Pat Dooley’s Back Nine: Florida’s Basketball Team Is A Strange One

The Back Nine comes at you after a beautiful weekend, unless you were a fan of any of the losing teams.

 10. I’m going to start with basketball because getting these two home wins was crucial for Florida. We also saw this team at its best and worst in both games. However, I am a big believer in winning no matter how you arrive at the final score. It’s difficult to believe any true Gator fan can be upset with a win … over Georgia … for the ninth consecutive time … and for your third consecutive win. But you know the saying.

11. Look, nobody should ever be happy with their team blowing a 21-point lead or giving up more than 30 points to a single player for the second time in three games. We all know basketball is a game of runs and Florida certainly had its share and gave up its share. This team is a strange one that – and we have a 20-game sample size – can score a lot of points and give up a lot of points.

12. The problem – as Kentucky will likely find out in March – is it only takes an off-shooting night to knock you out of the tournament. Of course, first you have to get there. Florida is up to 39^thin NET Rankings, but still needs a Quad 1 win to be taken seriously. Florida is one of only three teams to be in the top 40 of the NET without a Quad 1 win (SMU and Gonzaga are the others). Two chances this week with games at Kentucky and at Texas A&M.

13. Florida hired a special teams coach. Florida hired a special teams coach. Great gosh almighty, Florida hired a special teams coach. OK, the Gators already have a special teams coach who is not going anywhere. But Joe Houston could be exactly what Florida needs, another set of eyes. And if two coaches can’t get 11 guys on the field with different numbers, well, then it’s a bigger problem. But the key is Billy Napier is having a pretty good offseason.

14. It was a divided household Sunday, because I wanted the Chiefs and 49ers and Karen wanted the Ravens and Lions. The truth is I would have been happy for any Super Bowl matchup, but this is the one I wanted. Please, don’t tell me how much a hotel room will be in Vegas just because people will pay whatever to get a possible glimpse of Taylor Swift. You haters keep hating, but I think a woman showing up for her boyfriend’s big game is sweet. And great for TwitterX.

15. It is an amazing story to see Patrick Mahomes going to another Super Bowl, because he was way more amazing than the guy who will win the MVP and Brock Purdy was clutch when he had to be again. Purdy is still the better story, because he was the last pick in the draft (BREAKING NEWS) and because his running was the key to the comeback win. It should be an interesting week in Vegas and I can’t wait to hear the stories.

16. What I will miss is hearing my friend, and, maybe the funniest sportswriter I ever hung out with, Martin Fennelly tell them. The longtime columnist from Tampa passed away Friday after a heart attack. Every time I walked into a press box or press room, I would see Martin and think to myself, “Well, hopefully I will have the second-best column from this game.” He was the writer I always wanted to be and even after I chose Mike Bianchi over Martin as the successor to Jack Hairston we became friends. This excerpt from his column on a Super Bowl from 2006 –“The Super Bowl’s zip code changes annually, but it always ends up at the corner of Sodom and Gomorrah. Gluttony is Job One. The dealmakers and stars are here. All that’s left is the ceremonial throwing out of the first Hilton sister.” I miss him already.

17. I know there are gymnastics fans who were disappointed in a home loss to Alabama, but this is a team trying to find itself, because of the tumblers who are off to prepare for the Olympics. It’s not the right way to win championships, but it’s the right thing to do in an Olympic year.

18. OK, so let’s have a good day with the playlist, because I could use one.

• “Forget Everything” by BEL.

• “Alright” by Supergrass.
• And for an old one, “Hand me Down World” by The Guess Who. I give up. Who? Not The Who but The Guess Who.

WRUF.com sports columnist Pat Dooley can be heard on “The Tailgate” along with Jeff Cardozo from 4-6 p.m. Monday-Friday on 98.1-FM/AM-850 WRUF.