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This team is straight-up weird. And Kentucky was another example. I’ve left multiple games thinking “How this team wins makes no sense.” And then I somehow make sense of it here. So join me, will you, in another episode of understanding how this win came to pass?

Offense: B-
This unit keeps doing more than what it needs to win games: put up points. But this week it looked out of sorts again. I know it’s hard to say 34 points on the league’s best pass defense is “out of sorts” but it really did seem that way for a few drives. For example, that first drive was a three-yard Dameon Pierce rush, Trask getting hurried and throwing it away and a five-yard catch by Kadarius Toney. Then a fake punt extends the drive and the Gators hit a 56-yard score by Kyle Pitts. See what I mean? Sometimes we saw sputtering and the other times the usual offense. When before — fans rarely saw a hiccup. Those two Gator fumbles also are some bad mistakes that put the defense in bad position inside its own territory. With that being said, most teams (especially teams of Florida’s past) would think 34 points (technically 27) is a pretty good day. And it is. Kyle Pitts scored three touchdowns and had almost 100 yards receiving on five catches after two weeks away! Nayquan Wright was (and is) a reliable receiver at running back. The Gators can still run the ball with Pierce. In my mind, it wasn’t the cleanest game again but the offense did more than enough to win.

Defense: B
First half? Downright pushover. Kentucky got anything it wanted in the run game. It underperformed so bad we could see Dan Mullen lighting up Todd Grantham on the sideline in a way that’d make Nick Saban shed a tear. The most frustrating part was seeing guys still not know where to line up in Week 8. Some players just looked completely lost. And Kentucky’s ability to move the ball, and subsequently control the clock, is what allowed the Wildcats to lead and own that first half. But that second half defense? Whew boy. Kentucky couldn’t get anything going. Big plays to get off the field on multiple occasions: Mohamoud Diabate’s pick in Kentucky territory, Shawn Davis’s interception on a deep post route and not to mention Marco Wilson’s big tackle on fourth and two in UF territory. The best parts of the day for Florida were the pass rush and the middle of the defense at the line of scrimmage. Asim Rose and Kavosiey Smoke were consistently met by a wall at the LOS. The pass rush played an early role in forcing a Kentucky punt on it’s first drive. Those are things Florida needs if it wants to compete for an SEC title.

Special teams: A
A well-deserved “A” by the special teams unit. You could argue it helped flip the game before halftime. Jacob Finn’s pinpoint punt to trap UK at the one set up the short Wildcat punt and the okie doke on punt return allowed Kadarius Toney’s punt return TD. That play helped the Gators go into the locker room with a little juice and a 14-10 lead. Kudos to the return team for the great acting job. Finn actually only punted one other time but even that one pinned Kentucky at the eight (despite the ensuing 87-yard field goal drive.) Plus Evan McPherson going 2-for-3 on field goals when Gator drives stalled out helped Florida tack on points every possession. Let’s also not forget the fake punt to extend Florida’s first drive and set up the glorious return of Kyle to Kyle. The only problem to see is the constant adventure of Toney fielding punts. Like when he outmuscled a gunner for a kick inside the 10. Leaping for a kick doesn’t ever seem like a good thing, especially if it’s contested.

In conclusion:
Florida got over another slow start for another SEC win. At this point, seeing Florida perform well is more about building confidence in their ability to beat Alabama. However, they can’t keep coming out in mediocre fashion to start games. Because against an elite opponent, that’ll put Florida in a deep hole.

But let’s look at the bigger picture, with them in a good situation in the rankings, all the Gators really need to do is whatever needed to win. Right now if they win, everything else comes. Atlanta, the SEC, a Playoff spot. All those require are wins, not style points.