ORLANDO – In the days leading up to the Capital One Bowl, Florida players and coaches talked repeatedly about using the contest against Michigan as a springboard for the 2008 season. If that's the case, the young Gators still have some steps to take before becoming a bonafide national title contender next fall.
Blunting the momentum of their four-game winning streak to end the regular season, many of the warts that cropped up to prevent the Gators (9-4) from a return trip to the BCS party were visibly apparent in the Wolverines' 41-35 victory Tuesday afternoon, which sent longtime coach Lloyd Carr out victorious in his final game.
"I want to congratulate Coach Carr and Michigan on a great win – that was a great college football game," said UF head coach Urban Meyer after suffering his first bowl loss in five tires. "I am very disappointed at some of our performance. We have some glaring errors that need to be corrected fast, personnel-wise and coaching-wise. I don't think we tackled very well and we certainly didn't cover well. I am very disappointed in the pass coverage. We have to do a lot better and we have to get some things corrected and we will."
The UF defense, which had shown signs of making progress in November, was strafed by a Michigan offense which had struggled for much of an injury-plagued campaign. The Wolverines (9-4) relentlessly pounded out 524 yards in a whopping 86 time-consuming plays and were highly effective on third down, converting on 10 of 15 third-down opportunities.
Entering the game with the nation's 73rd-rated passing attack, senior quarterback Chad Henne, healthy after battling a shoulder injury for the second half of the season, scorched the UF secondary in a game-MVP performance. Henne connected on 25 of 39 passes for a career-high 373 yards and three touchdowns, including an 18-yard strike to Adrian Arrington (nine catches for 153 yards both career highs – and two touchdowns) with 4:12 remaining that erased a brief 35-31 UF lead.
"It's an amazing feeling to send Coach Carr out in the right way – he deserves so much," said Henne after Michigan's first bowl win since beating UF in the Outback Bowl to conclude the 2002 season. "We had a lot of great matchups and our offensive line did a great job. Adrian's been making so many plays this year, I couldn't ask for a better performance from him. It's great to get the final victory of the season. We showed the team we could have been."
Although the Gators had a pair of scores wiped out by penalties (they did score a touchdown after one of the infractions), the Wolverines also struggled in the Red Zone. Senior tailback Mike Hart (129 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries) fumbled twice inside the UF 5-yard line as the Wolverines committed four turnovers to UF's none. Yet the Gators could not take full advantage.
Despite the 35 points and 400 yards (OK, 399), it was not a great day at the office for the Florida offense. Forget the malarkey about a Heisman Trophy jinx – it's myth not reality if recent performances are actually evaluated – but quarterback Tim Tebow did not turn in a stellar outing. Tebow was sacked just once, yet was under siege for much of the game by a strong Wolverine pass rush. Tebow finished 17 of 33 for a season-low 154 yards and three touchdowns and was held to just 57 yards rushing on 16 carries.
The Gators offense seemed totally reliant on sophomore receiver Percy Harvin. Although fellow wideout Andre Caldwell snared a pair of touchdown passes, it was clearly the Harvin show. Harvin recorded 242 total yards, rushing 13 times for 165 yards and a touchdown, and hauling in nine passes for 77 yards and another score. Other than Tebow and Harvin, the other targets on offense touched the ball just 11 times for 101 yards. Entering the game with a nation's best 56 percent conversion rate on third downs, the gators were just 2 of 11 against the Wolverines.
To complete the sub-par showing, the special teams contributed to the Gators' woes. Kicker Joey Ijjas missed a pair of field goals, including a 35-yarder that was blocked midway through the second quarter, a critical mis-fire. On the opening play of the second half, the Gators failed to field a short sky kickoff and the Wolverines recovered on the UF 37-yard line, quickly tallying a touchdown to up their lead to 28-14.
The day started ominously for Florida, which deferred after winning the opening toss, only to have Michigan methodically drive 93 yards in 12 plays to assume a quick 7-0 advantage. The Gators grabbed the lead 14-7 just 12 seconds into the second quarter, but the Wolverines answered right back with Hart tying the score on a 3-yard touchdown run.
"This is very disappointing," said linebacker Brandon Spikes, who recorded a game-high 13 tackles. "I thought we had made some strides throughout the whole year. We came down and had a little adversity and couldn't bounce back. We still have to prove that. (The third downs) were very frustrating. In the games we lost, time in and time out, we've seen people getting third-down conversions. We just couldn't get off the field when a play needed to be made.
"We've just got to attack the things we need to get better."
After the second-half kickoff mistake pushed the Wolverines' advantage to 14 early in the third quarter, the Gators responded and eventually tied the score at 28 on a 14-yard touchdown pass to Caldwell late in the third quarter. Florida then got a huge break when defensive end Jermaine Cunningham tipped a Henne pass and tackle Mike Pouncey grabbed the interception, returning the ball to the Michigan 34. Five plays later, the Gators assumed a 35-31 lead on a Harvin 10-yard scoring run on a reverse with just 5:49 left.
But the Gators could not stand prosperity and the Wolverines needed less than 100 seconds to record the clinching touchdown. After a 37-yard acrobatic catch, Arrington completed his career-best showing with his 18-yard score, beating struggling redshirt freshman cornerback Jacques Rickerson with 4:12 remaining.
The Gators got the ball back twice, but after turning it over on downs, the Wolverines tacked on a field goal before four Tebow incompletions snuffed their last opportunity.
"Right now we are upset about (the loss)," Tebow said. "We just have to work harder and use it as motivation."
a capital setback (meyer eluding to coaching changes)
a capital setback (meyer eluding to coaching changes)
IMO, I think he was talking about changes in the WAY they coached tackling and stuff...not changes in the coaching personel.
Okay, let's try this!
