Gators Struggle in 24-11 Loss to Utah in Season Opener

The Florida Gators suffered the loss in their first college football game of the season against the No. 14 Utah Utes 24-11. The visiting Gators had their struggles for the majority of the game Thursday and could not capitalize on opportunities.

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Gators Poor Start

Florida started out with the ball, but the drive ended on three plays. Despite a third and short, a penalty halted momentum on the drive, and it was just the start of penalty struggles. Florida went on to commit nine penalties on the night.

The Gators punted as a result, and it took just one play for Utah to score. Utah quarterback Bryson Barnes connected with wideout Money Parks for a 70-yard touchdown for the quick 7-0 lead.

The next drive, Florida went three-and-out again, but the Gators defense forced Utah to punt after seven plays.

The Gators put together their best drive of the first half, but it resulted in just a field goal. It was a seven-play, 65-yard drive that got the Gators down to the Utes’ 15-yard line. Graham Mertz completed two big throws to Marcus Burke and Montrell Johnson to get into the red zone. One play later, he took a sack that pushed the team back eight yards. Mertz was sacked five times on the night by the Utes.

Florida forced a three-and-out on Utah’s next possession and drove into the red zone again. However, two penalties by the Florida offense forced them to attempt another field goal. Kicker Adam Mihalek had the chance to cut the deficit to 7-6, but he missed the field goal from 31 yards out.

This would prove to be a disaster for Florida, as Utah put together an 80-yard touchdown drive to go up 14-3. Utah added a field goal with just under three minutes left in the first half, taking a 17-3 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Struggles Continue Into Second Half

The Utes got the ball to start the second half, but the Gators defense quickly forced a punt. The Gators faced a 3rd-and-6 at their own 11, but Mertz threw an interception that went off the hands of wide receiver Ricky Pearsall. The turnover gave the Utes a prime opportunity to score, and they capitalized. Barnes scored from five yards out to extend the Utah lead to 24-3.

Florida had to come back quickly and the next drive looked promising with the team at Utah’s 13-yard line. However, the Gators committed an illegal formation penalty that completely took away any momentum from the drive and turned the ball over on downs just two plays later.

The defense forced Utah to punt again after three plays, but Florida turned the ball over on downs for the second straight drive. With 9:22 left in the fourth quarter, the Gators scored their first touchdown of the season. Mertz completed a pass to wideout Caleb Douglas for 19 yards for the score. Douglas made phenomenal catch to reach over the Utah defender for the touchdown. Florida converted the two-point conversion to make it a 24-11 game, but time was not on its side.

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Utah shaved over three minutes off the clock on its next drive but missed a field.

Mertz then quickly completed two passes to Douglas and receiver Eugene Wilson III to get into Utah territory. Though, a massive holding penalty on Florida stalled the drive. Despite that, Mertz completed a pass to Douglas to convert on fourth down. Florida faced a third down just outside the red zone with two minutes left in the game, but Mertz was sacked. A failed conversion on fourth down ended any hopes of a comeback for the Gators.

Expectations Heading Into Next Week

The Gators made multiple offensive mistakes throughout the game. The costly penalties, sacks and the interception on Florida’s first drive of the second half hurt the Gators. The defense started out poorly, giving up the 70-yard touchdown pass on Utah’s first play from scrimmage, but improved as the game progressed.

Mertz played a rather solid game, completing just over 70% of his passes for 333 yards with a touchdown. The interception proved to be costly, but Mertz recorded his most passing yards in a game of his collegiate career.

The rushing game was a different story. The Gators gained only 17 yards on 19 carries and Florida’s running backs produced just 34 yards on 11 carries. Last season, the Gators averaged just over 200 yards per game on the ground. The Utes forced Mertz to throw, and the Gators had no answers to a strong Utah defense.

Florida hopes to bounce back in its home opener against McNeese State Sept. 9 at 7:30 p.m.