Dan Mullen is certainly no stranger to facing off against Shea Patterson. In an odd twist, while both parties have put the Egg Bowl rivalry behind them, the two are set to face off once again to end the season when Mullen’s Florida squad faces Patterson’s Michigan team in the Peach Bowl.

Considering their history of competing against one another, Mullen is a good coach to ask how to limit the now-Michigan quarterback. In their only meeting against one another back in 2016, Patterson was hurt and missed the 2017 Egg Bowl, Mississippi State destroyed Ole Miss in Oxford, 55-20.

Patterson will no doubt be hoping for a better result this time around and according to Mullen, the ability of the Michigan quarterback to improvise during a play could be key to the upcoming Peach Bowl.

“I’ve faced him before, I don’t know if that’s good or bad, when he was quarterback at Ole Miss,” Mullen said of Patterson on Monday. “One of the things he brings to the table — obviously a very talented quarterback, he has a great arm, makes reads, stands in the pocket and can deliver the ball — but the thing that really makes him all the more difficult to defend is when he starts to improvise.

“When he gets outside the framework of the offense. He drops back, you got a good rush, we have the route covered and he takes off and starts making things happen. That is one of the things that makes him very difficult to defend, his ability to improvise within the offense. It’s not just take off and run, improvise, scramble, stay alive and make big plays.”

How well the Gators defend Patterson when things break down and he does his best Johnny Manziel impersonation will be critical to the team’s success. Ironically enough, Patterson’s first career start came against Texas A&M, where he showed off his incredible improve skills on the football field.

Michael Wayne Bratton

A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com