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Tim Tebow and Gators will travel to Columbia to renew their budding rivalry with the Gamecocks. Although the Florida leads the all-time series 20-4-3<ref name="History of Opponents">{{cite web|url=http://gatorzone.com/football/history/opponents.pdf|title=History of Opponents|publisher=GatorZone.com|date=2007-08-10|accessdate=2007-08-10}}</ref>, the annual contest has become much more intense since [[Heisman Trophy]]-winning ex-Gator quarterback and championship-winning ex-Gator head coach [[Steve Spurrier]] took the reins at South Carolina for the 2005 season. Spurrier's new team upset his old team in 2005, and only a blocked last-second field goal kept him from repeating that feat in Gainesville last season.
Florida will travel to Columbia to renew their budding rivalry with the Gamecocks. Although the Florida leads the all-time series 20-4-3<ref name="History of Opponents">{{cite web|url=http://gatorzone.com/football/history/opponents.pdf|title=History of Opponents|publisher=GatorZone.com|date=2007-08-10|accessdate=2007-08-10}}</ref>, the annual contest has become much more intense since [[Heisman Trophy]]-winning ex-Gator quarterback and championship-winning ex-Gator head coach [[Steve Spurrier]] took the reins at South Carolina for the 2005 season. Spurrier's new team upset his old team in 2005, and only a blocked last-second field goal kept him from repeating that feat in Gainesville last season.


{{seealso|2007 South Carolina Gamecocks football team}}
{{seealso|2007 South Carolina Gamecocks football team}}

Revision as of 12:41, 5 November 2007

{{{year}}} [[{{{team}}} football]]
Ranking
BCSNo. 15
CoachesNo. 18
APNo. 17

The 2007 Florida Gators football team will represent the University of Florida in the 2007 college football season. This is the team's third season under head coach Urban Meyer. They will play their home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida.

Previous season

The Gators won the BCS Championship Game in Glendale, Arizona to cap off the 2006 season, the second national championship in school history. In addition, they won a school-record 13 games and the school's seventh official SEC title.

Pre-season

Two highly-rated recruiting classes from 2006 and 2007 are expected to fill up most of the depth chart, as few upperclassmen remain from last year's title team. Nine of 11 starters have to be replaced from their championship defense. While the offense lost fewer starters—only 6—from last season, the Gators will have to replace their former leader, Chris Leak, at quarterback. Leak will most likely be replaced by sophomore Tim Tebow, who shared quarterback duties with him last season but has zero career starts.

The coaching staff remained, surprisingly, intact after 2006, which gives Meyer a third straight season at Florida with the same coaching staff.

The schedule for the Gators plays in their favor this season, as they face their toughest opponents—such as Tennessee, Auburn, and Florida State—at home in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

Despite the challenges of youth, the Gators are ranked in the top 5 in some preseason polls.[1]

Pre-season All-SEC honors

2007 All-SEC First Team[1]
2007 All-SEC Second Team[1]
2007 All-SEC Third Team[1]

Pre-season watchlists

Schedule

September 1, 200712:30 PMWestern Kentucky*No. 3

LFSW 49-3 September 8, 20076:00 PMTroy*No. 3

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

PPVW 59-31 September 15, 20073:30 PMNo. 24 TennesseeNo. 3

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

CBSW 59-20 September 22, 200712:30 PMat Ole MissNo. 3

LFSW 30-24 September 29, 20078:00 PMAuburnNo. 3

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

ESPNL 20-17 October 6, 20078:00 PMat No. 2 LSUNo. 7

CBSL 28-24 October 20, 20073:30 PMat No. 13 KentuckyNo. 14

CBSW 45-37 October 27, 20073:30 PMvs. No. 19 GeorgiaNo. 11

CBSL 42-30 November 3, 200712:30 PMVanderbiltdaggerNo. 17

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

LFSW 49-22 November 10, 20077:45 PMat South CarolinaNo. 18

ESPN November 17, 200712:00 PMFlorida Atlantic*

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

PPV November 24, 20075:00 PMFlorida State*

  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL

CBS

Template:CFB Schedule End

Game notes

Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 0 3 0 0 3
Gators 14 14 7 14 49

For the season opener, the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers filled the void left by Central Florida, who had decided to back out of the game in December of 2006. This was the first contest between these two schools. It was also the first game in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium after the Gators won their 2006 SEC and national championships.

Sophomore quarterback Tim Tebow led the Gators to touchdowns on their first four possessions en route to a relatively easy 49-3 victory in intense early season heat. Tebow finished his first career start 13-of-17 for 300 yards and three touchdowns passes, and added a rushing touchdown as well. True freshman quarterback Cameron Newton entered the game in the fourth quarter and rushed for a touchdown on the last play before lightning in the area caused an hour-long delay. When the weather failed to clear, the game was declared final with 8:23 remaining in the 4th quarter.

Troy

1 2 3 4 Total
Trojans 7 0 17 7 31
Gators 21 28 0 10 59

It was a tale of two halves. In the first, the Gator offense led by QB Tim Tebow was literally unstoppable, scoring a touchdown every time they had the ball against the Troy Trojans. The special teams chipped in with two blocked punts, and, after allowing an early touchdown, the young Gator defense shut out their opponents for the rest of the half. The score stood at 49-7 after two quarters, the Gators having racked up over 350 yards of total offense, Tebow throwing 3 touchdown passes and running for another score in an impressive display of all-around dominating football.

After halftime, though, things changed in The Swamp. Florida received the second half kickoff and fumbled a few plays later, leading to a Troy touchdown. That sequence would set the tone for the rest of the game. The Gators seemed to lose their offensive rhythm and the point production dried up while Troy QB Omar Haugabook (30-53, 291 yards, 2 TDs) found his own rhythm, helping the Trojans outscore the Gators 24-10 over the final two quarters.

When the final whistle blew, Florida came away with a 59-31 victory. The outcome was never in doubt; the Gators 2nd half lead was always greater than 20 points. And their final stats looked impressive - they outgained the Trojans 500 to 336 and averaged 7 yards per offensive play. Tebow's numbers were solid as well; he completed 18 of 25 passes for 236 yards and 3 TDs (with no INTs) and rushed 19 times for a team-high 93 yards and 2 more TDs. In fact, his play earned Tebow honors as the Southeastern Conference offensive player of the week.[5]

However, the second half lapses and miscues (Florida was hit with 11 penalties for 104 yards) made it obvious that the Gators gridders had plenty to work on as they prepared for their SEC opener against the Tennessee Volunteers the following Saturday.

Notes: The Gators' second game of the season was also the first meeting with its opponent. This was the second of three such games in the 2007 season.

See also: Troy Trojans

Tennessee

1 2 3 4 Total
Volunteers 3 10 7 0 20
Gators 14 14 7 24 59
Tim Tebow runs the spread option offense vs the Tennessee Volunteers, Sept. 17, 2007.

On the 1st possession of the game in the steamy Swamp, the Tennessee Volunteers went three and out. On the ensuing punt, Brandon James took the return 83 yards for Gator touchdown. Things never did get much better for the visitors, as Florida rolled to an impressive 59-20 victory in the SEC opener for both teams.

There was, however, a brief period when it seemed that the contest would be much closer. The Gators ran out to a 28-6 lead by late in the 2nd quarter on two Tim Tebow touchdown passes and a Tebow touchdown run, along with the opening punt return. But then Tennessee QB Erik Ainge got his team's offense moving, throwing a touchdown pass just before halftime to cut the lead to 28-13 at intermission.

The Gators mounted a long drive to start the second half, but freshman Volunteer cornerback Eric Berry picked off a Tim Tebow pass (his first interception thrown in 2007) and returned it 93 yards for a another Tennessee touchdown. When Florida's next drive ended in a punt, UT had the ball down only eight, 28-20.

But on the first play of the possession, Erik Ainge's handoff to running back Arian Foster was mishandled, and Gator linebacker Dustin Doe scooped up the loose ball and took it into the endzone for a Florida touchdown. Tennessee's momentum was washed away by the roar of 90,000 Gator fans, and the home team never looked back. Florida would end the game with 31 straight points, turning a close contest into a runaway.

Several Gators had excellent afternoons. Tim Tebow finished 14-19 passing for 299 yards with 2 TDs and 1 INT and rushed for 62 yards and 2 more TDs, and was awarded as the Walter Camp Foundation national offensive player of the week. Brandon James was the SEC special teams player of the week for his 193 yards and a touchdown on kick returns[6]. And receiver Percy Harvin excelled as well, leading all players in rushing (9 attempts for 75 yards and 1 TD) and receiving (4 catches for 120 yards).

The Florida offense rolled up 556 yards of total offense, 255 on the ground. Meanwhile, the Gator defense also did its part, holding Tennessee to just 38 yards rushing with no first downs on the ground and 293 yards total offense.[7]

Overall, the Gators put together a historically dominating performance. Their 59 points scored was the second-highest total in the history of the series (behind only UF's 62 in the 1995 contest), and the 39 point margin of defeat was the Vols' most lopsided loss to any opponent since 1981.[8] Tennessee still leads the overall series by a narrow 19-18 margin.[9]

See also: 2007 Tennessee Volunteers football team

Ole Miss

1 2 3 4 Total
Gators 0 14 13 3 30
Rebels 3 3 18 0 24

The 2007 Florida Gators finally looked like the inexperienced squad that they are during their contest against the Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford, Mississippi.[10] [11] Thirty-five players on Florida's 60-man traveling roster had never played in a collegiate road game before[12], and it showed. But as the clock in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium ticked down to 00:00, the Gators had done enough to earn a tighter-than-expected 30-24 victory.

At different points in the game, the young Gators struggled on offense, defense, and special teams. They also committed 14 penalties for 127 yards, with several of the miscues either stalling Gator drives or helping the Rebel's scoring chances.

But once again, it was Tim Tebow who led Florida's charge to victory. The sophomore quarterback completed 20 of 34 passes for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. Once again, his favorite target was Percy Harvin, who had 11 receptions for 123 yards and a TD. Tebow also rushed 27 times for 168 yards and 2 more touchdowns, setting new Florida single-game records for rushing attempts and rushing yards by a quarterback and almost single-handedly running out the clock late in the game. In all, Tebow accounted for all 4 Gator touchdowns and 427 of his team's 507 total yards.[13] For his efforts, Tebow was named the SEC's offensive player of the week for the 2nd time in the 2007 season.[14]

The Rebels put up a valiant effort. Despite a sore shoulder, Ole Miss quarterback Seth Adams threw for 301 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a perfectly tossed 77-yard scoring strike that cut the Gator advantage to 3 late in the 3rd quarter.

Mississippi's lead in the all-time series was reduced to 11-10-1.[9] The Gator victory broke both a two-game losing streak to the Rebels and a three-game losing streak in games played in the state of Mississippi.

See also: Ole Miss Rebels

Auburn

1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 7 7 3 3 20
Gators 0 0 3 14 17

The Gators were seeking revenge for last seasons's only loss (a 27-17 setback at Auburn) when the Tigers visited The Swamp. The Gator defense proved unreliable in the first half, allowing the Tigers to get two touchdowns, while Auburn exhibited its own top notch defense. While the Gators were able to mount a comeback in the second half, eventually bringing the game to a 17-17 tie, Auburn had the ball at the end of the game, and Auburn kicked a field goal as time expired to make the score 20-17, upsetting the number 4 ranked Gators. This loss was coach Urban Meyer's first in Gainesville, as well as his first loss since last year's loss to Auburn. This was the 82nd meeting between the two teams, with the Tigers bringing their record in the UF-Auburn series to 42-38-2 all-time. [9]

See also: 2007 Auburn Tigers football team

LSU

1 2 3 4 Total
Gators 3 14 7 0 24
Tigers 0 7 7 14 28

In one of the most anticipated games of the season, the Florida Gators traveled to Tiger Stadium to take on the LSU Tigers in a game that had conference and national title implications.

The Gators took an early lead by kicking a field goal on their first drive. Two drives later, the Gators mounted a 12-play drive that culminated in a Tim Tebow two-yard pass to Kestahn Moore to put the Gators up by ten. LSU immediately countered with a long drive of their own, going 80 yards in 16 plays, scoring on a Ryan Perrilloux option play to cut the Gator lead to 10-7. The Gators marched down the field again and scored on a Tebow run to put their lead back at 10 with 2:23 to play in the first half. LSU moved the ball right before the half, but kicker Colt David missed a 43-yard field goal.

In the second half, LSU took the ensuing drive but were stopped by the Gator defense. Appearing to kick another long field goal, LSU instead ran a brilliant fake with the holder—quarterback Matt Flynn—who scooted eight yards for the first down. The Tigers scored on a Keiland Williams run shortly thereafter.

The Gators answered the LSU drive with a quick 3-play drive to score on a 37-yard Tebow pass to Cornelius Ingram. Craig Steltz missed an assignment on the play which left Ingram wide open on the post pattern. Florida started the fourth quarter with a 24-14 lead.

However, the Tigers were not to be denied. After missing another relatively short field goal, LSU took advantage of an errant pass by Tim Tebow which hit Ingram in the helmet. The Tigers drove down the field, and Flynn hit Demetrius Byrd for a 3 yard touchdown to cut the Gator lead to 3.

On the final LSU drive, the Tigers convered several fourth down plays, including one by runningback Jacob Hester where he made a great second effort to surge ahead to just get the first down. Hester scored a short touchdown with 1:06 to play in the game, giving the Tigers a 28-24 lead.

On the final drive, Florida gained 30 yards, but his hail mary pass as time expired was batted down by Chad Jones. It was a great game, but the Gators fell to a better LSU team.

Much of the hype during game week concerned the fate of starting safety and captain, Tony Joiner, who was arrested earlier in the week for what was later termed a "misunderstanding." The owner of the towing company where Joiner was arrested was quoted as having received over 200 calls from Florida fans, several of them death threats to him and his family.[15] Joiner played but did not start the game.

The loss cut Florida's lead in the budding rivarly to 28-23-3.[9]

See also: 2007 LSU Tigers football team

Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total
Gators 14 7 10 14 45
Wildcats 7 3 14 13 37

The Gators traveled to Lexington to take on the Kentucky Wildcats for the 57th time. In a rare reversal, Kentucky was ranked in the top 10 with the Gators on the outside looking in. The Gators still entered the game as 7-point favorites.

Kentucky opened the scoring on an Andre' Woodson 33-yard pass to Dicky Lyons to take an early 7-0 lead. Florida answered on on consecutive drives with a 10-yard Tim Tebow pass to Cornelius Ingram and a Tebow to Louis Murphy 66-yard pass to put the Gators up by a touchdown. Kentucky cut the lead to four on a field goal. The Gators countered by mounting a drive before the half that culminated in a Tebow 1-yard "jump pass" to Aaron Hernandez.

The second half began with another Gator score, as Tebow found Andre Caldwell in the end zone on an 8-yard pass. This stretched the Gator lead to 18, their largest of the day. Woodson hit Jacob Tamme on a 28-yard pass to pull the Wildcats within 11. Florida added a field goal to build their lead to 14 midway through the third quarter. Woodson then found Lyons again on a 50-yard catch and run. Again the Gators responded, mounting a 6-minute drive that spanned the third and fourth quarters, culminating in a Percy Harvin 24-yard touchdown run. Both teams traded punts before Woodson found Lyons for the third time on the day on an 6-yard TD pass.

With 3:28 left in the game, Kentucky opted to kick off instead of onside kick. The Gators rolled the dice after getting a first down, as Tebow threw a 40-yard pass to Harvin to get the Gators in the red zone. Tebow closed the drive with a touchdown score on the ground to put the game away.

Kentucky refused to give up, driving to the Florida 5-yard-line with seconds left and closed the game with a touchdown from Woodson to Keenan Burton. With the game already decided, the PAT was not tried and the Gators walked away with a 45-37 victory.

With the win and Tennessee's loss to Alabama, the Gators once again control their destiny in the SEC Eastern Division.

With the victory, Florida leads the series 40-17-0 and has beaten Kentucky twenty one consecutive years in football, the third longest active streak in Division I-FBS.[9]

See also: Kentucky Wildcats

Georgia

1 2 3 4 Total
Bulldogs 14 7 7 14 42
Gators 7 10 7 6 30

The 2007 World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party saw the emergence of Knowshon Moreno, the Bulldog's redshirt freshman, with 188 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. Florida's Tim Tebow was limited in the game due to a bruised shoulder and Kestahn Moore suffered from a fumble and missed snap. The game began with a Moore's fumble which led to a Georgia touchdown. The entire Bulldog bench rushed on to the field resulting in a 30 yard penalty on the ensuing kick off. The Gators rallied back with a quick touchdown but were never able to take the lead. A late Georgia touchdown sealed the victory for the Bulldogs. This was the 85th meeting between the two teams. The Bulldogs hold a 46-37-2 series lead, though they have only won 3 out of the past 18 contests.[9]

See also: 2007 Georgia Bulldogs football team

Vanderbilt

1 2 3 4 Total
Commodores 0 7 3 12 22
Gators 14 21 7 7 49

The Commodores will travel to Gainesville for the first time since 2005 where they nearly came away with a win in overtime. This will be the 41st meeting between the two and Florida leads with a lopsided 29-9-2 record.[9]

See also: Vanderbilt Commodores football

South Carolina

1 2 3 4 Total
Gators 0
Gamecocks 0

Florida will travel to Columbia to renew their budding rivalry with the Gamecocks. Although the Florida leads the all-time series 20-4-3[9], the annual contest has become much more intense since Heisman Trophy-winning ex-Gator quarterback and championship-winning ex-Gator head coach Steve Spurrier took the reins at South Carolina for the 2005 season. Spurrier's new team upset his old team in 2005, and only a blocked last-second field goal kept him from repeating that feat in Gainesville last season.

See also: 2007 South Carolina Gamecocks football team

Florida Atlantic

1 2 3 4 Total
Owls 0
Gators 0

The FAU Owls will travel to Gainesville for the first meeting between the two teams. This marks the third game of the season where the Gators have faced an opponent for the first time.

See also: 2007 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

Florida State

1 2 3 4 Total
Seminoles 0
Gators 0

Senior day for the Gators sees them close their regular season schedule against their in-state rivals, the Seminoles. The Gators own a 3-game winning streak against FSU, including a 21-14 victory in Tallahassee last season. Florida leads the all-time series 30-19-2.[9]

See also: 2007 Florida State Seminoles football team

Personnel

Depth Chart

Template:2007 Florida Gators depth chart

Pre-season Unofficial Depth Chart: http://www.gatorcountry.com/page/gator_football_depth_chart/

Roster

Template:2007 Florida Gators roster

Coaching Staff

References

  1. ^ a b c "2007 Pre-season All-SEC honors". SECsports.com. 2007-07-19. Retrieved 2007-08-11.
  2. ^ a b c "2007 Maxwell Award Watch List". CollegeFootballPoll.com. 2007-07-23. Retrieved 2007-08-11. Cite error: The named reference "maxwell watchlist" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ http://www.allstatesugarbowl.com/manning.php?content=manning&section=manning
  4. ^ "2007 Bednarik Award Watch List". CollegeFootballPoll.com. 2007-07-23. Retrieved 2007-08-11.
  5. ^ http://www.secsports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=2&url_article_id=9505&change_well_id=2
  6. ^ http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/colleges/uf/story/241529.html
  7. ^ http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/boxscore;_ylt=AiAc2iWdSMn9BeKRE6cSIbnyvbYF?gid=200709150067
  8. ^ http://www.volstothewall.net/vttw/VolsAllTime.html
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i "History of Opponents" (PDF). GatorZone.com. 2007-08-10. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  10. ^ http://www.miamiherald.com/605/story/247460.html
  11. ^ http://www.gatorcountry.com/football/article/gators_escape_with_a_win_in_oxford/2331
  12. ^ http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20070922/NEWS/70922012/1016
  13. ^ http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20070922/NEWS/70922015/1090
  14. ^ http://secsports.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=2&url_article_id=9587&change_well_id=2
  15. ^ "Owner in Joiner case threatened by fans". ESPN.com. 2007-10-07. Retrieved 2007-10-07.

See also

Template:FloridaFootballSeasons

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