The Florida Gators sent their seniors off with an overwhelming 63-10 victory over Idaho in the final home game of the season.
UF put up 49 points in the first half and gave its backups an opportunity to show their abilities in the second. Florida did a lot of things well, but some of the team’s weaknesses showed up despite the dominating performance.
Positive: Jones showed impressive flashes.
Emory Jones entered the contest late in the second quarter with a comfortable 42-0 lead, and the freshman quarterback started his day with a comfortable first drive.
He fired a pretty deep ball to freshman tight end Kyle Pitts on his first throw, but it was dropped.
“He dropped a dime right in there,” coach Dan Mullen said of the throw.
Jones displayed his running ability on the subsequent play, escaping pressure from his blind side for a first down. Then he fired a 35-yard pass to sophomore Trevon Grimes on the next snap. He capped off the drive with a screen pass to Josh Hammond for a touchdown, his first touchdown pass as a Gator.
Jones’ next scoring possession was his third at the helm, and he executed two plays to perfection. He squeezed the ball into a tiny window to tight end Lucas Krull for 20 yards and moved Florida into the red zone. Next, he sold a play action to the Idaho defense from the 4-yard line and dumped the ball down to a wide open Dameon Pierce for another score.
Jones ended 12-for-16 with 125 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“He's a guy that has been very confident the whole season,” Mullen said. “With the new (redshirt) rule, the ability to get on the field and play a little bit here and there, it's perfect for someone like him.”
Negative: The defense consistently failed to contain the quarterback.
Florida’s defense had difficulty stopping scrambling Idaho quarterback Mason Petrino. He averaged 7.3 yards per carry and led all rushers with 87 yards, more than he collected throwing the ball (70).
Petrino fooled UF on a read-option with 10:29 in the second quarter, and he ran for 21 yards before being forced out of bounds by safety Jawaan Taylor. He also caught the Gators sleeping with a bootleg on the first play of the second half.
The biggest defensive collapses came on third-and-longs when Petrino pulled the ball down on pass plays and dashed past the first-down marker. He scrambled for 17 yards on third-and-16 in the first quarter, 12 yards on third-and-7 in the fourth and 16 yards on third-and-8 in the fourth.
Positive: Florida got the freshmen involved.
The Gators got their freshman some valuable time on the field in addition to Jones.
Positive impacts from the UF youngsters began with a 52-yard catch-and-run in the first quarter from Feleipe Franks to Pitts, who went untouched into the end zone and put UF up 21-0.
Pierce led the Gators’ ground game. The freshman finished with 13 attempts for 77 yards, and he busted three runs for 10 yards or better.
Florida fans also got their first view of freshman wide receiver Jacob Copeland. He returned a kickoff for 26 yards and scampered for 16 yards on a quick pass from Jones, his only reception of the game.
An impact play on defense came from linebacker Ventrell Miller in the fourth quarter. Miller intercepted a pass from Petrino and returned it 82 yards to the house.
Negative: UF needed to clean up its play.
Sloppy play from Florida showed up in the form of penalties. It picked up five for 55 yards, including three personal-foul calls.
Defensive back David Reese slammed an Idaho kick returner well after the whistle early in the second quarter. Defensive lineman Antonneous Clayton put a late hit out-of-bounds Petrino on the first play of the second half. And linebacker James Houston IV pushed Petrino after he stridded out of play, and the Idaho quarterback collided violently with the wall.
Jones also turned the ball over on his first drive of the third quarter. He took a shotgun snap into his gut and fumbled it, allowing the Vandals to end a drive that moved into their own territory.
The Gators offense also had a turnover-on-downs in the fourth due to a sloppy snap by center Nick Villano. Villano snapped the ball at Jones’ feet, and the quarterback settled for negative yardage.
“A lot of young guys got opportunities to get into the game,” Mullen said, “When you’re not just cheering from the sideline and you got to go play and how you got to keep your head in the game, stay disciplined.”
Follow Mark Stine on Twitter @mstinejr or contact him at mstine@alligator.org.
Freshman quarterback Emory Jones threw for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 12-of-16 passing in Florida's 63-10 victory over Idaho.
