ATLANTA — Alabama had no problem putting up points on the No. 1 defense in the nation, but Florida struggled to do the same against the nation's No. 2 defense.
The Gators went three-and-out three times and amassed 335 yards against a tough Crimson Tide defense that came into the game allowing 10.8 points per game.
“We thought we were prepared, obviously we could've done a better job,” UF quarterback Tim Tebow said. “That's my job as a quarterback to make sure we get that done. We didn't do it.”
Tebow finished the game with 247 yards, a touchdown and an interception, but the passing game wasn't the problem.
UF failed to establish any semblance of a running game and abandoned it in favor of the pass early.
At halftime, Alabama led by just six points yet Florida ran the ball nine times against 17 passes before the break.
Tebow accounted for six of those runs, meaning Brandon James, Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey were left with just one carry each.
UF offensive coordinator Steve Addazio's offense has struggled to maintain a balance between the pass and run all season, but the Gators have ran it more than they have passed it. Florida came in to the Southeastern Conference Championship Game averaging 42 running plays and 24 passing plays per game.
It ended Saturday's game with 35 pass attempts and 14 runs, with only four of those coming from the running backs.
“It seemed like we were behind and we were trying to play catch-up the entire night and we didn't do that,” coach Urban Meyer said.
Playing from behind, led UF to throw the ball more than usual, but the game was still within reach into the third quarter when the Gators went three-and-out on their first drive in the second half and picked up just 12 yards before punting on their second drive.
A running back only touched the ball once in those eight plays.
Florida, which averaged 236 rushing yards per game, finished the game with 88 yards on the ground.
James, Demps and Rainey combined for four rushes and 25 yards, while Tebow added another 63 on 10 carries.
On back-to-back plays, Tebow ran for 23 and 16 yards in the second quarter, leading the Gators to their only touchdown of the game, a 23-yard pass from Tebow to senior wide receiver David Nelson.
