Saturday’s game at Tiger Stadium between No. 20 Florida and LSU felt like deja vu all over again.
For the second year in a row, the Gators entered the game as heavy favorites.
For the second year in a row, LSU limped into the game with multiple star players out on both sides of the ball and with coach Ed Orgeron’s tenure at the school in jeopardy.
And, for the second year in a row, none of that mattered. The Tigers (4-3, 2-2 SEC) defeated the Gators, 49-42, for their third consecutive win in the series.
Here is our instant recap.
How the game was lost
With the game tied at 42 in the fourth quarter, the Tigers put together a 10-play, 68-yard drive.
On fourth-and-goal from the 1, quarterback Max Johnson connected with Jaray Jenkins for their third touchdown of the game to give LSU the lead.
UF’s Anthony Richardson was intercepted on the ensuing possession, and that was the game.
Player of the Game
Tyrion Davis-Price
The Gators couldn’t stop LSU’s running back at all. He rushed 36 times for 287 yards and three touchdowns.
The Tigers kept running a similar-looking counter play over and over through the left side of UF’s defensive line, and Davis-Price got some gigantic holes to run through.
He essentially was LSU’s offense in the second half, and he broke the LSU record for rushing yards in a game.
Play of the Game
The Gators had the ball on the LSU 42-yard line with five seconds left in the first half.
Emory Jones took the snap, waited for his receivers to get downfield, stepped up in the pocket to avoid pressure and fired into a heavy wind.
The Tigers had three defenders lined up on the goal line, but none of them played the ball. Jones’ pass dropped into Justin Shorter’s arms in the back right corner of the end zone for a miraculous touchdown.
It was Florida’s first successful Hail Mary type of throw since Feleipe Franks’ game-winner to Tyrie Cleveland against Tennessee in 2017.
Stat of the Game
321-138
Coming into the game, Florida was the nation’s third-ranked rushing team, and LSU was third-to-last in rushing.
So, it was shocking to see the Tigers dominate the rushing battle against the Gators.
UF’s inability to stop the run kept them from forcing LSU into third-and-long situations and turning their pass-rushers loose.
The result was an awful day for the defense and a back-and-forth affair.
Up next
Florida (4-3, 2-3) has a bye week before its annual rivalry clash with No. 1 Georgia in Jacksonville. The Gators snapped the Bulldogs’ three-game winning streak in the series with a 44-28 win in 2020.