WHAT HAPPENED: Florida State tailback Trey Benson rushed for 95 yards and three touchdowns, including a 26-yard score with 2:48 to play, as the fifth-ranked Seminoles remained unbeaten and kept their College Football Playoff hopes alive by rallying from a double-digit first-half deficit to defeat the Florida Gators 24-15 in their annual rivalry game Saturday night at sold-out Spurrier/Florida Field. Benson, the transfer from Oregon, carried 19 times and scored on runs of 1 yard in the second quarter, 36 in the the third and the late put-away on a third-and-3 with the game still in the balance. His performance easily overshadowed the pre-game spotlight that beamed on a couple of unknown quarterbacks in FSU's Tate Rodemaker and UF'sMax Brown, both of whom received battlefield promotions following season-ending injuries last week to Jordan Travis and Graham Mertz, respectively. Rodemaker won that individual matchup (and the game), but it was mostly a defensive battle — the Gators had just 232 yards of total offense, which was more than the Seminoles' 224 — that saw FSU make enough timely big plays that led to scoring drives while daring Brown to beat them with his untested arm. Rodemaker finished 12 of 25 for 134 yards and no turnovers. Brown was 9 of 16 for just 86 yards, was sacked six times and threw a late fourth-quarter interception. UF led 15-14 heading into the fourth quarter, but Ryan Fitzgerald's 19-yard field goal gave FSU a 17-15 lead with 7:17 remaining. After the Gators went three-and-out, the Seminoles drove 66 yards in seven plays, with Benson breaking through the line for his game-sealing score and a two-possession FSU lead inside three minutes to go. The Gators controlled the game for the first quarter and a half, but failed to capitalize on opportunities. Trey Smack missed a 48-yard field on the opening drive, but UF marched 70 yards in 13 plays to a 5-yard scoring run from Montrell Johnson Jr. to go up 7-0 on its second possession. A 16-yard punt by FSU's Alex Mastromanno went out of bounds at the FSU 40, but Florida managed only a 35-yard field goal from Smack for a 10-0 lead. After Princely Umanmielen and Derek Wingo sacked Tate Rodemaker in the end zone for a safety, the Florida lead was 12-0 with just over five minutes to go in the half. FSU, though, finally got on the board by going 90 yards in 10 plays, aided by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on UF defensive lineman Jamari Lyons, who was ejected for spitting on a Seminole. Eight plays later — thanks to completions of 29 yards to Jaheim Bell and 14 to Johnny Wilson on third-and-9 — Benson scored with 26 seconds left to make it 12-7. UF had an excellent chance to pad the lead just before halftime after Johnson broke off a 52-yard yard that put UF in field-goal range at the FSU 24. On the next snap, though, offensive tackle Damieon George Jr. was called for holding with three seconds to go and Smack missed from 52 on the final play of the half. The Seminoles went on a second straight touchdown drive to start the third quarter, with Benson racing 36 yards for a go-ahead score and 14-12 lead. The Gators, though, went back up on their next possession when Smack hit a 37-yard field goal to go up 15-14 and set up the fourth-quarter developments, all of which went the Seminoles' way. The loss was Florida's fifth straight this season (the program's longest since losing the final seven of 2013) and second in a row against Florida State.
Florida defensive end Princely Umanmielen and Trey Wingo sack Tate Rodemaker for a first-half safety. (Photo: Molly Kaiser/UAA Communications)
WHAT IT MEANS: Florida finishes with a losing record for a third straight season, making for the first time that's happened since 1945-47. There is an outside chance the Gators could still be selected for a bowl game, even with that sub-.500 mark, due to the lack of bowl-eligible teams. That would be a somewhat hollow achievement, given the five-game losing skid to end the season, but would mean additional practices (and likely larger game-day roles) for some young players who figure prominently in the future of the program.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The Gators missed Mertz more than the Seminoles missed Travis. Give Rodemaker credit, though, He didn't hurt his team and will be under center when FSU plays Louisville next weekend for the Atlantic Coast Conference championship, with a CFP berth perhaps at stake.
STAGGERING STATISTIC: The Gators totaled just 48 yards of offense in the second half, including minus-15 in the fourth quarter. They had four penalties for 50 yards in the fourth period alone, which accounted for half of their eight infractions totaling 90 yards. Two UF penalties resulted in players being ejected. Several more gave the Seminoles huge, drive-continuing first downs.
UP NEXT: For Florida (5-7), all that matters now is getting to the Dec. 20 national football signing day finish line with their excellent group of verbal commits (especially those four- and five-stars) still in the fold.
