Coach Jim McElwain stood in front of reporters and ran through his postgame clichés.
The crowd was awesome.
Our guys played hard.
We left it all out on the field.
He was right about the last point. The Gators (3-3, 3-2 SEC) left their chances of a successful season withering on the turf and exited The Swamp as Texas A&M’s band triumphantly played them out.
Tasked with bouncing back after a Homecoming loss to LSU, Florida fell short again on Saturday night, this time by two points instead of one: Aggies 19, Gators 17.
As McElwain grew more frustrated, he shifted the blame. He said the staff’s plan was solid, but the execution wasn’t.
That was especially evident when McElwain was asked about Texas A&M’s 43-yard punt return that set up its game-winning field goal. Shouldn’t UF have angled kicks away from Christian Kirk, explosive Aggies return man?
“Yeah, that’s what’s supposed to happen, and it didn’t and it came back and bit us,” McElwain said. “Obviously gave them a chance to win it in the end.”
UF never trailed until the final minute. But throughout the game as Texas A&M (5-2, 3-1 SEC) battled back, Florida found ways to lose its grip.
Quarterback Feleipe Franks threw two interceptions and took unnecessary sacks when he could’ve thrown the ball away. Poor clock management caused Florida to waste a scoring opportunity at the second quarter’s end. For the second straight game, UF let its opponent score a touchdown on its first drive of the second half.
“Unbelievable,” McElwain said. “We had a great plan.”
Aside from one Aggies touchdown, Florida’s defense showcased its best performance in recent memory. The Gators held Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond to 8 of 24 passing and one interception, forcing the Aggies to settle for four field goals.
“The defense did a pretty darned good job in the red area, keeping them out of the end zone,” McElwain said.
But UF’s offense dragged the team down again. The Gators only needed 20 points at home to win, but that was too much to ask. It has become a habit for this Florida team. In the McElwain era, the Gators are 5-11 when their opponent scores more than 14 points.
“I feel like defense always does enough,” defensive end CeCe Jefferson said. “I’m a defensive player, so that’s just how I feel.”
While Florida fans pinned the loss and lack of offense on the coaching staff, Franks took responsibility after the game.
“Ultimately it’s my job to get the offense moving,” the redshirt freshman said. “It’s on me.”
It’s not an offense you want to be associated with. The only SEC teams that score fewer points per game are Tennessee and Vanderbilt, both winless in conference play.
The standings themselves are more disheartening. With the loss, Florida cedes second place in the SEC East to Kentucky. With a game against No. 3 Georgia looming after the bye week, a loss to the Bulldogs mathematically eliminates Florida from winning the division.
McElwain didn’t tell fans to expect big changes, or say that the loss would be formative. He never said UF has to rethink its offense or that he has to make a change at quarterback.
He said Texas A&M did a good job, and he said he believes in his team.
“It’s hard to have a loss going into a bye week,” McElwain said, “yet we have an opportunity to work some things this week in practice.”
You can follow Matt Brannon on Twitter @MattB_727, and contact him at mbrannon@alligator.org.
Despite a dominant performance on defense, Florida's offense failed to outscore Texas A&M in the Swamp on Saturday night. "I feel like the defense always does enough," defensive lineman CeCe Jefferson (right) said after the game.
