GAINESVILLE – Florida started quickly and finished the same way in its 51-21 victory over fourth-ranked Louisiana State before 90,684 fans at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Saturday night.
The Gators, who totaled 475 yards in total offense, got 186 of the yards in the first quarter in taking a 17-0 lead over the Tigers (4-1, 2-1 SEC West) in the 10th time in history that the two teams which won the previous national championships (Florida in 2006, LSU in 2007) met on the football field the year following. The last time it happened was in 1990, when Notre Dame beat Miami. The home team is now 8-0-1 in those games and the defending champions have now lost four years in a row and are 4-5-1 in those games.
The Gators finished with 17 points in the final quarter.
The last time a team scored more than 30 points against a Les Miles-coached LSU team was on Sept. 10, 2005 when LSU beat Arizona State 35-31.
The Gators are now 29-23-3 in the series with LSU and 14-10-3 at home. The Gators also improved to 10-1 in night games under coach Urban Meyer and ended LSU’s string of 19 straight night victories. It is the fourth time the Gators have beaten the defending national champions and the 15th time they have beaten the defending SEC champions.
Florida totaled 13 plays of 10 yards or more in the game. True freshman running back Jeff Demps recorded his fourth rushing touchdown on a 42-yard run and all four of his touchdowns have been over 30 yards. Demps finished with 129 yards rushing after gaining 103 last week at Arkansas. The last time a true freshman had back-to-back 100-yard games was Earnest Graham, who had 124 yards against Vanderbilt and 105 yards against South Carolina in 1999.
The interceptions by Brandon Spikes – a 3-yard return in the first quarter and a 52-yard touchdown return in the fourth quarter – were the first two of his career
Junior quarterback Tim Tebow’s 2-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter tied Errict Rhett for second on Florida’s all-time list with 34 rushing touchdowns. He also moved into the eighth spot on the career yards list with 4,879 yards, passing Steve Spurrier (4,848).
Junior wide receiver Percy Harvin has now scored a touchdown in eight straight games. His two touchdown receptions in the first quarter give Harvin five for the season. Harvin’s 112 reception yards is the second game this season (and sixth of his career) that he has passed 100 yards.
The 70-yard touchdown pass-run engineered by Tebow and Harvin was the longest TD pass of Tebow’s career and Harvin’s longest TD reception.
Other firsts: Jones’ fumble recovery was his first career recovery, freshman cornerback Janoris Jenkins recovered his first career sack and redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Brandon Antwine played for the first time in 2008.
Here’s how the Gators did in Meyer’s Plan to Win:
Play Great Defense: Counting the LSU touchdown at the end of the second quarter, Florida has allowed just 17 points in the first half. LSU tailbacks had 385 consecutive carries without a fumble before Charles Scott fumbled with 9:46 to play in the first half and A.J. Jones recovered for Florida. Scott gained 35 yards on 12 carries, 18 of those yards coming on the game’s final play. He had entered the game leading the SEC in rushing yards with 535. For the game, Florida allowed LSU just 80 yards rushing on 26 carries.
Turnovers: Jones’ recovery and two interceptions by Brandon Spikes gave Florida three turnovers for the game. LSU had a fumble recovery, leaving the Gators at +2 for the game and now +10 for the season. With Spikes’ 55 yards on two interception returns, Florida now has 199 for the season. Spikes’ 52-yard return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter was Florida’s third interception return for a touchdown this season.
Score in the Red Zone: In five of its six games this season, Florida has been perfect in the Red Zone. The Gators went 6-for-6 Saturday night and is now 23-of-24 for the season. The only time they didn’t score was at the end of the Tennessee game when they had a fourth-and-9 at the UT 12.
Win the Kicking Game: The Gators did not allow the Tigers to start a drive on the Florida side of the field in the first three quarters. Jonathan Phillips was 3-for-3 in field-goal attempts and is now 9-for-9 for the season. Chas Henry averaged 29.5 yards on two punts, but both were pooch punts when Florida couldn’t sustain drives in LSU territory. Brandon James had two punt returns totaling 47 yards, including a 40-yard return in the first quarter.