Gators receiver Trevon Grimes does a Gator Chomp during Saturday's game in Tallahassee. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
Gators Scoreboard: In-Game UF-FSU Updates, Notes, Highlights
Saturday, November 24, 2018 | Football, Scott Carter
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Gators (8-3) close the regular season today at Florida State (5-6) with a shot to snap a five-game losing streak in the rivalry and to solidify their standing for a New Year's Six bowl berth.
Ranked 11th in the College Football Playoff poll, Florida is coming off an impressive 63-10 win over Idaho. Meanwhile, FSU seeks to avoid its first losing season in 42 years and extend its recent dominance in the annual showdown against the Gators.
Today's matchup marks the first time since 1960 that both programs are led by first-year head coaches at the time of their meeting. Dan Mullen took over the Gators after nine seasons at Mississippi State; Willie Taggart arrived at FSU following one season at Oregon and four years as head coach at USF.
Check back here throughout the game for regular updates:
1ST QUARTER
Florida 3, Florida State 0 (0:00) -- UF kicker Evan McPherson puts the Gators on the scoreboard first with a 27-yard field goal on the final play of the first quarter. McPherson's kick capped a nine-play, 66-yard drive by the Gators that too 3:47 off the clock. Gators quarterback Feleipe Franks' 39-yard pass to Van Jefferson was the biggest play of the drive. Jefferson made a great diving grab and it was ruled a catch after a review by the officials.
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NOTES: Gators starting center Nick Buchanan returned to the lineup after missing last week's game due to an injury. Buchanan started, which allowed senior Tyler Jordan, who started at center against Idaho, to move back to left guard ... Both teams punted on their first possessions ... Gators receiver Freddie Swain, after missing two games with an ankle injury, is playing. He returned a punt 11 yards on FSU's second punt of the opening quarter ... Gators defensive end Jachai Polite and defensive tackle Adam Shuler each credited with half a sack of FSU's Deondre Francois, giving Polite nine sacks on season (graphic below) .... The Gators drove to FSU's 2-yard line and on fourth-and-goal, Franks was stopped for no gain, turning the ball over the Seminoles on downs ... UF junior receiver Tyrie Cleveland left the game with 3:40 remaining in the first quarter with an apparent shoulder injury. On first down, Franks threw a deep ball to Cleveland with Asonte Samuels in coverage. Both players made a play for the ball with Cleveland landing hard on his shoulder. He went straight to the locker room after a couple of minutes down on the field.
2ND QUARTER
Florida 10, Florida State 0 (13:24) -- The Gators strike for another big play, this one a 74-yard touchdown run by junior Lamical Perine. On the first play after FSU punted, Perine took a handoff off the left edge and scampered for the Gators' longest run of the season.
Florida 13, Florida State 0 (7:35) -- The Gators add to their lead with a 23-yard field goal by McPherson. Florida drove 57 yards on five plays, highlighted by a 54-yard pass from Franks to Trevon Grimes to open the drive.
Florida 13, Florida State 7 (5:25) -- Francois connects with running back Cam Akers for a 15-yard scoring pass, capping an eight-play, 75-yard drive for the Seminoles. Akers made a great one-handed catch to haul in Francois' 15 touchdown pass of the season.
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NOTES: Florida has 264 yards of total offense at the half, FSU 124; Gators averaging 6.9 yards per play, FSU 3.5 ... FSU committed eight penalties for 50 yards in the first half; UF was flagged five times for 39 yards ... Franks finished 8 of 15 for 133 yards in first half; Francois was 7 of 14 for 70 yards and a touchdown ... An illegal shift by FSU wiped out the Seminoles' biggest play of the first half, a 70-yard touchdown pass from Francois to Akers. Francois dropped a short pass toward the sideline to Akers, who did the rest by cutting toward the middle of the field and outracing the Gators. However, it didn't count to the displeasure of much of those at Doak Campbell Stadium ... The 54-yard catch was the longest of Grimes' career. He had a career-high 54 yards receiving in last week's win over Idaho.
3RD QUARTER
Florida 20, Florida State 7 (10:53) -- The Gators open the second half with an impressive 12-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Franks capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Josh Hammond, his 21st touchdown pass of the season and 30th of his career.
Florida 27, Florida State 7 (6:20) -- Florida instantly capitalized on a strip-sack by Polite that resulted in a fumble recovery for teammate Cece Jefferson. Starting at FSU's 22, Franks hit Grimes for a touchdown pass on the first play of the drive.
Florida 27, Florida State 14 (4:16) -- FSU isn't dead yet. On fourth-and-14 from Florida's 36, Francois raced 32 yards for a first down. On the next play, he scored on a 4-yard run to breath life back into Doak Campbell Stadium for the home fans. Francois has accounted for 149 of Florida State's 208 yards with 105 yards passing and 44 yards rushing on 10 carries.
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NOTES: FSU defensive back Stanford Samuels III was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty during a tangle with Jefferson ... The announced attendance is 71,953 for today's game ... Franks is 13 of 21 for 194 yards and two touchdowns ... Perine leads the Gators with 129 yards rushing on 13 carries ... Florida has outgained FSU 411-208 after three quarters.
4TH QUARTER
Florida 34, Florida State 14 (14:53) -- Franks connects with a wide-open Jefferson for a 38-yard touchdown, pushing the Gators' lead back to 20 points on the first play of the fourth quarter. Franks' third touchdown pass of the game capped an eight-play, 75-yard drive in 4:23.
Florida 41, Florida State 14 (3:56) -- The Gators put the nail in FSU's coffin on Jordan Scarlett's 9-yard touchdown run, capping a six-play, 44-yard drive.
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NOTES: Gators freshman cornerback Trey Dean intercepted his first career pass, picking off Francois with 12:49 left in the game ... Franks finished 16 of 26 for 254 yards and three touchdowns in one of the better performances of his career ... Grimes finished with five catches for 118 yards and a touchdown ... Florida gained 536 yards, the third consecutive game it has amassed 500 or more yards.
Editor's Note: At the conclusion of today's game, check out FloridaGators.com Intern Ethan Hughes' "Quick Slant" for instant analysis
Ranked 11th in the College Football Playoff poll, Florida is coming off an impressive 63-10 win over Idaho. Meanwhile, FSU seeks to avoid its first losing season in 42 years and extend its recent dominance in the annual showdown against the Gators.
Today's matchup marks the first time since 1960 that both programs are led by first-year head coaches at the time of their meeting. Dan Mullen took over the Gators after nine seasons at Mississippi State; Willie Taggart arrived at FSU following one season at Oregon and four years as head coach at USF.
Check back here throughout the game for regular updates:
1ST QUARTER
Florida 3, Florida State 0 (0:00) -- UF kicker Evan McPherson puts the Gators on the scoreboard first with a 27-yard field goal on the final play of the first quarter. McPherson's kick capped a nine-play, 66-yard drive by the Gators that too 3:47 off the clock. Gators quarterback Feleipe Franks' 39-yard pass to Van Jefferson was the biggest play of the drive. Jefferson made a great diving grab and it was ruled a catch after a review by the officials.
******
NOTES: Gators starting center Nick Buchanan returned to the lineup after missing last week's game due to an injury. Buchanan started, which allowed senior Tyler Jordan, who started at center against Idaho, to move back to left guard ... Both teams punted on their first possessions ... Gators receiver Freddie Swain, after missing two games with an ankle injury, is playing. He returned a punt 11 yards on FSU's second punt of the opening quarter ... Gators defensive end Jachai Polite and defensive tackle Adam Shuler each credited with half a sack of FSU's Deondre Francois, giving Polite nine sacks on season (graphic below) .... The Gators drove to FSU's 2-yard line and on fourth-and-goal, Franks was stopped for no gain, turning the ball over the Seminoles on downs ... UF junior receiver Tyrie Cleveland left the game with 3:40 remaining in the first quarter with an apparent shoulder injury. On first down, Franks threw a deep ball to Cleveland with Asonte Samuels in coverage. Both players made a play for the ball with Cleveland landing hard on his shoulder. He went straight to the locker room after a couple of minutes down on the field.
#FunFact 🔽 pic.twitter.com/YZPvbag3MH
— Gators Football (@GatorsFB) November 24, 2018
2ND QUARTER
Florida 10, Florida State 0 (13:24) -- The Gators strike for another big play, this one a 74-yard touchdown run by junior Lamical Perine. On the first play after FSU punted, Perine took a handoff off the left edge and scampered for the Gators' longest run of the season.
"THERE GOES PERINE!"
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 24, 2018
Lamical Perine goes 74 YARDS for the @GatorsFB TD! pic.twitter.com/W7gkBamuJW
Florida 13, Florida State 0 (7:35) -- The Gators add to their lead with a 23-yard field goal by McPherson. Florida drove 57 yards on five plays, highlighted by a 54-yard pass from Franks to Trevon Grimes to open the drive.
LOOK AT @Trevongrimes8 GO pic.twitter.com/gC26IflUoS
— InAllKindsOfWeather.com (@AllKindsWeather) November 24, 2018
Florida 13, Florida State 7 (5:25) -- Francois connects with running back Cam Akers for a 15-yard scoring pass, capping an eight-play, 75-yard drive for the Seminoles. Akers made a great one-handed catch to haul in Francois' 15 touchdown pass of the season.
What a grab by Cam Akers pic.twitter.com/qyVRYahGcy
— Ty Wurth (@WurthDraft) November 24, 2018
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NOTES: Florida has 264 yards of total offense at the half, FSU 124; Gators averaging 6.9 yards per play, FSU 3.5 ... FSU committed eight penalties for 50 yards in the first half; UF was flagged five times for 39 yards ... Franks finished 8 of 15 for 133 yards in first half; Francois was 7 of 14 for 70 yards and a touchdown ... An illegal shift by FSU wiped out the Seminoles' biggest play of the first half, a 70-yard touchdown pass from Francois to Akers. Francois dropped a short pass toward the sideline to Akers, who did the rest by cutting toward the middle of the field and outracing the Gators. However, it didn't count to the displeasure of much of those at Doak Campbell Stadium ... The 54-yard catch was the longest of Grimes' career. He had a career-high 54 yards receiving in last week's win over Idaho.
3RD QUARTER
Florida 20, Florida State 7 (10:53) -- The Gators open the second half with an impressive 12-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Franks capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Josh Hammond, his 21st touchdown pass of the season and 30th of his career.
Florida 27, Florida State 7 (6:20) -- Florida instantly capitalized on a strip-sack by Polite that resulted in a fumble recovery for teammate Cece Jefferson. Starting at FSU's 22, Franks hit Grimes for a touchdown pass on the first play of the drive.
Franks to @Trevongrimes8 for the 22 yard TD. Gators up 27-7. Go #Gators! @UFSwampaholics pic.twitter.com/EhalXkKCIZ
— UFSwampaholics 🐊 #GatorDNA #SwampSavages (@UFSwampaholics) November 24, 2018
Florida 27, Florida State 14 (4:16) -- FSU isn't dead yet. On fourth-and-14 from Florida's 36, Francois raced 32 yards for a first down. On the next play, he scored on a 4-yard run to breath life back into Doak Campbell Stadium for the home fans. Francois has accounted for 149 of Florida State's 208 yards with 105 yards passing and 44 yards rushing on 10 carries.
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NOTES: FSU defensive back Stanford Samuels III was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty during a tangle with Jefferson ... The announced attendance is 71,953 for today's game ... Franks is 13 of 21 for 194 yards and two touchdowns ... Perine leads the Gators with 129 yards rushing on 13 carries ... Florida has outgained FSU 411-208 after three quarters.
4TH QUARTER
Florida 34, Florida State 14 (14:53) -- Franks connects with a wide-open Jefferson for a 38-yard touchdown, pushing the Gators' lead back to 20 points on the first play of the fourth quarter. Franks' third touchdown pass of the game capped an eight-play, 75-yard drive in 4:23.
Van Jefferson taking the #FSU secondary to school. #Gators @UFSwampaholics @VanJefferson12 pic.twitter.com/FKNJV39W6b
— UFSwampaholics 🐊 #GatorDNA #SwampSavages (@UFSwampaholics) November 24, 2018
Florida 41, Florida State 14 (3:56) -- The Gators put the nail in FSU's coffin on Jordan Scarlett's 9-yard touchdown run, capping a six-play, 44-yard drive.
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NOTES: Gators freshman cornerback Trey Dean intercepted his first career pass, picking off Francois with 12:49 left in the game ... Franks finished 16 of 26 for 254 yards and three touchdowns in one of the better performances of his career ... Grimes finished with five catches for 118 yards and a touchdown ... Florida gained 536 yards, the third consecutive game it has amassed 500 or more yards.
Editor's Note: At the conclusion of today's game, check out FloridaGators.com Intern Ethan Hughes' "Quick Slant" for instant analysis
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