Woes have Meyer seeing red

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ATHENS, Ga. --- Florida's once-explosive offense is looking more ordinary than overpowering recently.

Particularly when the Gators' get inside the 20-yard line, where they are bogging down instead of getting touchdowns.

In the past three weeks, Mississippi State, Arkansas and Louisiana State University have held Florida to two touchdowns in 15 red-zone trips.

Coach Urban Meyer says his staff examined tape this week of every red-zone snap his team has had this season in an effort to find answers.

"That's all you can do," Meyer said. "I know I feel you want to score so damn bad. I know if I'm feeling it, the players are feeling it the same and they're more important than any coach. We've just got to feel like we do what we do and what we do is pretty good. We've just got to improve. We will."

Georgia would love if quarterback Tim Tebow and the Gators continue to have trouble getting in the end zone Saturday at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

They didn't last year.

Florida scored touchdowns on all five red-zone trips in a 49-10 demolition.

"We've got to tackle better," Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez said. "We know that he's going to get the ball at those times. You just have to make plays."

The Gators are scoring touchdowns on 46 percent of their red zone trips -- 107th in the nation -- down from 75 percent in 2008 and in 2007. Meyer said Florida needs to stick more to its call sheet in the red zone.

In SEC play, the numbers are even drearier. The Gators have scored touchdowns on 7 of 25 trips (28 percent), down from 72 percent last season.

"We get to the red zone and do something kind of stupid, and it costs us the drive," Tebow said. "We've got to fix those little mistakes."

Tebow is tied for sixth in the SEC in rushing. He has 466 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 121 carries, but he has just 76 yards on 42 carries with three touchdowns in the red zone in SEC play when the Gators often try to run him inside.

Reach Marc Weiszer at marc.weiszer@morris.com.

SATURDAY'S GAMES

- Coastal Carolina at Clemson, 1:30 p.m. (No TV)

- Georgia vs. Florida, 3:30 p.m. (CBS-Ch. 12)

- Georgia Tech at Vanderbilt, 7:30 p.m. (CSS)

- South Carolina at Tennessee, 7:45 p.m. (ESPN)

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Just My Opinion
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Just My Opinion 10/30/09 - 04:46 am
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You Gator fans don't

You Gator fans don't worry....the Dawgs usually find a way to make thier opponents look like Super Bowl Champions! But, they still have to play the game, don't they? Anything could happen.

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