Billy Napier and Co. scored a pivotal road victory on Saturday evening, pulling off a thrilling 41-39 win over the South Carolina Gamecocks in their homecoming game. The media and betting lines were nearly knotted up on their predictions coming into this one and the two teams came through with a classic finish.
It was Florida’s fifth win of the season in seven tries and just the second win away from the Swamp for Napier, putting him now at 2-7 in true road games since taking over the program.
Following Week 7’s action, USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg offered his winners and losers from this past Saturday’s gridiron grind, including the Gators among his winners.
“Florida didn’t hire Billy Napier to beat South Carolina,” Myerberg began. “Well, let’s rephrase: Florida didn’t hire Napier to only beat South Carolina. But what would the fallout have been had Graham Mertz not played the best game of his college career and willed the Gators to a 41-39 win in Columbia?
“With the running game sputtering and Spencer Rattler averaging 10.4 yards per attempt for the Gamecocks, Mertz completed 30 of 48 throws for 423 yards and three scores, two in the final five minutes. Florida is now 5-2, 3-1 in the SEC, with an extra week to get ready for Georgia on Oct. 28. South Carolina, which narrowly missed making the preseason poll, is now 2-4.”
The Gators have a bye this week ahead of the biggest game on the schedule against the Georgia Bulldogs. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party will take place at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, on the final Saturday of the month, with a kickoff time of 3:30 p.m. EDT set. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports.
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