Feleipe Franks completed a nine-yard screen pass to Kadarius Toney on Florida’s first drive of the third quarter in its low-scoring war of attrition at Mississippi State.
This play may not seem significant. It got some yardage back on a Jawaan Taylor holding call that negated a 53-yard reception by Trevon Grimes, and two downs later on 3rd-and-8, Franks threw a pick to end the Gators’ advance.
However, it wasn’t until the next possession that Toney’s catch-and-run became a play of much importance and helped lead UF to its 13-6 victory over coach Dan Mullen’s former team.
Franks swung a lateral out to the sophomore on first down from the MSU 20 yard line that looked to be of similar scheme, but the Bulldog defense made the mistake of disregarding tight end Moral Stephens and turned its full attention to the former quarterback with the ball — a big mistake.
Safety Stephen Adegoke and corner Maurice Smitherman were sucked up by the threat Toney posed and Stephens snuck behind both of the defensive backs to get wide-open in the end zone for an easy catch.
It was the redshirt senior tight end’s only reception on the night and the game’s only touchdown, and it was set up by Florida’s ability to get the ball in the hands of its playmakers.
“(It was) something we’ve been practicing and something we got coached up on, knowing that they we’re going to bite right there,” Franks said. “I think he did a great job during the moment calling that play to set us up and put us ahead right there.”
Toney may have only had one catch on the night, but the screen game was established by Franks making quick throws to Grimes. The sophomore transfer from Ohio State had four catches, three of which went for first downs. Grimes caught the ball in space behind the line of scrimmage each time, and he had wide receivers blocking out in front. He finished the night with 34 yards.
Another dynamic of the touchdown strike was the play-action fake to running back Lamical Perine. He was effective on the ground for Florida, and he found his stride on the major scoring drive.
The junior from Mobile, Alabama, rushed the ball three times during Florida’s six-play sequence. Two downs before Toney’s pass, he trotted for 22 yards, the longest run of the game for either team. Perine followed the dash with a 16-yard reception, becoming the focal point of the drive and giving Mullen the perfect opportunity to dial-up play action.
While Feleipe Franks didn’t have a passing performance that popped off the stat sheet (he completed 22-for-31 passes for 219 yards), the Gators offense produced the game’s biggest plays by getting the ball into their hot hands and allowing their quarterback to manage the game to victory.
“I don’t think he ever got conservative,” Mullen said about Franks. “He was... trying to take what they were giving us and stayed aggressive all night long.”
Follow Mark Stine on Twitter @mstinejr or contact him at mstine@alligator.org.
Kadarius Toney threw his first pass of the season for the Florida Gators in its 13-6 win over Mississippi State, a 20-yard strike to Moral Stephens for the game's only touchdowns.
