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Florida earned its fourth straight victory on Friday night and closed out the season 8-5 with a 33-8 win over Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl.
Consider where the Gators were when the season kicked off. Coach Billy Napier was on the hot seat after 2 sub-.500 seasons to begin his tenure in Gainesville. A shellacking at home by Miami officially set that seat ablaze. But, since that loss to Texas A&M on Sept. 14, Florida has been a different team. Yes, there was an unsightly loss to Texas, but that was with a third-string quarterback. The momentum that DJ Lagway and Napier have created heading into the offseason is remarkable.
Here are 3 takeaways from the game.
Defense splashes around
Tulane scored on its final drive of the evening, a 5-play, 55-yard scoring strike that took just 36 seconds to pull off.
Before that, the drive chart was painted red.
Twelve possessions, 5 punts, 3 turnovers on downs, 3 turnovers, and 1 missed field goal. Florida picked off Tulane quarterback Ty Thompson on its first play from scrimmage, setting the tone for what was to come on the night. Tulane never got going. Every time there was a glimmer, Florida snuffed it out with a splash play. Myles Graham, Trikweze Bridges, and Alfonzo Allen Jr. all had interceptions. Five different Gators recorded a tackle for loss. Three Gators broke up passes.
In the end, Florida limited Tulane to 194 yards of offense. Tulane was 3-for-13 on third down, 1-for-4 on fourth down, and just 1-for-2 in the red zone. Star tailback Makhi Hughes was limited to 29 rushing yards on 8 carries. Thompson completed only 11 of his 29 passes for 125 yards and 3 picks.
Lagway delivers outside the 20s…
DJ Lagway completed 22 of his 35 passes for 305 yards and a touchdown. But he was picked off twice. The first came in Florida’s own half of the field, the second came at the Tulane 4-yard-line.
Lagway was good, but Florida sputtered once it crossed into the red zone. At the half, the Gators had 269 yards of offense and 12 first downs but just 6 points to show for it. They kicked a field goal from the Tulane 15-yard-line and then from the Tulane 26. On the Gators’ first possession of the third quarter, they settled for another field goal after reaching the 6-yard-line.
Florida didn’t score its first touchdown of the game until the 4:03 mark in the third quarter. And it followed that possession up with another field goal from the Tulane 12.
UF crossed midfield on 9 of its 14 possessions. It could have put more than just 33 points on the board. And the Gators were a touch more clinical in the fourth quarter before calling off the dogs.
Desmond Watson does the thing
With the clock ticking toward 4 minutes to play and the Gators facing a third-and-1 from the Tulane 26, Napier called for his short-yardage package.
That package featured 9 players crowding the line of scrimmage, quarterback Aidan Warner, and the 6-foot-5, 449-pound Desmond Watson to Warner’s right.
At the snap, Warner handed the ball off, and aimed all 449 pounds of Plant City’s finest at the middle of the Tulane defense. Not a single Green Wave defender could stop Watson, who fell forward for the first down.
Bowl season in college football is pure, unadulterated madness.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
