It seemed as if Tennessee was in complete control of the Florida game. Then, things changed.
The Vols had to overcome a recovered onside kick and a Hail Mary attempt to beat the Gators 38-33 on Saturday after leading by 38-21 with just under eight minutes remaining in the football game. Case closed, right? No, the Gators were chomping at the bit to get back in the game. And they did.
“We let out a big sigh of relief after the game,” Tennessee receiver Bru McCoy said.
Florida tried its best to pull off a memorable upset that was cut short by a Kamal Hadden’s interception on the final play of the game. The pass didn’t even make it to the end zone. Why? The Vols weren’t about to sit back and let Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson, with his strong arm, to survey the field while his receivers sprinted towards the end zone.
“Yeah, make a play,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said when asked about Tennessee’s mindset on Florida’s final, desperate attempt to flip the script on the Vols. “We did not want them to sit back there and pat it all day long and find a way to get off the football field and come away with a win.”
Nevertheless, it shouldn’t have come to that. Allowing Florida to recover an onside kick just before its final drive didn’t sit too well with Heupel.
“Obviously, the hands team has to find a way to come up with that one on the second attempt and there are some things we could do better,” Heupel said. “Clock management could change that too.”
Still, the Vols did win, even thought it may have not had a pretty conclusion.
“As long as we got the dub in the win column, I’m happy,” Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker said. “I’m happy Kamal made a great play. I’m happy the defensive line got the pressure on the quarterback and we got the win.”
After losing to the Gators six consecutive times, most everyone donned in orange should be happy.
