The Florida Gators had to grind it out for a tough 13-6 win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs on the road Saturday night. The Gators laid it all on the line, remained calm in a crazy environment and made the adjustments necessary to come out on top.
These are just a few of our most notable observations from the big victory.
1. Composure under pressure
The Gators proved that they could stay calm, cool and collected in front of more than 100,000 at Tennessee last weekend, but there were still questions about how they would handle the cowbells at Mississippi State. Dan Mullen’s return to Starkville was set to be an emotional one, and it did not disappoint.
Expletive chants towards Mullen and Florida started early, and the disgruntled fan base made it an incredible environment for 60 minutes.
There was never more than a one score difference between the two teams. This team in that environment under those circumstances likely would have imploded nine times out of 10 a year ago.
Arguably, the most impressive under pressure on the night was quarterback Feleipe Franks. He was not perfect. He didn’t even throw Florida’s lone touchdown pass of the game. But he and the offense did enough to keep the Gators out front and didn’t beat themselves.
Franks has had a tendency throughout his career to be high as can be when things are going his way, but let his emotions, and therefore his play, get out of hand when things go south.
Penalties and a sack killed Florida’s first possession, and the ejection of Trey Dean that came on the following punt could have easily sent the game spiraling. The Bulldogs drove down the field and came away with a field goal, but Franks and the Gators battled right back despite some adversity and tied it up the next drive.
Again, Florida found itself in a tough spot after Franks threw an interception early in the second half to give MSU the ball at midfield, but the defense came up with a huge three-and-out. The offense followed it up with a touchdown.
With so many distractions surrounding this matchup, it was hard to predict how Florida would handle it. The performance proved that Mullen knows how to prepare his players for an emotional, hostile game day environment, and they can handle the pressure when the game is on the line.
2. Second half adjustments were key
Adjustments on both sides of the ball ultimately propelled Florida to a win Saturday night. While the score was just 6-3 MSU after the first half, it felt like that deficit could have easily been much larger.
The offensive line really struggled in the first half as it committed five penalties, with three of those being false starts on Fred Johnson. Jawaan Taylor was called for holding early in the third quarter to call back a huge 53-yard completion to Trevon Grimes, but after that, things stayed relatively clean.
Maybe the noise rattled the line early on, but as the game progressed, it started to look more and more comfortable.
It even held its own to give up just one sack early in the game and keep MSU’s dangerous defensive line in check, which was one of the biggest keys to getting a win.
On defense, the Gators gave up 159 yards, mostly on the ground, in the first half. Nick Fitzgerald and the MSU running backs seemed to have their way, pushing ahead for decent yardage every carry early on.
Even though the defense bent in the first half, it did not break as it never allowed the Bulldogs to get it in the end zone. Three sacks late in the second quarter kept MSU from gaining momentum and three more late in the fourth quarter put the nail in the coffin.
Vosean Joseph, Jabari Zuniga, C.J. Henderson and Jachai Polite all got their hands on Fitzgerald, but none were more important than the hit Donovan Stiner laid on him on fourth down of the last MSU drive with the Bulldogs threatening in Florida territory.
Todd Grantham chose to bring the pressure on that play and throughout the second half to keep MSU uncomfortable. The Bulldogs had just 11 yards in the fourth quarter, with -10 yards rushing.
3. Perine and Pierce need the ball in their hands
The Gators didn’t have a lethal rushing attack in Starkville by any means, but it became painfully obvious that Lamical Perine and Dameon Pierce were the best options down the line.
Jordan Scarlett is great when he can just go out there and run guys over for extra yards, but that was not the case against that defensive front.
The only time Florida really got the run game going was when Perine was on the field. He finished with 55 yards on 10 carries, while Scarlett had the same amount of carries, but just 21 yards.
After leading Florida down the field on the touchdown drive, Perine only touched the ball one more time.
Scarlett really struggled with his vision in the game. He missed hole after hole, and that nearly cost the Gators as he failed to reach the line to gain on third down in the red zone late. He got it when Florida went for it on fourth down the next play.
Meanwhile, Pierce chugged along once again with his only carries coming in the fourth quarter. He didn’t manage to run it in for a late touchdown as he had the last couple weeks, but he did lead the Gators in yards per carry at 7.5 with 30 yards on four touches.
Ummm….that’s Dameon Pierce in the photo, not Joshua Tse. Come on!