Jeff Driskel’s redemption was imminent.
The junior signal-caller had failed to get Florida’s offense through the red zone and into the promised land — the end zone — for most of the game against Miami.
With fewer than 7 minutes on the clock and the Gators down by five points, Driskel was poised to lead a fourth-quarter comeback and win the game.
But it was not meant to be.
Driskel rolled out of the pocket to his right and tried to force the ball through traffic to wide receiver Quinton Dunbar. Instead, he found Miami cornerback Tracy Howard, who returned the interception 36 yards to the Miami 48-yard line.
“It was just a bad call on my part,” Driskel said. “He’s covered. Either throw the ball away or try to pick up the first down with your feet.”
Driskel’s interception was the last of No. 18 Florida’s (1-1) failures in the red zone in its 21-16 loss to No. 15 Miami (2-0) on Saturday in Sun Life Stadium. The Gators scored on only two of six drives when they advanced inside the Hurricane’s 20-yard line.
“You’ve got to go down there and get points,” coach Will Muschamp said after the game. “If you end every possession with a kick, you’ll win a bunch of games. We didn’t do that.”
Three of those deep drives ended in Florida turnovers on Saturday. In addition to his interception late in the fourth quarter, Driskel threw a pick at the start of the second quarter when the Gators were on the Hurricanes’ 11-yard line.
Even when he did not commit an official turnover via a fumble or interception, Driskel had a hard time in the red zone.
He was 2 for 5 on the day when attempting passes inside the 20-yard line, throwing for 7 total yards and tossing two interceptions. However, the junior did manage to run for 11 yards and a touchdown on three attempts.
Driskel also failed to convert on a fourth-and-1 play at the Miami 16-yard line, ending a Florida drive that could have leveled the score at 14 if the series continued or brought the Gators within five points of tying the game if Muschamp had opted for a field goal.
“We had confidence in our O-line that we could get a push,” Driskel said. “On that play, Miami did a great job of really stuffing every hole. Sometimes the defense beats you.”
After the game, Muschamp took the blame for the play call, saying that he believed Florida needed a touchdown in the situation.
Driskel was not the only player with costly turnovers in the red zone.
With Florida driving down field at the end of the first half, Driskel found senior receiver Trey Burton on a first-down pass. Burton then coughed the ball up when Shayon Green tackled him. Miami recovered the loose ball and ended the half.
“That’s not really who we are,” Burton said. “We work a lot on turnovers. A lot of protecting the ball.
The Gators’ failures in the red zone on Saturday were unlike a team that is usually proficient at scoring when deep in the opponent’s territory.
In 2012, Florida finished 50th in the country in red-zone conversions, scoring on 82.6 percent of trips inside the 20. Even though the Gators only scored touchdowns on 52 percent of those attempts, former kicker Caleb Sturgis made sure UF came away with points, kicking field goals on about 30 percent of red-zone drives.
Florida performed well inside the 20-yard line in its season opener against Toledo. The Gators scored on four of their six red-zone drives against the Rockets, coming away with touchdowns on three of the drives and kicking a field goal on another.
The only times when Florida did not come away with points were on a missed field goal by redshirt freshman Austin Hardin and when the Gators ran out the clock to end the game.
They did not turn the ball over in the red zone.
But after Florida’s poor performance on Saturday, it fell to 117th in the nation in red-zone efficiency.
“We’ve just go to play smart football,” Muschamp said. “In those critical situations, you’re taking points off the board.”
Follow Adam Lichtenstein on Twitter @ALichtenstein24.
Jeff Driskel runs through a drill during warm-ups prior to Florida’s 21-16 loss to Miami on Saturday in Sun Life Stadium. Driskel turned the ball over three times in the game.
