TAMPA, Fla. — Florida closed out a turnaround season with a solid but unspectacular showing.
A 33-8 win against Tulane during the Gasparilla Bowl was still something to celebrate for coach Billy Napier. After all, the victory capped a four-game winning streak after two seasons that ended on skids of three and five games, respectively.
Yet Friday’s performance at Raymond James Stadium didn’t quite provide a surge of momentum entering a critical offseason for the Gators (8-5) or quell questions about Napier’s need to hire an offensive coordinator.
Quarterback DJ Lagway, the player many fans came to see, finished 22 of 35 for 305 yards, his first 300-yard performance against an FBS opponent to take home MVP honors.
The true freshman also threw two first-half interceptions to cost Florida points and highlight his struggles against zone coverage. Both miscues were thrown into the middle field with the intended target in triple coverage.
“We were sloppy early,” Napier said. “We were just a little rusty on offense.”
Lagway’s 7-yard touchdown to tight end Tony Livingston with 4:03 left in the third quarter was the Gators’ first touchdown, giving them a 16-0 lead following the first three of a bowl-record four field goals by Trey Smack.
“They didn’t make it easy, especially the first half,” Napier said.
Following the touchdown by Livingston, a sophomore from Tampa, Florida’s defensive intensity raised another level as Tulane managed just 194 yards.
The Green Wave (9-5) ended a once-promising debut season under Jon Sumrall on a three-game losing streak, but avoided their first shutout loss since 2016 against Temple when Ty Thompson found Mario Williams for a 16-yard touchdown with 29 seconds to go.
Without starting quarterback Darian Mensah, who transferred to Duke three days after the Army loss, the Green…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/florida-caps-four-game-winning-012000970.html
Author : Orlando Sentinel
Publish date : 2024-12-21 01:20:00
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