Florida Gators

JACKSONVILLE — The gloomy conditions that hung over TIAA Bank Stadium on Saturday crept onto the field.

Underneath gray skies and temperatures in the 60s for the highly anticipated Florida-Georgia game, those skies got darker and darker throughout the first half for the Florida Gators.

The Gators had trouble establishing an offensive presence against an extremely talented and physical Georgia defense. By halftime of Florida's 42-20 loss to the No. 1-ranked Bulldogs, the Gators trailed 28-3 and were in a position no coach wants to see his team.

"I think we dug ourselves a hole the first half against a really good football team," UF head coach Billy Napier said.

Florida's opening five possessions did little more than force punter Jeremy Crawshaw to stay loose. Four out of the five possessions were three-and-outs. Meanwhile, Georgia scored on back-to-back drives in the first quarter to put the Dawgs up 14-0.

What contributed to the offensive struggles besides a Georgia defense ranked atop the Southeastern Conference? 

"They had a great pass rush and our communication was a little off, and we didn't execute that well," quarterback Anthony Richardson said.

The Bulldogs talented defense came out ready to dominate and cause disruption. They did exactly that.

The Gators certainly felt the pressure that the Georgia defense was bringing. Richardson was sacked three times.

Meanwhile, as the Bulldogs moved up and down the field in the first half, the Gators managed a measly 13 total rushing yards. The lack of ground production stood out considering the Gators, led by Richardson and running backs Montrell Johnson Jr. and Trevor Etienne, led the FBS in yards per rush (6.4) entering the game. 

After a deflated first half, the Gators were able to regroup in the third quarter to score 17 unanswered points, coming within eight points of the Bulldogs. 

And if the Gators executed the way they did in the third quarter, this game could have gone a completely different direction. The main theme afterward was the lack of consistency on the offensive end. 

And Richardson is aware of that. 

"Being consistent is one of the biggest keys of being a great team," he said. "And winning game so just being consistent and going as a team every day. That's pretty much the main goal for us."

So where does this UF offense go from here?



The Gators' lack of production in the first half — Georgia piled up 346 yards to Florida's 88 before halftime — created a hole too deep for the Gators to dig out of. Not a desirable result against No. 1 Georgia, but there remains hope with four games to go.

The Gators need two wins in their final four games to become bowl eligible and travel to struggling Texas A&M (3-5) next weekend.

The sun always rises after a gray skies. That is the mindset the Gators packed for their trip home from Jacksonville.

Redshirt freshman Tyreak Sapp said it best. 

"There's a lot to play for."