TALLAHASSEE — Moses Jenkins was a magnet Saturday, but not in a good way.
No matter whom the Florida cornerback covered, the ball seemed to find that receiver’s hands. In a game when his team looked overmatched, big plays against Jenkins provided the greatest difference as Florida State cruised to a 31-7 win.
With the Seminoles already ahead 10-7 early in the second quarter, quarterback Christian Ponder found receiver Rodney Smith streaking down the right sideline for a 39-yard touchdown. Trailing out of reach behind Smith was Jenkins, who allowed the receiver to easily run past him at the line, apparently expecting help from a safety.
Then in the third quarter, with Florida State leading 24-7, Ponder put the game out of reach when he connected with sophomore Willie Haulstead in the end zone on a post route against Jenkins.
“We played against a very good quarterback,” coach Urban Meyer said, “but we did not play well on the back end.”
That touchdown pass, Ponder’s third of the game, ended not only Florida’s dim comeback hopes but Jenkins’ time on the field. The junior was benched in favor of freshman Cody Riggs after surrendering the score.
Ponder targeted Jenkins’ receiver seven times in the first half, completing five passes for 90 yards and a score. Jenkins was also flagged for pass interference on Florida State’s second drive.
Sophomore Jeremy Brown, who has played in Jenkins’ position in 10 games this year, sat out with a hamstring injury.
But Ponder did not merely succeed by finding a weak link. He burned the Gators’ defense for 221 yards and three scores before getting pulled with more than seven minutes left in his last game at Doak Campbell Stadium.
“I didn’t sense them picking on anybody,” linebacker Jelani Jenkins said. “They just played good.”
Florida’s front seven could not bail out its backfield, failing to generate a consistent pass rush or even record a sack.
“They were able to call out a lot of our blitzes before it happened,” Jenkins said. “I guess we have to do a better job disguising (our rushes).”
The biggest problem with Florida’s defense entering Saturday was its inability to stop the run. Opponents were averaging 131.5 yards on the ground and just 168.6 in the air through 11 games.
But the Seminoles flipped the script, managing less than three yards per carry while torching the Gators’ defensive backs with 9.2 yards per pass attempt.
“It could not have played out any better in my mind,” Ponder said. “I am just proud of our team. For us to go out and execute the way we did was unreal.”
