5 takeaways: What to make of Florida’s blowout loss to Georgia

Florida very narrowly avoided its first shutout in more than 30 years in a lopsided loss to the Bulldogs

For nearly 30 full minutes, it looked like the Gators were going to give the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs a lot more than they (and many in the media) bargained for. Florida trailed 3-0 late in the first half, but its defense was playing well and the game was well within grasp.

Then, the last two-and-change minutes of the first half happened. Three consecutive turnovers from quarterback Anthony Richardson, who struggled quite a bit in his first career start, allowed the Bulldogs to score three touchdowns before Florida even had time to catch its breath.

UF went to the locker room down 24-0 and that was about all she wrote. Coach Dan Mullen‘s squad managed to avoid ending the NCAA-record 417 game scoring streak which dates back to 1988, but that was about the only moment of note for the team in a 34-7 loss to UGA. It wasn’t quite the beatdown that the score would indicate, but the points count all the same, and now the Gators fall to 4-4 (2-4 SEC) on the season with no hope of finishing with a winning record in conference play.

This season has not gone to plan for Florida, and things could get even worse if it drops another game. For now, though, here are five takeaways from this loss.