Checking in on the Week 7 temperatures in Gainesville, Fla.

HOT

Pass rush. This was an area of concern for the Florida Gators heading into last week’s game against Tennessee as the Gators were near the bottom in sacks. That all changed last Saturday as Florida’s front seven took advantage of an inexperienced, overwhelmed Tennessee offensive line and racked up six sacks, doubling their season total. Sophomore defensive Bryan Cox Jr. had a particularly strong game, leading the team with three sacks. There’s no question that Florida’s defense has the talent to be one of the best in the SEC, but a consistent pass rush should also help a questionable secondary regain its confidence after some shaky performances early in the season.

WARM

Young secondary players. After some rough outings by the defensive backs for Florida against Alabama and Kentucky, head coach Will Muschamp talked about possibly making some changes in the secondary. As a result of those changes, freshman Duke Dawson and Jalen Tabor got the start against Tennessee and the move paid off for Muschamp. Tabor was named the SEC’s Co-Freshman of the Week, thanks to three tackles and a strip sack that help set up the first scoring drive for the Gators in the fourth quarter. Dawson also held down the safety position and showed he’s capable of getting more consistent starting time.

COLD

Jeff Driskel. The redshirt junior signal caller had another rough performance last weekend. This time, Driskel was highly ineffective from the start. The offense was shut out for three quarters and Driskel didn’t help his cause any by throwing three interceptions. It appears he’ll get a shot at redemption this weekend against LSU, but confidence around Gator Nation isn’t very high concerning the fourth-year quarterback.

FROZEN

Florida quarterbacks. Arguably nobody had a worse week in college football than the quarterbacks for the Florida Gators. True freshman Treon Harris, who was expected to take over the starting role, was accused of sexual assault over the weekend and was subsequently suspended indefinitely. Backup quarterback Skyler Mornhinweg was then involved in an altercation with teammate Gerald Willis Monday night over a misunderstanding involving a pair of cleats. Safe to say, this is a week Gator signal-callers would like to forget.