Unranked Ole Miss deals UF its second straight Swamp loss.
By ANTONYA ENGLISH
Published October 5, 2003
GAINESVILLE - Eight plays, 50 yards, four minutes and two seconds.
When Florida fans recall the increasingly frustrating 2003 season, that might be the lingering memory. At the very least, it defined Saturday's game against unranked Mississippi. Ole Miss drove half of the field during the final minutes then scored on a 1-yard run to give it a 20-17 come-from-behind win at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. It was the Rebels' second straight victory against the Gators and the first time since 1948 they have beaten them in two straight seasons. Ole Miss also was the last unranked team to beat the Gators in Gainesville, winning 24-19 on Sept. 9, 1989.
"I'm just in shock right now," senior offensive tackle Shannon Snell said.
For good reason.
Florida has lost two straight home games for the first time since the last one in 1988, 16-0 to Auburn, and the 1989 loss to Ole Miss. It also has lost three of its past five home SEC games.
The Gators are 3-3, 1-2 in the SEC and face the toughest part of their schedule, road games against LSU and Arkansas and against Georgia in Jacksonville. All are ranked in the Top 11. They also are still searching for answers for an offense that shines at times but sputters more often, hurting a defense that has worn down late in games. The Gators had the ball for just 11:36 and 26 plays during the second half.
"I think we put the defense out there too many times and in too many (bad) situations," Florida coach Ron Zook said. "Offensively, we have to get a rhythm going and keep the defense off the field. You can't go out there and turn the ball over and put them in that situation."
Which is exactly what the Gators did.
Clinging to a 17-13 lead, the offense fell apart during the fourth. Against the nation's worst passing defense, freshman Chris Leak went 0-for-6 and threw three interceptions. After going 12-of-17 for 183 yards during the first half, Leak was 2-of-10 during the second half.
"I think any time you play a young guy like that, things are going to happen," said Zook, 11-8 as Gators coach. "We've tried to make the offense quarterback friendly for him. It's as simple as can be. On the same token, you have to be able to do things as well. He didn't come out and play the way he needed to in the second half."
Florida's only other fourth-quarter possession ended after three plays and minus-2 yards.
After that possession, Ole Miss took over. It marched down the field, capping the winning drive with Vashon Pearson's 1-yard run.
"It was just a lack of execution," cornerback Johnny Lamar said. "Was there fatigue? Probably so. We've got a lot of young guys out there. And ... once players get tired, you can lose focus. But it's up to us to bear down and do what we need to do."
Florida's final drive began with 59 seconds left and ended with Leak's third interception.
"We have to go out and forget about the past," Leak said. "These are the times that you get better. Once you get through these, you'll get better." Mississippi (3-2, 2-0), which entered the game with the league's second-best run defense, held the Gators to 142 yards on the ground. It had eight tackles for loss, compared with one for the Gators.
Florida had its chances. Ole Miss fumbled three times (losing one), threw one interception and committed 10 penalties. The Rebels had a chance to tie the score late in the third, but Mike Espy fumbled on the 4 and Cory Bailey recovered.
"We did some things to shoot ourselves in the foot," Ole Miss coach David Cutcliffe said. "We were fortunate at the end of the game because people made plays."
Down 3-0, Florida responded with an 18-yard touchdown from Leak to Ben Troupe with 5:57 left in the first quarter. Troupe caught four passes for 63 yards during the first half, none during the second half.
Florida led 14-3 after Leak hit O.J. Small for a 5-yard touchdown during the second quarter. But Ole Miss responded with Ronald McClendon's 52-yard touchdown run. Matt Leach's 36-yard field goal with 1:05 left in the first half was the Gators' final score. Running back Ran Carthon had a career day, rushing for 108 yards.
"This hurts," he said. "Nobody expected us to lose this game."
