It Wasn't Perfect, But a Very Good Day for the Gators
Sunday, September 18, 2011 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – History will always show that the new Gators – Will Muschamp's Gators – made their debut on Sept. 3, 2011.
That was the night Muschamp earned his first career victory as a head coach with a 41-3 drubbing of overmatched Florida Atlantic. It was a good start to Muschamp's tenure.
Florida followed that victory up with a 39-0 throttling of UAB a week later. Once again, Muschamp left The Swamp a winner and that's the ultimate goal each time he shows up to work on a Saturday.
But Saturday afternoon against Tennessee felt different. It felt different because it was different. The Swamp was sold out. It was an SEC game. The Vols were in town. Muschamp's former colleague, Derek Dooley, stood on the opposite sideline in those bright orange pants.
As soon as Muschamp stepped off the bus for the Gator Walk, he sensed the buzz in the air and the energy coming from the thousands lined along University Avenue for Muschamp's first SEC game as a head coach.
“First of all, I want to compliment our fans,'' Muschamp said. “They did a great job. It was an electric atmosphere out there.''
Muschamp wasn't kidding. If you were there, you know what I'm talking about.
When looked at from a big-picture perspective, the Gators' 33-23 win over Tennessee on Saturday will go down as the first great Muschamp Moment of his UF coaching career. The Gators won, so that triumphs everything in Gator Nation.
But when you consider some of the other elements that were in play on Saturday, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was the place to be for the orange-and-blue crowd.
You had former Gators running back Emmitt Smith back in town for a book signing early in the day. Once the game started, Smith served as the honorary captain and got the crowd fired up by doing a few Gator chomps at midfield.
Smith then remained on the sideline throughout the game, helping fire up the players and the crowd. He spoke to the team in the locker room afterward.
“He was like a coach out there,'' said senior running back Chris Rainey.
Speaking of Rainey, you can't leave him out of this story. His performance certainly added to a festive Saturday at The Swamp.
Rainey (108 yards rushing, 104 receiving) became the first Gator to rush and receive for more than 100 yards since Percy Harvin in 2007. His 83-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter broke the game wide open, giving the Gators a 30-7 lead and bringing the crowd of 90,744 to its feet on the longest touchdown pass for the Gators since Danny Wuerffel hit Jacquez Green for an 85-yard scoring strike 15 years ago.
And while we're on the topic of Wuerffel, he has a place in Saturday's story as well. Wuerffel was at the game. He hung out with the Gators on Friday night at the team hotel and on Saturday gave an inspirational message to those in attendance at a Gator Boosters Board of Directors meeting.
Wuerffel has been sick recently and slowly continues to regain his strength. He said the highlight of the past three months was having the energy to play all-out with his kids this week. He thanked the boosters for their personal support and their support of the UF program on Saturday.
“It's not a place you leave,'' Wuerffel said. “It's a place that goes with you.''
Speaking of returns, how about the one made by sophomore defensive end Sharrif Floyd on Saturday? Floyd missed the first two games due to an NCAA ruling on his eligibility status that didn't sit well with Muschamp.
When Floyd was introduced on Saturday, he received one of the loudest ovations of the day. About the only thing louder all day was the flyover prior to kickoff.
Once the game started, Floyd made some noise on his own by finishing with three tackles, two quarterback hurries and a pass break-up. Floyd appeared overjoyed at being back on the field.
“It's amazing. Words can't even describe it,'' he said after the game. “I'm just happy and grateful to be back with my team.''
The game itself was far from perfect, but the Gators got out to a 16-0 lead and pretty much were in control the rest of the way.
They committed 16 penalties, which didn't make Muschamp too happy. They had trouble scoring touchdowns in the red zone again, which didn't make offensive coordinator Charlie Weis too happy. They dropped a few would-be interceptions, which didn't make defensive coordinator Dan Quinn too happy.
On the flip side, the Gators pressured Vols quarterback Tyler Bray consistently in the second half, forcing him to throw two costly interceptions, Florida's first picks of the season. Meanwhile, Gators quarterback John Brantley (14-for-23, 213 yards, two touchdowns) had another steady performance to lead the Gators to another win.
In the end a 10-point win – Florida's seventh consecutive victory over the Vols – is what the Gators' coaches and players will remember the most about Saturday.
“Any win in the SEC is a positive,'' Muschamp said. “Obviously we've got some things we've got to clean up.''
For Florida's seniors such as defensive tackle Jaye Howard, Saturday's win meant a college career without knowing what it feels like to lose to Tennessee.
“It feels great,'' Howard said. “Hopefully we can keep the streak going for a long time.''
Saturday's will go down as No. 3 for Muschamp in the history books. But as for moments to remember, it tops the list so far.
There was Emmitt and Danny and Rainey and Floyd and another Florida win at the Swamp.
Perhaps best of all for Gators fans, there was very little of Rocky Top by the Tennessee band.
“It always feels good to beat Tennessee,'' Brantley said.
