Florida vs. Kentucky: Live Game Grades and Analysis for Gators

The Florida Gators cruised past the Kentucky Wildcats 24-7 in Lexington to move to 3-1 on the season. Check out the final grades and analysis below.

Florida 24, Kentucky 7, Final

For the full box score, head over to NCAA.com

Final Game Analysis for the Florida Gators:

Pass offense: Tyler Murphy completed all 11 of his first half passes. With a comfortable lead, Muschamp elected to only throw the ball seven times after the half. Aside from one ugly pick, Murphy looked very strong in his first start.

Run offense: Both Matt Jones and Murphy churned out yards throughout the game. Their speed on the edges proved to be too much for the Wildcats as they amassed a total of 246 yards on the ground with a pair of touchdowns. Florida effectively ran the ball in the second half to kill most of the clock.

Pass defense: Kentucky’s receivers struggled all day to get much room away from Florida’s two stellar corners. Vernon Hargreaves III and Loucheiz Purifoy both had their way with the Wildcats.

Run defense: Kentucky gained 25 yards on a fake field goal touchdown and that was about it. Florida held them to 2.3 yards per carry with a long run of 11 yards. The Gators showed no signs of slowing down without stud defensive tackle Dominique Easley.

Special teams: Florida was fooled heavily by the fake field goal, but aside from that little went wrong. Special teams was not a big factor in this game of field position. Austin Hardin made one of two field goals, missing from 53 yards in the first half.

Coaching: Will Muschamp did a good job controlling this game from start to finish. The most telling stat was Florida’s 8-for-13 success rate on third down. The Gators also converted both of their fourth down opportunities. Muschamp dialed up a great game plan on both sides of the ball. 

First-Half Analysis for the Florida Gators

Pass offense: Tyler Murphy has looked outstanding in place of Jeff Driskel, completing all 11 of his passes for 120 yards and a touchdown. He has converted a few shots downfield and controlled the offense very well all around.

Run offense: Matt Jones was stuffed a few times early, but he started to find a groove before breaking off a huge 67-yarder. Murphy used his legs to extend a couple of plays, as well, and both found the end zone in a productive first half. The 132 yards rushing in the first half was very good.

Pass defense: Kentucky moved the ball well on its first drive through their dual-quarterback system, but Florida started imposing its will in the second quarter. Florida allowed just 57 yards passing in the half.

Run defense: Aside from the fake-field-goal touchdown, Kentucky was mostly unable to run the ball after its first drive. Other than that run, the longest gain on the ground was 11 yards for the Wildcats. The Gators have looked strong in Dominique Easley’s absence.

Special teams: The Gators were completely fooled on the 25-yard touchdown run by kicker Joe Mansour off the fake field goal. Austin Hardin also missed a field goal from 53 yards. It was a forgettable half on special teams for Florida, to say the least.

Coaching: Muschamp hasn’t made too many gutsy calls so far. He has put in place a conservative offensive game plan for his new quarterback, which has been executed beautifully. Coach Muschamp also has his Gators flying around on defense to cope with the loss of Easley.