Nobody expected the RedHawks to keep up with the Gators.
But then again, nobody expected a team with 13 yards of total offense to go into halftime with a 15-point lead like Florida did.
No. 4 UF (1-0) escaped a disastrous game in which it committed three turnovers and fumbled the ball eight times with a 34-12 victory against Miami (Ohio) (0-1).
“It was not that shocking that we didn’t play well, it was shocking that [so many] balls were on the ground,” coach Urban Meyer said.
The Gators allowed the RedHawks to stay in it early with a fumble in each of their first three drives of the game.
The first was caused by a bad snap from center Mike Pouncey, who played as a guard last season. He struggled with numerous off target snaps that had quarterback John Brantley moving all over the place.
“The ball just kept slipping out of my hand,” Pouncey said. “I don’t even know how the hell, it just kept slipping out. We’ll have it fixed by next week.”
Miami (Ohio) took that lead into the second quarter until cornerback Janoris Jenkins jumped a short route, intercepted a pass and didn’t look back until he reached the endzone 67 yards later.
The interception gave the Gators a lead they wouldn’t give up.
“Any time you can have a pick-six like we did it’s a great momentum swing for your team,” defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said. “They’re all at the right time. Any time you have a pick-six it’s the right time, and it really got a little juice going for us on the sideline.”
But UF still struggled following that momentum-changing play.
14 of Brantley’s 17 completed passes went for just 10 yards or less. The Gators ran various ineffective screen plays and short routes, which helped keep the RedHawks within nine points early in the fourth quarter.
"A lot of it was designed," Brantley said. "We just wanted to get a rhythm going. With playmakers on the perimeter with [Demps] and everybody else like that, you can throw short passes and watch it go for 15 yards. That's what we were hoping for."
The receivers didn’t help Brantley's cause.
Wide receiver Deonte Thompson dropped a perfectly thrown ball, which would have resulted in a touchdown, and Carl Moore did not record a catch. Tight end Omarius Hines and wide receiver Chris Rainey did play well, though, as they both caught touchdowns.
The offensive strategy seemed to shift in the final frame, however. Each of the three completions for more than 10 yards came then and UF gained 187 of its 212 yards of total offense in the fourth quarter, too.
As if the injuries to offensive linemen Xavier Nixon and Matt Patchan weren’t enough – left guard Carl Johnson did not play because he “wasn’t ready to play,” according to Meyer. Instead, redshirt freshman Jon Halapio made his first start in Johnson’s spot.
Safety Will Hill missed Saturday’s game for the same reason.
“I’m glad it happened in this kind of game, a game that we could have just went out there and won,” Pouncey said. “But if we do it next week (against USF), we won’t win the game.”
