Gainesville: The University of Florida is sitting at the top of the SEC after leaving Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida field on Saturday.

The Gators took down LSU 14-6 after a run heavy, defensive slugfest with Les Miles’ Tigers.

In the first half, the Gators couldn’t even get into field-goal range for Caleb Sturgis to tack points onto the board.

It was their defense that kept them in the game after LSU led 6-0 at half time, only giving up two field goals. One of those field goals followed a Jeff Driskel fumble that put LSU in the redzone prior to halftime.

After senior linebacker Jon Bostic helped shut down a jump pass on the goal line, the Gators saw momentum shift their way.

Senior tailback Mike Gillislee proved to be a workhorse when healthy. Gillislee put up 146 yards on 34 carries. He torched LSU for two touchdowns in the second half.

At one point in the third quarter, the Gators ran 25 consecutive rushing plays, literally taking  it to the LSU defensive line.

From the way the crowd was reacting to Driskel repeatedly holding onto the ball too long, one wouldn’t know that he completed 66.7 percent of his passes. That could be because the pass protection only allowed for him to throw 12 times.

Driskel was sacked five times on the day.

In the second half, the Gator defense remained strong. Junior defensive tackle Shariff Floyd was instrumental in holding LSU, a run-based offense, to 42 rushing yards for the entire game.

Coach Will Muschamp and his team (5-0) are undefeated in SEC games so far this season. The Gators will now head to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt.

The real test for the Gators will come on Oct. 20 when they host South Carolina and former head coach Steve Spurrier. The lastest AP Poll has the Gators at No. 4 and South Carolina is at No. 3.

The result of that match-up could possibly determine the SEC Championship game and the National Championship game.

The Gators look to be 3-0 after this weekend.  They have won seven straight against Tennessee and should make it eight after Saturday.  They are carrying a lot of momentum into this SEC East rivalry versus the Vols since their strong 2^nd half on defense vs. Texas A&M, not allowing the Aggie’s offense to pass midfield or score a point.  On the other hand, Tennessee has one of the top 10 passing attacks in the nation, but the Gators should be able to counter that with their strong secondary, despite the injury to safety Cody Riggs.  The Gators also suffered the loss of Jelani Jenkins, their weak side linebacker, who will be out about 4 weeks due to thumb surgery.  Now being avid gator fan, one might be worried about the injury to the senior back Mike Gillislee. It was confirmed that he slightly strained his groin when he tip toed into the end zone for his second touchdown of the game during the 4^th quarter.  He is probable for this weekend and should be fine for the game, so all the pressure will not fall onto quarterback, Jeff Driskel.  When they win, it will solidify their position in the SEC East as a front runner to win the division with only Georgia and South Carolina standing in their way.  The Vols have not run the ball well against the Gators in the past and have only faced Georgia State and NC State who do not have a strong secondary and run defense like the Gators.  Look for the Gators to play strong and take this game on the road. GO GATORS.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida football team hosted the Bowling Green State University Falcons on Saturday afternoon. UF defeated BGSU by a final score of 27-14.

UF welcomed 84,704 fans into Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to watch the underdog, BGSU, jump out to a 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.  BGSU tailback, John Pettigrew, momentarily quieted Gator fans when he scored his only touchdown from the 1-yard line, at the end of the first quarter.

The momentum shifted back toward UF in the second quarter when senior tailback, Mike Gillislee, took over with two touchdowns of his own. Gillislee rushed for a career high 148-rushing yards on the day.

After BGSU’s Anthon Samuel took off for a 12-yard touchdown in the third quarter, UF regained the lead when Caleb Sturgis, a fifth-year-senior kicker, drove home a 34-yard field goal.

This week, 3 Gators, are participating at the NFL combine in Indianapolis. First through the gauntlet is Gator nation favorite, Chris Rainey who was a standout in the 40 yard dash (4.45 secs #2), 20 yard shuttle (3.93 secs #1), 60 yard shuttle (11.06 secs #1), 3 cone drill (6.5 secs #1), a vertical of 36.5 inches and 16 reps of 225 lbs on the bench. Quite impressive for the 5’8 180 lb Rainey. He speed and “jukes” are standouts for NFL scouts, but no suprise, his size has placed pressure on his draft position.

Jaye Howard & Janoris Jenkins will complete the drills Monday & Tuesday respectively. Update to come.

This past October when Alabama and Florida met on the field there were a lot of things on the line for both teams.  Heading into the game, both teams were 4 – 0, and they were both just getting into the meat of Southeastern Conference football play.  Alabama was ranked number four in the land and upstart Florida was riding a wave of confidence from knocking off Tennessee and Kentucky respectively. This test would determine the direction for at least one team, and as it turns out, the fate of two separate individual young guns in Florida’s stable of quarterbacks.

The stars aligned, or perhaps maligned depending on how you look at, when Gator starting signal caller John Brantley was sacked deep in Alabama territory by Courtney Upshaw.  Here is where fate raised its fickle head and decided to make an appearance that Saturday night in Gainesville.  If you recall, the play prior to the one in which Brantley was injured, it appeared that the Gators turned the ball over, only to have that call overturned on the field.  Had Alabama recovered the apparent fumble Johnny Brantley would not have even been on the field.  One could hear a collective gasp, as Brantley lay injured on the field.  On the sideline, two young men were about to have the opportunity that they came to Florida for.  The only question to be answered was, is this the night that the next great Florida quarterback rallies his team from behind to victory against the vaunted Alabama “D”?  We all know the answer to that question now; but at the time, you could almost sense and feel that 93,000 fans in attendance were about to witness something magical.

Jeff Driskel, enter stage left.  The moment that he trotted onto the field for the next series, I was struck by the fact that this young man, all of 18, was on the largest stage of his young career at Florida.  His eyes looked large, and spooky.  Almost like two full moons, shoved into that orange helmet.  I had often heard of the deer in the headlight look, but never seen it; until that moment.   Anyone who watched the game could tell he was overwhelmed.  And in fairness to Jeff, which one of us wouldn’t have been?  He played as well as could’ve been expected.  To be honest, I think had he been able to take the field immediately, instead of waiting for half time to be over, things may have been different.  This young man had to wait and ponder, wonder, and contemplate all of what he was about to have to go out and face, and it showed.  He went on to complete 2 of 6 passes for a total of 14 yards.  In the process, it appeared that he tweaked his ankle, although he continued to play for the remainder of the night.

His next start was slated for the following Saturday against L.S.U., once again putting him in a precarious situation.  Following warm-ups at Death Valley, it was announced that Jacoby Brissett would be the starter for the game, and since that point Jeff Driskel has been as non-existent at quarterback as Joe Shmucatelly.  Jacoby Brissett came in and although he was not a factor in the game.  One could look into his face and see that this kid had “it”.  The occasion wasn’t bigger than him.  He looked confident, and you could see leadership.  A silent confidence exudes Brissett, which is something I didn’t see when watching Driskel.

Here we are, the season is over and we are waiting for March to arrive so we can see what Brent Pease has in store for this Florida program.  I for one am waiting to see what Driskel will do.  How will he respond?  Watching him from the sidelines following the apparent demotion to #3 on the depth chart, I also observed something disconcerting as a Gator fan.  He appeared to shrink, and shy away from his teammates.  There were few times that he appeared to be listening in during timeouts and quarterback meetings with Charlie Weis.  It will be interesting to see how this “wunderkid” responds during spring football, which is just around the corner.  Only time will tell, what will become of this young man.  I however, wouldn’t be surprised if he has a bad spring, to see this young man transfer.  For now, we just wait and will see what level of maturity he develops as a young man, and a player.