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Florida quarterback Tim Tebow (15) joins his teammates and cheerleaders on the sidelines following their 30-6 victory over Tennessee in Neyland Stadium on Saturday.
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Stories
- 'That loss is on me'
- Report Card: UT vs. Florida
- Adams: Series gap more gaping than ever
- Fans deliver boos; Crompton says 'we play for our football family, that's each other'
- Turnovers, missed chances hurt offense
- Short-yardage failures soured defense
- It's all business for Florida and it shows
- Florida has easy time with stumbling Vols, 30-6
There was no trash talking in the Florida postgame press session, no discussion of owning Tennessee in football.
There was no need.
The Neyland Stadium scoreboard reflected a 30-6 Gators' victory Saturday, and the Florida players seemed content to exit Knoxville with the same businesslike approach they arrived with.
"You test someone's maturity level when you go on the road,'' Gators coach Urban Meyer said. "I made the comment to the guys at the hotel last night, I want them to conduct themselves as a professional athlete.
"This is SEC football, it's your job and it's really what your life is about. You're here to get a degree and play college football. ... We take it real serious.''
Meyer, 4-0 against UT, said Florida emphasized playing great defense and taking care of the football.
The Gators responded, not committing a turnover while forcing three UT turnovers and holding the Vols out of the end zone through three quarters.
"We really controlled the line of scrimmage,'' Meyer said. "I think 27 (Arian Foster) is one of the best backs in college football and we held him in check.
"We loaded the box pretty good; we wanted them to be one dimensional.''
Foster carried 14 times for 37 yards (2.6 yards per carry) while UT as a whole was held to 96 yards rushing on 31 attempts.
Meyer was the first to admit Florida's offense didn't necessarily earn any style points - the Vols actually outgained the Gators 258 yards to 243.
And, Meyer said, Florida wasn't holding anything back.
"We did everything we possibly could,'' he said. "We ran the ball for 147 yards, and Tim (Tebow) didn't throw very much ... 8-of-15, that's not very good. We'll have to work on that.''
Tebow passed for two touchdowns, but only 96 yards, as it was Gators' return man Brandon James did most of the damage.
James had two punt returns for 92 yards, including a 78-yarder for a TD, along with a 52-yard kickoff return to open the game.
James tied Florida's career record with Saturday's punt return for a TD, the fourth in his career. It was also James' second punt return for a TD against the Vols. Last year he had an 83-yarder.
"It (the punt return for a TD) was down the middle,'' James said. "I was like, 'Yeah, it's gonna be a good day.' "
Just to make sure of it, Meyer dropped speedster Percy Harvin back deep on the punts, too.
"Those two back there could be lethal,'' he said.
Tebow, who carried 12 times for 26 yards, said UT's plan to scheme toward him probably opened up some other elements of the Gators' run game.
"But I don't know if it mattered what we were running,'' he said. "Our offensive line was getting a surge, really getting that first two yards off the ball.''
Tebow, like Meyer, pointed to the Gators' businesslike approach as a key.
"Our team is 10 times more mature than we were last year in everything we do,'' Tebow said. "Off the field, in the classroom ... how we handle the pregame and how we handle the hype.''
As for himself, and his chances for a second Heisman Trophy, Tebow shrugged.
"The Heisman was great and awesome,'' he said, "but I'm focused on trying to win a championship, not statistics.''
Tebow said winning at Neyland Stadium was crucial in that respect.
"It was a huge step for us,'' he said. "For the last 12 to 15 years, the winner of this game has had a lot of success in the SEC and it gives you a lot of momentum.''
Vanderbilt 93, Tennessee 79, Feb. 9…
UT's new $45 million football…
Tennessee 69, South Carolina 57 men's…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group joins his teammates and cheerleaders on the sidelines following their 30-6 victory over Tennessee in Neyland Stadium on Saturday.){kind=link}
Comments » 14
mdvol writes:
It was a sure thing that Florida would get a score on special teams. Those who want Fulmer gone need not look further than our continual ineptness on special teams that costs us games. This hasn't changed in 10 years and won't ever with Fulmer calling the shots.
BigVolOnBoard writes:
We used to say there's always next year, but with Fulmer on board we know what next year will be like too.
CoverOrange writes:
tngeoff, was that guy's name McBrim?
FedUpVolFan writes:
Please! Read the 2 following statements carefully! Speaks volumes of where this program is!
For people (to boo) that probably never played the game, it doesn't faze us," the senior said.
Crompton said he's only concerned with his teammates' and coaches' opinions of his play.
"You don't pay attention to them," Crompton said of the boos. "We play for our football family, that's
FedUpVolFan writes:
"You test someone's maturity level when you go on the road,'' Gators coach Urban Meyer said. "I made the comment to the guys at the hotel last night, I want them to conduct themselves as a professional athlete.
Our QB and coaches sound like little whiny kids...
cuttslam#649964 writes:
tngeoff -- I'm glad someone else noticed. At the end of UF's last drive (next to last possession) it was obvious to me that Florida was calling plays that practically guaranteed they wouldn't score again. Like Tebow running for the sideline. I'd have to call Urban Meyer a very gracious gentleman for doing that.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Tebow running for the sideline wasn't as quick as those headed for the exits.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I agree completely with mdvol. With the new rules on the play clock, which shorten the game and limit the number of possessions and plays a team gets, special teams are even more important than ever. CPF's refusal to make one coach responsible for all aspects of special teams is just one more example of how the game seems to have passed him by. We may not have a Brandon James or Percy Harvin or DeSean Jackson, but on one of our best returns of the day one of our guys chased a UF cover guy down the field and LUNGED to hit him in the back. No way that block contributed to the return even if the penalty hadn't been called. How hard can it be to make a guy understand that if the guy's name on the back of his jersey is RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR EYES, YOU CANNOT HIT HIM?!?!? Just one example, but, IMHO, a very telling one.
jzt writes:
They did take it easy on us late 3rd and all of the 4th quarters. Hopefully Phil will see the writing on the wall and do the classy thing and resign.
foosballer writes:
I actually think Hamilton doesn't seem to have a good grip on football. He obviously knows how to spend money, and he goes out and hires a world-class basketball coach. But he FIRED Buzz Peterson to get that done, and here is CFP (wearing his 10-year-old ring) putting up nearly Buzz-ball like records and stats...but as long as he wins just over half of his games...that's OK?????????
foosballer writes:
I actually think Hamilton doesn't seem to have a good grip on football. He obviously knows how to spend money, and he goes out and hires a world-class basketball coach. But he FIRED Buzz Peterson to get that done, and here is CPF (wearing his 10-year-old ring) putting up nearly Buzz-ball like records and stats...but as long as he wins just over half of his games...that's OK?????????
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Oh, for the pleasant days spent in Swayback, Wyoming.
Far from the maddening din and fans who don't recognize or even understand the charts. Still king of the buffet.
Aubie awaits in the Village on the Plains.
SmokeDog72 writes:
Fulmer has gone the way of the 8-track player. Say what you want about how he has done this or done that or won the SEC East here and there, but he is not getting it done against top programs. He is not getting the most out of his players and he is losing the top speed and talent wars to Bama, Florida, Georgia, Auburn, and LSU. We are somewhere between 5th and 8th best in our conference. That is it (IF we win a few conference games). He may be a bit better than Croom or Rich Brooks, but those are the only two in the conference I would put below him right now. Fulmer is not the only guy on the decline in college football (Spurrier?, Frank Beamer?), but he is our guy.
Three words that could drastically change our program (for the better): Gary Pinkel (Missouri). We have got to move into the 21st century. We have got to have something that will differentiate us from the competition when it comes to recruits and the schemes they desire. I know we have a great stadium, a great workout facility, great TV presence, and great fans. But, guess what, so do about 15-25 other programs in the country. We need something that is going to open eyes for recruits. A system that has done well (Pinkel's) in a conference (SEC) that will provide the opportunity to showcase it.
murrayvol writes:
Ah yes. The upcoming visit to the "lovliest village on the plains" and a chance to play a group of P/O'd Tigers and go 1-3 in Sept.
And then it's "count the faithful weekend" with UNI on deck. The turnstile count for that game will speak volumes.
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