense were mostly smooth sailing as the Gamecocks posted season-changing victories over UMass, Tennessee and Missouri at Williams-Brice Stadium.

-- A 73 percent completion percentage (54-74).

-- Six touchdown passes, no interceptions.

-- Points per game doubled from 14.0 to 29.7.

-- Total offense for the Gamecocks increased by 78.2 yards per game.

Throw those numbers on the grill and what do you get? Bentley is the first true freshman quarterback to win his first three starts for the Gamecocks since Steve Taneyhill began his distinguished career with four straight wins in 1992.

Parallel? Both quarterbacks made their first college starts midway through the season.

Now, after beating the Minutemen, Volunteers and Tigers, Bentley encounters his toughest test yet Saturday afternoon in The Swamp.

Not only will the matchup with Florida represent his first career road start against an SEC team, the Gators defense is, statistically, the conference’s second-best unit behind Alabama.

Entering Week 11, Florida leads the SEC in passing defense (147.9), ranks second in scoring defense (14.1) and total defense (268.1) and fourth in rushing defense (120.2).

When you look at conference games only, the Gators are second, fifth, third and fifth, respectively, in the same categories.

In short, Florida is pretty salty on defense with a savvy group of veteran players, many of whom were signed by Will Muschamp during his four-year tenure in Gainesville.

Bentley has proven to be a very accurate passer in his first three games, but against the Gators the passing lanes and throwing windows will narrow considerably as the Florida defensive backs and linebackers are a half-step quicker than what Bentley has seen beforehand.

“It's just about making good decisions in coverage areas,” Muschamp said Tuesday. “Those tight zones are going to be tighter. These guys make plays on the ball. They're ball hogs, and they go after the ball. Our receivers have to go challenge them for the football. They're going to play bump-and-run. They're not going to shake us with anything. That's what they do and do well. Fastball pitchers throw fastballs, and they're going to throw fastballs Saturday."

Junior cornerbacks Teez Tabor and Quincy Wilson spearhead a Florida secondary tied with Texas A&M and Missouri for second in interceptions with 11 behind the Gamecocks (12).

However, no school has more interceptions in SEC contests than the Gators – 10 in six games.

“Quincy Wilson and (Teez) Tabor are two very talented guys who have played a lot of football,” said Muschamp, who recruited both players. “They’re very good players. They’re not going to see anything new on Saturday, I assure you of that. They’ve seen a lot, and they’re good players.”

With a talented secondary and a ferocious pass rush (22 sacks in eight games; 11 in six games) working arm-in-arm, Florida is allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete just 41.7 percent of their passes (83-199), by far the lowest figure in the SEC. In fact, the next lowest completion percentage defense among conference schools is 52.6 percent (Alabama).

In six games against SEC schools, the Gators are allowing just 42.5 percent (68-160) of passes to be completed against them, and 162.7 passing yards per game.

Just one school is allowing fewer average passing yards in conference games – the Gamecocks (157.3). So, the quarterbacks on both teams could find throwing the football extremely challenging on Saturday afternoon.

Best antithesis to Florida’s strong defense? Avoid becoming one-dimensional on offense, especially on the road in front of 80,000-plus screaming Florida fanatics.

Clearly, the Gamecocks must demonstrate they can run the football. They have done that in Bentley’s first three games, sticking to the ground game on 65.4 percent of the offensive snaps (142 of 217) and averaging 175.3 yards per game, nearly doubling the rushing output of the first six games.

Florida is allowing just 120.2 rushing yards per game overall, 154.8 yards in six games against SEC opponents, 4.02 yards per rush.

“We need to stay balanced. We can’t get into a one-dimensional game because they have very effective rushers as well,” Muschamp said. “You need to be able to run the ball some. You don’t want to get into a situation where they are targeting in on the quarterback.”

The Gamecocks ran the Wildcat on a couple of occasions in last week’s win. They will likely have to do the same thing in Gainesville. If nothing else, it gives the Florida defense something else to think about.

“We’ve got to have some variety short-yardage wise with what we’re doing,” Muschamp said. “(We need to) keep the defense off-balance and try to have some changeups every week off of our base run package.”

Redshirt junior defensive tackle Caleb Brantley sparks the Florida defensive line.

“Caleb Brantley is a disruptive player,” Muschamp said. “(He’s) a guy you’ve got to account for in the run and pass game, and you’ve got to make sure in one-on-ones that you can handle him. He’s an explosive guy and playing at a really high level. I know they’ve had some injuries, but they’ve got some depth. They’re very talented up front. It’s a front you’re going to have to deal with throughout the game.”

Bentley and the Gamecocks’ offensive efforts could be boosted by the fact Florida’s top two tacklers – linebackers Jarrad Davis and Alex Anzalone – will probably miss Saturday’s game because of injuries.

“I’m disappointed for Jarrad Davis and Alex Anzalone,” Muschamp said. “I hurt for them, two really good players but better people. They are the kind of guys that represent college athletics the right way. They’ve got some young linebackers that are really athletic and play very well. They’ll certainly step up for them.”

Since Muschamp personally recruited many of Florida’s defense players, could USC enjoy an advantage as far as understanding their tendencies? Maybe. But a lot can change in two years.

“Unfortunately, some of them are really good,” Muschamp said. “You realize there's some strengths and weaknesses they may have within their game, but at the end of the day, this is a player’s game. When this game tees off on Saturday, it's going to come down to the players and the players making plays in situations and coaches putting them in good situations in order to allow them to make some good plays.

“On game day, there’s nobody who is going to be more competitive than me, or them on their sideline, to win the game and represent their university, or my university here at South Carolina and the players you’re coaching now. Again, your competitive edge takes over, regardless of who’s sitting on that other sideline.”

SEC WEEK 11 SCHEDULE (Nov. 12)

Mississippi State at Alabama, noon (ESPN)

South Carolina at Florida, noon (CBS)

Kentucky at Tennessee, noon (SEC Network)

Vanderbilt at Missouri, 3:30 p.m. (SEC Network)

Auburn at Georgia, 3:30 p.m. (CBS)

LSU at Arkansas, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Ole Miss at Texas A&M, 7:30 p.m. (SEC Network)