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Friday, March 29, 2024

With Malik Zaire at quarterback, Florida hoping for offensive jolt at Missouri

<p>UF interim coach Randy Shannon announced Thursday that Notre Dame transfer Malik Zaire will start at quarterback for Florida when the Gators play Missouri on Saturday.</p>

UF interim coach Randy Shannon announced Thursday that Notre Dame transfer Malik Zaire will start at quarterback for Florida when the Gators play Missouri on Saturday.

As Randy Shannon stood in front of a group of reporters on Monday, his first appearance as the interim coach of the Florida football team, he was asked what — if any — changes he will make.

“You have to change something,” Shannon said, “or it becomes stagnant.”

That change came on Thursday.

Shannon announced that graduate transfer Malik Zaire will start at quarterback against Missouri on Saturday in place of redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks. The change comes after arguably the worst game of Franks’ career, one in which he completed just seven of 19 passes for 30 yards, turned the ball over twice and was sacked five times in last week’s loss to Georgia.

Zaire entered the game in the fourth quarter, leading UF on its only touchdown drive.

Now, Zaire and the rest of the Gators (3-4, 3-3 SEC) will try to revive their lifeless offense and win their first game since Sept. 30 when they travel to play the Tigers (3-5, 0-4 SEC) at noon.

Florida will also try to recapture the momentum it had when it won three consecutive conference games in mid- to late September. It will try to revive a season with little left worth saving, already out of contention for an SEC East title and likely playing for a middling bowl game come December or January. And it will attempt to move past the distractions of the last two weeks — including accusations of death threats, a head coaching change and a 35-point blowout loss — in one of the strangest periods the UF athletic department has undergone in recent memory.

But Brandon Powell isn’t worried. He’s seen stranger.

“I’ve been through, what, nine quarterbacks now in four years? Two head coaches?” the senior receiver said on Monday. “I don’t think it can get any stranger than that.”

On Monday, several players admitted it was difficult to accept McElwain’s firing and move on to their next opponent. But they all had one clear message.

“I’m just worrying about Missouri,” Powell said.

“Everyone’s main focus is on Missouri,” running back Mark Thompson said.

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“The only thing I see is Missouri,” Shannon said.

But for Florida, and for Shannon, forgetting about the last week and focusing on its next opponent won’t be as simple as it sounds. To many of them, McElwain’s departure came as a shock.

“It’s hard. Everybody loves coach Mac. I love coach Mac,” Shannon said on Monday. “But we have to be competitive. We have to win.”

The Gators are hoping for a similar outcome to 2014, when Florida defeated Eastern Kentucky, 52-3, the game after UF announced coach Will Muschamp wouldn’t be returning for the next season. And even though the two situations are different — Muschamp coached his remaining three games while Florida cut off all ties with McElwain on Sunday — players are confident they can conjure up a similar result.

“We can’t fall off after something like this happens,” redshirt senior punter Johnny Townsend said. “We’ve got to focus on our mindset and finish strong.”

And against Missouri, Florida’s chances look good.

The Tigers have yet to win an SEC game and rank near the bottom of the conference in several defensive categories, including scoring defense (12th), rushing defense (10th), passing defense (13th) and interceptions (T-10th).

However, Mizzou has one of the better offenses in the SEC — ranking fourth in scoring offense at 35.5 points per game — and has scored a combined 120 points over its last two games, wins against UConn and Idaho.

“It’s going to be a big challenge for us,” Shannon said.

But with Zaire at quarterback, Florida is hoping for a jolt of energy and a renewed focus instilled into a program potentially facing its first losing season since 2013.

“We need to continue to work,” Dawson said. “We need to bring the swag back a little more.”

You can follow Ian Cohen on Twitter @icohenb, and contact him at icohen@alligator.org.

UF interim coach Randy Shannon announced Thursday that Notre Dame transfer Malik Zaire will start at quarterback for Florida when the Gators play Missouri on Saturday.

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