Florida apparently omitted Amari Cooper in its scouting report ahead of Saturday's game against SEC rival Alabama.
The Crimson Tide wideout benefited from a massive miscommunication problem in the Gators secondary, hauling down what was a 79-yard touchdown reception that tied the game at 14-14 with 4:12 in the first quarter. It's one of the more comical breakdowns you'll see all year.
There wasn't another Florida defender within 10 yards as Blake Sims' pass floated in over the top of the defense and landed into the hands of Cooper. He jogged into the end zone (via CBS Sports):
Fox Sports' Stewart Mandel had some advice for Florida defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin :
Cooper had an impressive stat line through the first two quarters. Most guys would kill to have numbers like this after four quarters, let alone one half of play.
His stats are actually a bit disappointing considering where he stood in the first quarter:
What receiver can't record nearly 800 yards and five touchdowns in a game? Cooper was on pace to do that based on his first-quarter performance:
He and head coach Nick Saban will certainly settle with his actual first-half output. With those 175 yards, Cooper increased his streak of 100-plus-yard games to six, which is the highest active streak in the country, per SportsCenter:
The junior now has 18 career receiving touchdowns as well, which ties him with Dennis Homan for the all-time lead at Alabama, per ESPN Stats & Info:
Although the NFL draft is months away, some are already looking ahead to Cooper's pro prospects. Hall of Fame wideout and current NFL analyst Cris Carter sees the Tide star as a potential top-five pick:
NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah thinks Cooper plays a lot like Jordy Nelson, which is high praise indeed:
Clearly, Florida will need to do something else to knock off the No. 3 Crimson Tide. The Gators are down 21-14 going into halftime, and a big reason for that is Cooper.
In order to claw their way back in the second half, the Gators will have to neutralize Cooper and the Alabama passing attack.
//from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/XCHn7Y
via IFTTT September 20, 2014 at 02:41PM
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