Florida football defended its home field on homecoming last weekend, routing the visiting Kentucky Wildcats, 48-20, en route to the Gators’ fourth win in seven tries this season and second in four Southeastern Conference matchups.
Not only did the Orange and Blue tag a W in the win column, both the offense and defense looked solid on Saturday night. Freshman quarterback [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag], who made his first SEC start with [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] out for the season, showcased his rocket-launcher arm; fellow freshman running back [autotag]Jaden Baugh[/autotag] rushed for five touchdowns, tying the Florida single-game record held by [autotag]Tim Tebow[/autotag] and Trey Burton.
The secondary also matched the team total for interceptions all last season in just one game, including a pick six.
As a result of the Week 8 triumph, Florida saw its stock rise in many of the polls and rankings, including USA TODAY Sports writer Paul Myerberg’s re-rank of all 134 FBS schools.
Florida’s Week 8 re-rank position
Myerberg came away impressed with the win but still is bearish on the Gators overall, lifting them 11 spots to No. 45 this week. That puts Florida between the No. 44 Tulane Green Wave and No. 46 Western Kentucky Colonels.
Billy Napier’s squad is ahead of four other SEC programs in the rankings, with the Arkansas Razorbacks (No. 53), Kentucky (No. 64), Auburn Tigers (No. 90) and Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 107) lagging behind.
USA TODAY Sports Week 8 re-rank top 10
The Oregon Ducks claimed the top spot this week after the currently second-ranked Georgia Bulldogs dethroned the now-seventh-ranked Texas Longhorns. The Ohio State Buckeyes, Penn State Nittany Lions and Miami Hurricanes, respectively, wrap up the top five.
Coming in sixth are Iowa State Cyclones, followed by Texas, the Clemson Tigers, LSU Tigers and Tennessee Volunteers, respectively, to cap the top 10.
Coming up for the Gators
The Gators are off next week due to their bye week. The next matchup for Florida will be against the Georgia Bulldogs on Nov. 2 in Jacksonville. That game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on ABC.
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