2008 Florida Football Post-Game Notes Florida vs. Kentucky October 25, 2008
Florida improved its all-time record against Kentucky to 42-17 and extended the current win streak over the Wildcats to 22 games. UK has not won at Florida Field since 1979, now a Florida streak of 15 straight games. The Gators also improved their Homecoming record to 62-20-2 and extended the win streak on Homecoming to 19 games. The Orange and Blue went 3-0 in the month of October. The last time UF went undefeated in the month was in 2000. Head Coach Urban Meyer is now 26-3 all-time when having more than one week to prepare for a game. Kentucky allowed two rushing touchdowns all year. Florida scored two rushing touchdowns in the first seven minutes of the game and four total. Junior quarterback Tim Tebow recorded two three-yard rushing touchdowns in the first half to tie Emmitt Smith for the most all-time rushing touchdowns (36) in school history. He was also responsible for four touchdowns on the day (two rushing, two passing) to bring his career total to 85 (49 passing, 36 rushing), which is third in Florida record books. His 28 points in the game is the second most by a Gator in a single game. He scored 30 against South Carolina on Nov. 10, 2007. Junior athlete Brandon James recorded 29 punt return yards on the day to bring his season total to 363, which ranks third all-time. Jacquez Green holds the top spot with 392 in 1997. Florida’s 63 points are the most the Gators have scored under Meyer in an SEC matchup. The Gators have now scored at least 26 points in each of the first seven games, marking the first time that has happened since 2000 when the streak extended to the first 10 games. The Gators tied a school record, blocking three kicks one game (see “Win the Kicking Game” under “Urban Meyer’s Plan to Win”). Florida is tied for a nation-leading four interception returns for touchdowns with Missouri, Rice and San Jose State (with Rice and Missouri still to play today). Just nine seconds into the second half, sophomore safety Ahmad Black returned his second pick for a touchdown this season. Today’s touchdown came off a 40-yard return. The last time Florida registered back-to-back games of 50 or more points was in 2001, when the Gators beat Vanderbilt, 71-13, on Nov. 3 and South Carolina, 54-17, on Nov. 10. Florida’s 42 first-half points was the most the Gators have tallied in the first half since they racked up 49 against Kentucky in 2005 and Troy in 2007. The Wildcats gave up 28 points in the first quarter to Florida, marking the most points they have given up in a game all season. The previous high was 24 to South Carolina. The Gators recorded their fourth touchdown of the first period with 3:15 to play on a 33-yard pass from Tebow to junior running back/wide receiver Percy Harvin. The 28 first-quarter points was the most points Florida has scored in the first under Meyer and tied a Meyer-coached team high as Utah recorded 28 points against UNLV on Oct. 23, 2004. Redshirt freshman John Brantley threw his first career touchdown on a 38-yard pass with 11:45 remaining in the game. His receiver, redshirt junior David Nelson, recorded his first career touchdown on his first reception of the season. Freshman athlete Jeff Demps scored his first career touchdown reception with 11:26 in second quarter on a 61-yard pass from Tebow. Harvin recorded a 16-yard rushing touchdown, his longest rush of the season, with 6:44 to play in the first quarter. It was his second rushing TD of the season and the 12th of his career. Demps and defensive tackle Matt Patchan made their first career starts. The last true freshman to start at running back was now-senior Kestahn Moore in 2005. This was the first time a true freshman started at defensive tackle dating back to 1983.
Urban Meyer’s Plan to Win o Play Great Defense The only points the Gators allowed in the second half were two points on a safety off an illegal kick with four minutes to play. UF has not trailed in six of seven games in 2008 and has not allowed an opponent to score in 16 of 28 quarters. UF has allowed just two first-half touchdowns all season and is outscoring opponents, 150-20 before the half. Kentucky did not enter Florida territory until the Tebow interception with 44 seconds to play in the first quarter. o Turnovers Florida forced four turnovers (three blocked kicks, one interception) in the game, all resulting in touchdowns. o Score in the Red Zone Florida has scored 28-of-29 trips inside the red zone this season and has been perfect in six of seven games. Today, the Gators went 5-for-5, scoring five touchdowns. They have scored on their last 18 trips inside the redzone, breaking the longest streak under Coach Meyer (16 set in 2007). o Win the Kicking Game With 13:01 to play in the second quarter, sophomore cornerback Joe Haden blocked a field goal attempt for the third blocked kick of the game (two punts, one field goal). Urban Meyer-coached teams have now blocked 42 kicks, third most in the country (Texas: 49; Fresno State: 47 prior to today’s game). The Gators have blocked 23 kicks under Meyer, five this season. Six of the 14 blocked punts under Meyer at UF were on the opponents’ opening drive, including one against Kentucky on Sept. 23, 2006. Seven out of 10 times the UF offense has scored on the drive right after the blocked punt. With 11:05 left in the first quarter, freshman defensive end William Green blocked a punt on Kentucky’s first drive of the game. Then with 9:36 to go, Demps blocked Kentucky’s second punt attempt. The last time Florida blocked three kicks in one game was on Nov. 11, 2006 against South Carolina.
Attendance: 90,589 Game Captains: Cornelius Ingram, Louis Murphy, Brandon Spikes, Phil Trautwein and Jason Watkins; Kentucky won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. Weather: 68º, with winds out of the NNW at 8 mph; chance of rain: 30% George Edmondson, aka Mr. Two-Bits, was honored in a special pre-game ceremony. The 86-year-old Edmondson, who has led his famous cheer at Gator games for 60 years, will retire from his Mr. Two- Bits' role at the end of the season. University of Florida Athletics Director Jeremy Foley presented Edmonson with a custom shadow box featuring the trademark tie, the block “F” and a golden whistle. As a special permanent tribute, the Gator Cheerleaders will display a special “2-Bits” whistle emblem on their megaphones. In addition, the Gator Mic Man will wear an orange and blue striped tie as an ongoing salute to the greatest cheerleader in the history of Florida. Starting next season, the two-bits cheer will continue as Albert the Alligator, in his two-bits attire, will lead the Gator fans in the beloved Gator tradition. Dozens of college football coaches across the country joined to fight against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. By wearing an arm band with the Coach to Cure MD insignia, coaches showed their support for Coach to Cure Muscular Dystrophy, the American Football Coaches Association’s (AFCA) newest charitable project. At halftime, post-graduate scholars and the Homecoming Queen, Vanessa Douyen, and her court were recognized. Gator student-athletes are sponsoring the season-long “Gators Canned Goods Challenge for Kids,” a canned food drive to benefit the Bread of the Mighty Food Bank in Gainesville. Fans are asked to bring cans to every home football game in 2008.
2008 Florida Football Post-Game Quotes Urban Meyer Florida Head Coach Florida vs. Kentucky October 25, 2008
Opening Statement: “Obviously, I’m very proud of our performance against a team that was 5-2. They have the number one defense in the SEC and it was a good win for us. The way the game started, we blocked kicks and we played great defense to really pin them down in there.
On the Blocked Kicks: “We are a punt block team. We have one of the best punt returners in the country. We had some really good personnel going after them. Get used to that name William Green. He is going to be a special guy.”
On the Defense and Special Teams: “Our defense and special teams were about as good as you can get. I think it was a great effort against a high-quality.”
On Jeff Demps: “We saw the same thing you did. He’s a fast dude. Jeff Demps is a made man. He works so darn hard at everything he does. He’ll be around here for a long time.”
On the Florida Experience: “The Gator Walk was great. The crowd was phenomenal. Florida is a special place.”
On His Most Complete Game at Florida: “I think the LSU game a [in 2006] was the most complete game. I am very pleased with our effort today. We dominated on offense, defense and special teams. I can’t say enough about our players today.”
2008 Florida Football Post-Game Quotes Florida Players Florida vs. Kentucky October 25, 2008
Junior Quarterback Tim Tebow On the game: “It was a great day for us. Offense, defense and special teams all came ready to play. We were firing on all cylinders.”
On the 28-0 first quarter: “It seemed like the longest first quarter I ever played, which is great because the defense was making stops and we blocked two punts. We were able to punch it in and get off to a great start.”
Sophomore Defensive Back Ahmad Black On his interception and touchdown: “We were blitzing in Nickleback, so I knew the quarterback wanted to throw the ball quickly. They motioned the back out of the backfield and tried to throw it to him. I was there to catch it and run it back.”
On the Florida defense: “Everybody wants to play. Everyone runs to the ball and tackles. We’re getting better every game.”
Sophomore Defensive Back Joe Haden On the three blocked kicks: “Our goal is to give the ball to the offense near the end zone. We got to the ball today and put our offense in a good position.”
On his blocked field goal: “We watched film on their field goal protection this week and knew we had an opportunity. I went as hard as I could and I leaned in and got the ball.”
2008 Florida Football Post-Game Quotes Rich Brooks Kentucky Head Coach Florida vs. Kentucky October 25, 2008
Opening Statement: “I didn’t think I’d be up here after a game where we had it go as badly as this again. Obviously I did a very poor job of preparing this team schematically and mentally in every phase. Our kicking game was a disaster. Two blocked punts and a field goal in the first half led to direct scores. Offense was struggling to get going. The defense had a hard time stopping them after the first series. The mental breakdowns after having two punts blocked just cascaded on us. I didn’t do a good job of getting it stopped or turned or anything.
Having said all of that, I think we played one of the best teams in the country. They’ve got speed, talent, size, playmakers at a lot of positions and we’ve got to give them a lot of credit. It shouldn’t have been the magnitude of the loss that it was. They went out and took it from us and executed and we did not.”
On the two blocked punts: “They blocked the first one from the right. There was a cross-charge in there. They picked their center, freed somebody up, flopped it and went over and did it from the left side. We obviously missed a blocking assignment on both of them. They probably had a pretty good plan. Our rules are fairly simple. We turned somebody loose. I don’t know if it was the same guy because they did it on the left side and did it on the right side. You have to give them credit for good design and good execution, and give us an ‘F’ for execution.”
On what the blocks did to the team mentally: “It was a disaster. It’s hard to get back on track. I did a poor job of getting us back on track after that. The field goal block was inexcusable. They came around on the outside. We have a guy who is supposed to be blocking that guy. It’s our responsibility to make sure he’s blocked.”
On the loss: “I didn’t think we would be beaten this badly. I think we’re a better team than that. I think we’ve already demonstrated that this year. I had some pretty sick feelings when I saw 51 points scored on LSU two weeks ago. Then they had a week off. It looks like they took advantage of their week off too.”
On playing two quarterbacks: “We need both quarterbacks. That combination was good. We’re kind of in to that two- quarterback system we thought we were going to be in before Randall Cobb hurt his ankle. Both bring a little something different to the table, but it didn’t make much different what we did. We have to do a better job of getting our guys to execute better.”
2008 Florida Football Post-Game Quotes Kentucky Players Florida vs. Kentucky October 25, 2008
Sophomore Quarterback Mike Hartline “The big thing is you just wonder what aspects, as far as in practice during the week, went wrong. In my perspective, a lot of guys aren’t really sure where they want this program to go, not really sure what can actually happen with us. It all just comes from heart and putting your soul into it in what you look to do. When you see what happened today and how it evolves and how it just kept getting worse and worse. They beat us in every aspect of the game. You should have to question how can you move on from this or how can we get better or what we need to do differently. There will be some things we need to do differently but at the same time offensively, it wasn’t a great day for us but I didn’t feel like it was a terrible day. I thought we did some good things on offense. You have to give credit to their defense. They’re defense is fast, they’re mobile and they can move at every position.”
Junior Linebacker Micah Johnson “The just came out to quick on us and the two blocked punts and the blocked field goal, we never recovered from those. There really wasn’t anything we could do at that point. We had bad situations on defense and we just gave up way to much.”