Florida head coach Billy Napier basks in Saturday night's home win against UCF. (Photo: Lorenzo Vasquez/UAA Communications)
Gators Start Fast, Rise to Occasion to Defeat UCF
Sunday, October 6, 2024 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A funeral turned into Mardi Gras. Slash showed up to jam at your kid's piano recital. The professor canceled your final exam and took the class to Salty Dog.
None of the above happened on Saturday night at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, but considering the mood the last time the Gators played at home, it felt that way.
What did transpire pleased the UF (not UCF) fans among the announced crowd of 90,369.
The Gators took the opening kickoff and drove down the field on a 15-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway delivered another 1-2 punch in Florida's two-quarterback attack. Florida's defensive line played like the New York Sack Exchange.
Oh, and fans cheered UF coach Billy Napier as he entered the locker room following Florida's 24-13 win over the Knights.
"Today was a product of a lot of hard work the past two weeks," Napier said. "We made a ton of progress in the open date."
Quarterback Graham Mertz completed 19 of 23 passes in Florida's victory over UCF on Saturday night at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. (Photo: Madilyn Gemme/UAA Communications)
Since opening the season with three consecutive home games, a stretch that included a victory over FCS-classified Samford sandwiched by high-profile losses to Miami and Texas A&M, the Gators have won at Mississippi State, had a bye week, and took care of the Knights in a game that some wondered if it would be Napier's last.
After their win in Starkville restored a semblance of calm, the Gators turned up the intensity at practice during the bye week. They then began to prepare for UCF, focused on parlaying their revved-up attitude and some minor tweaks to their practice routine into back-to-back wins.
Fans who kicked them when they were down cheered them against the Knights, especially in the first half when the Gators dominated on the way to a 24-3 halftime lead.
In the in-state matchup against their little brother from Orlando, the Gators set the tone on their opening drive, capped by Mertz's 13-yard scoring pass to Elijhah Badger. Florida's start was in stark contrast to its other marquee home games this season. Miami and Texas A&M outscored the Gators 44-10 in the first half, a trend the Gators needed to end for Napier to be able to exhale.
"As an offensive lineman, if you can't get excited over that, there isn't much that's going to get you fired up,'' center Jake Slaughter said of the 7-minute, 2-second scoring drive. "We started really well. It was a good feeling."
The good vibes continued as Mertz (19 of 23, 179 yards, 1 TD) and Lagway (4 of 4, 50 yards) directed the offense, with the biggest gain of the game Lagway's 37-yard strike to Chime Dike to UCF's 1-yard line. Ja'Kobi Jackson scored on the next play for a 14-3 Florida lead. The drive started when UCF coach Gus Malzahn opted to go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Knights' 43. Quarterback KJ Jefferson was stopped by defensive linemen Caleb Banks and Jack Pyburn for no gain, forcing a turnover on downs.
Meanwhile, the Gators extended the lead to 21-3 later in the second quarter on Montrell Johnson Jr.'s 3-yard run, and finally, 24-3 on Trey Smack's 28-yard field with four seconds left in the first half.
"We started fast,'' Napier said. "Ultimately, what a great [opening] drive. Graham made a bunch of plays on that first possession. We had some balance and a lot of conversions. DJ comes in [on our third drive] and two plays [later], the double move went around the backside there — the Sluggo Seam. Great throw, great catch, great route.
"I think both guys continue to get better and the leadership that they show and the way they work throughout the week, again, it's a very healthy dynamic for our team."
The offense slowed down in the second half, but the defense ensured it didn't matter. The Gators limited UCF's vaunted rushing attack (326.0 yards per game) to 108 yards, and the Gators recorded five sacks and held the Knights to 273 yards of total offense. Florida entered the game with only eight sacks in four games.
Jefferson, who accounted for 347 yards of total offense against the Gators a season ago when he led Arkansas to an overtime win at Florida Field, managed 147 (165 passing, minus-18 rushing) Saturday night.
"Oh man, it was great,'' said defensive lineman Tyreak Sapp, who finished with five tackles and half a sack. "We was studying them all week and looking at weak points and everything that we can exploit in the pass rush. It was just exciting. The way we played and how aggressive we were."
Florida's defense took the field as the 113th-ranked unit in the country, surrendering 425.5 yards per game. The Gators played like they underwent a personality transplant during the bye week.
"I think it's evident we took a step in the right direction on defense," Napier said.
The ordinarily calm Napier even showed an edge late in the second quarter when officials flagged him for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Napier was irate over a running-into-the-kicker penalty on Banks against UCF punter Mitch McCarthy.
"It's a very common play in our game,'' Napier said. "They're protecting the guy. So, a rugby punter, we felt like maybe he was outside the pocket."
Napier's outburst fired up Sapp.
"We were fighting for Coach Nape,'' Sapp said. "I was right there. We understand he was frustrated, and when he gets frustrated, we get frustrated, too. And we're like, 'Well, it's time to step up, and we all got to step up as a group.' I think we took that personally."
George Gumbs Jr. led the Gators with 1.5 sacks, with teammate Grayson Howard adding a sack and five other players credited with half a sack.
Napier and players spoke about several minor tweaks during the bye week, ranging from more physical practices to speeding up the process between defensive snaps. Gumbs saw a big difference on defense.
"We made a big emphasis of staying in your gap, just changing the line of scrimmage,'' he said. "What stood out to me was like nobody was scared about messing up."
Napier mingled with players and coaches with a satisfied smile when it was over. The first month of the season was a difficult one. The second one opened with a memorable victory.
Slaughter took his usual spot near the front as the Gators sang the alma mater in the corner of the north end zone. He had a smile, too.
"Very fulfilling,'' Slaughter said. "I think it's important, win or lose, you go embrace traditions like that. It means something to me. I'm a local guy. It's a lot more fun after you win a game."
