Florida Gators Go Through Looking Glass in Loss to Ole Miss

Nearly everything about Florida’s game against Ole Miss was the polar opposite of what happened through the first three games of the year.

I have not gone through my recording for a full analysis; ideally that will come tomorrow. For now though, just consider these things.

Third Downs

Florida entered the game first in the SEC in third-down conversions, at 53.85 percent. Against Ole Miss, they were just 1-of-11 on third downs.

Turnovers

Florida came into the game +9 in turnover margin and had yet to turn the ball over. While Tim Tebow’s school-record streak of pass attempts without an interception is still alive, the Gators fumbled five times, losing three, and finished -2 in turnover margin against the Rebels.

Preventing Big Plays

You can question the competencies of the offenses UF had faced so far, but the Gator D had been doing well in preventing big plays. The longest pass play allowed to Hawai’i, Miami, and Tennessee was 26 yards, and the longest run play was 16 yards.

Ole Miss gained 169 of its 325 yards on four plays. One of those four plays was a 40-yard touchdown run by Dexter McCluster, and another was Jevan Snead’s 86-yard touchdown pass to Shay Hodge. Both of those plays came within 16 minutes of the end of the game.

On the Rebels’ 59 other plays, they managed just 156 yards, or 2.64 yards per play.

Tebow’s Production

Coming into the game, Tim Tebow had played a relatively limited role in the offense compared to 2007. His 311 total yards against Miami were by far his highest, and 256 of those were passing. He had yet to score a rushing touchdown.

Against Ole Miss he had 319 yards of passing alone, and he had two rushing touchdowns.

Harvin’s Production

Partially due to injuries, Percy Harvin had played a very limited role in the first three games of the year. His largest involvement was against Tennessee, where he had eight touches for 80 yards.

Against Ole Miss, he surpassed that mark in both rushing and receiving. He had 10 rushes for 82 yards, and 13 catches for 186 yards. He was far and away the best player on the field.

Taking a Lead

Florida had not trailed in a game yet this season. Ole Miss scored first, ending that streak with 3:12 to go in the first quarter.

UF would take the lead back with 12:26 to go in the first half, but the Gators would lose the lead for good with 10:32 to go in the third quarter when Ole Miss tied the game 17-17.

Special Teams

Brandon James was largely held in check thanks to some occasionally suspect blocking by Florida, but mainly good kick and punt coverage by Ole Miss. Saturday’s game was also the first game of the year in which the Gators’ special teams did not score.

The final margin of the game was made possible by Ole Miss’ special teams, who blocked Florida’s final extra-point attempt.

Overall

“We didn’t play Florida football.”

Those words fro