GAINESVILLE, Fla. — For the second year in a row, Florida hung with mighty Alabama for four quarters.
And for the second year in a row, the Gators came up short.
No. 11 UF scored in the closing minutes but had its two-point conversion stopped short, as the No. 1 Crimson Tide eked out a 31-29 win in front of the most energized crowd Ben Hill Griffin Stadium has seen in years.
The Gators (2-1, 0-1 SEC) fell behind early with a defense that reverted to its historically bad 2020 form. UF had at least three notable blown tackles. Rashad Torrence missed on third-and-9 that would have ended the drive. Tre’Vez Johnson whiffed on one a few plays later on Alabama’s first touchdown, a pass from quarterback Bryce Young to Jase McClellan. And Amari Burney’s failure to thwart a screen led to a third-and-short during another touchdown drive for the Tide (3-0, 1-0).
UF’s defense tightened, however, stringing together three consecutive three-and-outs in the second quarter.
The Gators’ offense was limited. The home crowd booed starter Emory Jones in the second quarter after he missed a wide-open Justin Shorter and then rushed for four yards on third down. They weren’t booing moments later when, thanks to a defensive pass interference on fourth down, he handed it off to Malik Davis, who powered up the middle for a 26-yard touchdown. UF missed the extra point.
UF didn’t have many other options besides Jones. Coach Dan Mullen told CBS before the game that dazzling redshirt freshman Anthony Richardson would only play if Jones got hurt; Richardson is recovering from a tight hamstring he sustained last week at USF.
The Gators rallied in the second half. Dameon Pierce ran for a score. Jones ran for another to cap off a 99-yard drive that made it a five-point game going into the fourth quarter.
UF’s pass defense consistently bailed ‘Bama out. Brenton Cox pushed a Tide receiver on one third down in the third quarter to keep a drive alive. Alabama scored a touchdown seven plays later.
On the next series, UF appeared to have a stop, but Avery Helm’s pass interference negated a third-and-7 stop. That series ended in a 24-yard field goal that put ‘Bama ahead 31-23 with 9:25 left.
UF had a chance to tie it with 3:10 left after Pierce rolled to a 17-yard touchdown. But the Tide snuffed out the delayed handoff from Jones to Davis; it came up a yard short.
Alabama pounded out a first down on third-and-short on the next drive to help seal its eight consecutive win in the series, including last year’s 52-46 SEC championship triumph.
The Gators had one final gasp with four seconds left, but Jones’ scramble was stuffed.
The announced attendance of 90,887 was the largest at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium since the Florida State game in 2015 and the fifth largest ever.
