Florida (3-2) took care of business against UCF (2-3) in Week Six, 24-13, to move back over .500 on the season.
The tandem of [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] and [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] under center continues to be effective, and they seem to be playing off each other better by the week. But the big story this week for Florida is the defense, which finally showed up and played like an SEC defense should.
This win felt bigger than a two-point victory, though. Florida had control for most of the evening, and the clock just burned away in the second half.
Florida’s defense finally shows up
UCF kicked a field goal to get on the board early, but the Knights only got 11 plays off over the following three drives. Florida’s defense wreaked havoc, consistently getting behind the line of scrimmage. Over the entire game, the Gators racked up seven tackles for loss, five sacks and allowed just one touchdown.
By the time the Knights found the end zone, the game was all but over. More importantly, Florida stalled the two longest drives of the night for UCF — the 12-play, four-minute field goal drive to begin the game and a 14-play, eight-minute drive to start the second half with another field goal.
Capping it all off was a game-sealing interception from safety Bryce Thornton, who has missed time this season battling injury.
Statement first half
Almost everything went right for the Gators in the first half. Taking a 24-3 lead into the break had The Swamp rocking, and it’s hard to find any negatives with the Orange and Blue’s first two quarters.
Mertz and Lagway combined for 172 yards on 16-of-20 passing, including a touchdown pass to Elijhah Badger from the veteran quarterback. Lagway had his moment, too, finding Chimere Dike for a 37-yard gain and setting up a touchdown run from Montrell Johnson Jr.
Speaking of Johnson, the third-year Gators starter busted a big 34-yard run to set up a field goal right before halftime. He only ran the ball twice in the second half, but he finished the night with a 5.4-yard average over 10 attempts. If Florida’s going to find long-term success this year, they’ll need Johnson to hold that average for an entire game.
No points in the second half
As good as this win felt, it’s hard to ignore the goose egg put up by Florida in the second half. Good teams score in all four quarters, even if the opponent takes up 8 minutes to kick a field goal.
Florida didn’t need to maintain its three-touchdown lead after halftime to win comfortably, but putting up 108 yards over an entire half isn’t the best look. Had KJ Jefferson worked some magic instead of throwing an interception, UCF could have been a field goal away from tying it.
With several top-25 teams coming up on the schedule, it would have been nice to see the Gators keep their foot on the gas pedal instead of just holding off the Knights.
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