JACKSONVILLE — Heading into his final season with the Gators, redshirt senior Mike McNeely contributed mostly on special teams.
At the end of fall practice before the 2014 season, UF coach Will Muschamp — a former walk-on himself when he played at UGA from 1991-1994 — had two of his 85 scholarships available. McNeely earned one of them.
"Mike has been a fantastic special teams player and just a wonderful young man and has done everything we’ve asked him to do," Muschamp said on Aug. 22, less than an hour after awarding McNeely his scholarship. "He will be a huge contributor on special teams."
But during Florida’s 38-20 win against No. 11 Georgia (6-2, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) on Saturday at EverBank Field, McNeely provided the biggest contribution of his career.
On fourth and 9 in the second quarter with the Gators (4-3, 3-3 SEC) trailing 7-0, kicker Frankie Velez trotted out to the field with McNeely as his holder — a first this season for the wide receiver.
After receiving the ball from long snapper Drew Ferris, McNeely ran to his right. McNeely sprinted to the endzone unscathed for a 21-yard touchdown to tie the game.
"It opened right up, it was the perfect play call. The guys blocking up front did a tremendous job," McNeely said. "All I had to do was run. I’ll never forget this for the rest of my life. It was a great call."
Added Muschamp: "He’s earned his scholarship now. But he’s a hard-playing, fast, quick, good athlete. I mean he can line up and play receiver as well as some of our guys. That’s the type of guy he is."
The Gators practiced the fake field goal throughout the past week, and Muschamp knew players needed to be committed in order for the play to be a success.
"A little bit of it is the element of surprise," Muschamp said. "We coach hard with our guys about being excited about field-goal blocks. They didn’t come to Florida to be on field-goal blocks. … A lot of guys take those downs off. We felt like we had a chance to execute and make a play and gain some momentum. And we did."
The last time Florida had a successful fake field goal was during its 20-17 win against Texas A&M on Sept. 8, 2012, when holder John Crofoot threw a three-yard completion to tight end Clay Burton on fourth and 1.
"We take situations in every game that we have things up, whether it’s punts, field goals — it’s all about the look," Muschamp said. "We got the look we wanted and it was a fantastic job by our players."
Muschamp takes pride in McNeely because of his work ethic on and off the field. In addition to his special teams role, the 5-foot-8 receiver also works as a part-time bagger and cashier at a Gainesville-area Publix.
Still, McNeely found out about two weeks ago that his career path will extend beyond football or being a self-proclaimed "bashier."
On Oct. 15, McNeely learned that he was accepted to UF’s medical school.
"I know that I have a future," McNeely said. "God has blessed me so much and I’m just so thankful."
Added Muschamp: "I use him as an example for some of our guys all the time. ‘You guys complain about the food. You guys complain about this. Why don’t you … go do what he does.’ The guy’s unbelievable. He’s a great kid."
Follow Jordan McPherson on Twitter @J_McPherson1126
UF wide receiver Mike McNeely runs into the endzone for a touchdown on a fake field goal trick play during Florida's 38-20 win against Georgia on Saturday at EverBank Field in Jacksonville.
