Tigers, Gators trying to stay close in SEC race

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Posted 5:41PM on Friday, October 14, 2005

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) Florida defensive end Jeremy Mincey paused several seconds, scratching his chin and staring at the ground while trying to explain the significance of Saturday's game at LSU. After a somewhat awkward delay, he came up with an analogy one from a famed children's story. ``We feel like somebody's got a knife at our back and we're at the end of the plank like in Peter Pan,'' he said. ``We don't want to jump. They want us to jump off the plank, but we don't want to die.'' The outcome won't have such dire consequences, but it certainly means a lot for the No. 10 Tigers and the 11th-ranked Gators. Neither team probably can afford another loss in the tough and tight Southeastern Conference. LSU (3-1, 2-1) trails unbeaten Alabama and Auburn in the Western Division. Although LSU plays both of them later this season, a loss against Florida would mean the Tigers would need to win both of those games and get help to reach the conference championship game. The Gators (5-1, 3-1) are a game behind undefeated Georgia in the East and play the Bulldogs in two weeks. But a loss against LSU could make that game obsolete. Georgia already beat Tennessee, and if Florida loses at LSU, the Bulldogs could lose to the Gators and still would control their conference fate. Confused? Mincey isn't. ``This game really determines a lot for our future,'' Mincey said. ``That's a huge motivation for us. We know we can't lose this game. We have to go in there with the state of mind that we've got to win this game. We've got to have that in the back of our minds every snap, every play.'' The Gators have won 14 of the last 17 games in the series, including three in a row at Tiger Stadium. LSU appears to have a good chance to end the streak Saturday. Florida's offensive line is shaky having given up 20 sacks the running game is inconsistent and the defense is susceptible to big plays. Making matters worse, quarterback Chris Leak, center Mike Degory and receiver Jemalle Cornelius are dinged up. Leak has a bruised right shoulder, and although he's scheduled to make his 28th consecutive start, the Gators could be one hard hit away from turning to freshman Josh Portis. Degory (knee) and Cornelius (ankle) missed parts of practice this week but should play. The Gators are already without one of their top receivers, Andre Caldwell. He broke his leg against Tennessee and is out for the season. Florida really struggled to sustain drives and score points against Tennessee and Alabama which critics say is an indication that coach Urban Meyer's spread-option offense won't work in the SEC. Leak was sacked five times against the Volunteers and four against the Tide. The offense managed just one touchdown between the two games a first-quarter TD against Tennessee, which came on an end around and was held without a touchdown at Alabama, the first time the Gators had not found the end zone in a game since 1992. ``I thought we'd be much further along,'' said Meyer, whose high-scoring offense at Utah last season made him one of the hottest coaches in the country. ``It's frustrating, but who cares about me. It's frustrating for our players, too. But there's some talent there.'' LSU's talented defense has come on after a slow start. The unit almost completely shut down Mississippi State and Vanderbilt after rough outings against Tennessee and Arizona State to begin the season. ``The defense is continually improving,'' Tigers coach Les Miles said. ``The defense is coming up to speed. You see less busts, and people understand where they're supposed to be. They have good confidence in what we're doing.'' LSU used a variety of blitzes and stunts against Vandy and sacked quarterback Jay Cutler six sacks the program's most since dumping Leak six times in 2003. Florida won that game 19-7, the only blemish on the Tigers' national championship season. ``We were down in the hole, and they were riding high a little bit,'' Gators safety Jarvis Herring said. ``I guess they overlooked us.'' Neither team will let that happen Saturday there's too much riding on the outcome. ``This game could make or break our season,'' Florida linebacker Brandon Siler said. ``It's big because it's the next one on the schedule, but we also know that we can't lose any more games and still get where we want to go.'' (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)