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3 takeaways from Florida’s disappointing loss to Florida State
By Ethan Stone
Published:
Florida football fell short to Florida State Saturday afternoon in Gainesville, 24-15.
The Gators leaned on defense and a strong run game from Montrell Johnson in the first half but struggled to drop enough points to pull away from the Seminoles. Florida State looked more like itself in the second half and all but breezed to a win.
The Gators finish their season 5-7 with 5 straight losses to Georgia, Arkansas, LSU, Missouri and now Florida State.
Here are 3 takeaways from Florida’s loss to the Seminoles.
Bowling shoes didn’t quite fit
Florida has only itself to blame.
It was briefly mentioned on earlier, but Florida really lost this game when it failed to enter halftime with a lead more than 5 points. Florida thoroughly outplayed the No. 5 Seminoles in the first half but had just 12 points to show for it. Any way you look at it, that’s unacceptable.
And ultimately, the bowling shoes just do not fit in Year 2 of the Billy Napier era. The Gators saw 6 wins in Year 1 and now head into the offseason with a 5-7 record in Year 2.
You can chalk that up to a tough schedule, sure. Florida played 6 ranked teams this season. But next year’s schedule may be even tougher for the Gators. What’s the excuse then? Especially considering, once again, Florida should have won this game against a Florida State team that is playing without its top player, Jordan Travis.
The Gators are not high enough in the APR rankings to earn a bid at 5-7, meaning Florida’s season is officially over.
This is one that will keep Napier and Co. up at night for a few weeks to come.
Rough hit summarizes Florida’s season
Florida had a chance late, down 2 with Florida State facing 3rd and 14.
Tate Rodemaker, filling in for Jordan Travis, took off as the pocket collapsed around him. He set to slide about 5 yards in front of the line to gain.
However, he was rocked backwards and had to exit the game after a late hit by Florida DBs Jaydon Hill and TJ Searcy. Hill was called for targeting and ejected from the game, though both hit the defenseless QB.
Here’s why that was huge: Florida State, instead of punting and giving Florida a chance to play one more game this season, drove the remainder of the field and scored a Trey Benson touchdown.
It’s little plays like that, little decisions that lost Florida this game. It’s a plague that has affected the Gators all season.
Rodemaker was able to return to the game.
Montrell Johnson has a strong outing despite a loss
Florida should have been up more heading into the halftime break, as we’ve mentioned.
The Gators entered the half up just 5 points in a situation that felt like it should have been a 2-possession lead. Some questionable calls from Billy Napier pounded the nail in the coffin.
But one positive to take away from this game is Montrell Johnson, who rushed for a game-high 107 yards with the below touchdown on 18 carries.
#Gators take a 7-0 lead on Montrell Johnson Jr.’s 9th TD run of the season.
Live updates: https://t.co/xUGI0pEYxT pic.twitter.com/oj64XQA7RH
— Zach Abolverdi (@ZachAbolverdi) November 26, 2023
Johnson finishes his 2023 season with 6 total touchdowns and over 800 yards rushing.
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.