Takeaways From the Gators' Aggressive Showing in 38-33 Loss to Vols

A backdoor cover and onside kick recovery in the final 17 seconds of the matchup weren't enough for the No. 20 Florida Gators (2-2) to fend off the No. 11 Tennessee Volunteers (4-0) on Saturday night. 

Instead, behind a three-total touchdown showing by quarterback Hendon Hooker, the Vols were able to snap a five-game losing streak to the Gators and defeat Florida, 38-33, for only the second time in the last 18 matchups between the programs.

You can find All Gators' takeaways from UF's second loss of the 2022 season below.

Anthony Richardson played the game of his life. It wasn't enough in the end 

Remove the fact that Florida lost in Week 4 and UF fans would, for the most part, be thrilled with the performance they saw on Saturday night due to the re-emergence of quarterback Anthony Richardson. Following two down weeks in which Richardson tossed four interceptions and no touchdowns, he looked every bit like the promising signal-caller the Gators saw in Week 1 and hyped up entering the season.

Richardson broke his single-game career high in passing yards in the second quarter, surpassing the previous mark of 168 yards on a 38-yard strike to wide receiver Ricky Pearsall that set up UF's second touchdown of the contest. He finished the night with a 24-of-44 passing line for 453 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, adding a team-leading 62 yards and two scores on 17 rushing attempts.

"It feels good just to have fun out there and play football. Just being out there with my brothers, it's fun," Richardson said after his performance. "It's a blessing, and I just gotta take advantage of every opportunity I get. We tried to do that tonight. But overall, it's pretty fun just having time to play football with them."

While Richardson's play over the last two weeks arguably led to Florida's loss to Kentucky and prevented UF from separating against USF, it was ultimately what kept the Gators in this game. It was even more impressive to see Richardson accomplish his passing feats in a hostile road environment as his underwhelming beginning to the game was compiled across three bouts at home.

Richardson credited extra time spent preparing for the matchup with the Gators' wide receivers over the last week for his improved showing. Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall admitted to starting a group chat between Richardson and the pass-catchers which led to more collaborative prep while breaking down film of Tennessee.

"I think that’s really important to get on the same page," Pearsall said postgame. "I think that prior games sometimes, like, it wasn’t working out because we weren’t on the same page, so I think that was really important for us to go back and watch film and understand what he saw compared to what I saw and just go get it.”

Billy Napier got aggressive on fourth downs

Florida's head coach's old adage of "scared money don't make money" was put to the test against the Vols, and while the Gators' didn't make enough proverbial money to win the game, the approach proved to be a sound one that helped keep UF in the contest.

Florida went for it on fourth down a whopping six times against Tennessee, topping Napier's previous high of five fourth down attempts in a game that he set several times at Louisiana. The reasoning was to combat the explosiveness and tempo of Tennessee's offense, a unit that has scored 34 or more points in seven consecutive games dating back to last season.

UF converted on five of its fourth down attempts.

“I think it was required given the matchups and dynamics in the game,"Napier shared. "For the most part, it paid off.”

It became clear immediately that Napier intended to be aggressive against the Vols in such situations as the Gators went for it on fourth down twice on the first series. The first attempt converted on a one-yard rush from Richardson, but the second one was stopped short on a similar playcall within the redzone.

On their next drive, the Gators went for it again on fourth down from their own 45-yard line. Richardson found tight end Dante Zanders for an 11-yard gain, and on the next play, Richardson connected with tight end Keon Zipperer for a 44-yard score.

Richardson converted UF's next two fourth down attempts in the third quarter, the two passes going for a combined 46 yards when the team needed just two yards both times. Montrell Johnson scored a five-yard rushing touchdown on UF's final fourth down try of the game, on 4th and 2 in the fourth quarter.

"[Napier] told me before the game that we were going to be aggressive, you know, because their offense is explosive," Richardson explained. "Their tempo is unmatched. So, our game plan was to keep the ball out of their hands as long as we could."

Florida's run defense is its weak spot

Florida has allowed an average of 203.25 rushing yards per game through the first four weeks of the season. Saturday marked the third time the Gators have allowed an opponent to clear 200 yards on the ground in a game this season with the Vols reaching 227.

Hooker led UT on the ground with 112 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts, while Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright each added a score. 

Small was a decently efficient ball-carrier at 4.7 yards per carry on 19 attempts, although 39 of his yards came on one third quarter rush on a drive that ended in Tennessee's third touchdown of the matchup and stretched the Vols' lead to 10 points. It was one of Tennessee's seven rushes of 10 or more yards on the night. 

“When we evaluate the tape, like I mentioned earlier, there’s going to be things we can do better in all three areas of our team - players, coaches, in-game decision-making, fundamentals, communication," Napier said, asked about the Gators' run defense. 

"That’s where we’re at. That’s exactly where we’re at as a football. We need more repetitions and we need to stay the course. I’m confident in our process and I’m confident in this group and their attitude toward the work - and I know they’ll respond the right way.”

Napier certainly has a point about the need for reps, as 12 non-starters contributed to the team's run defense on Saturday night, with every defender accounting for at least four run play snaps. The coaching staff has made a concerted approach to develop inexperienced with in-game reps and that plan didn't change vs. Tennessee, nor is it likely change moving forward.

Hendon Hooker is a star

Tennessee is a legitimate threat in the SEC this year, and a big reason why is because the Volunteers have a legitimate quarterback in Hooker who can elevate the team in big moments.

In addition to his box score stats laid out above, through the air and on the ground, Hooker simply played winning football from the first through final whistle. He never threw more than two incomplete passes in a row, had four stretches of three or more completions in a row (with a high of eight in a row), and provided the legs on five of Tennessee's seven rushes of 10+ yards.

Hooker's ability to extend passing plays with his legs and tuck the ball to run gave the Gators fits throughout the evening.

“He’s just a good player and I think one of the things that makes him really unique is his ability to rush the ball and his ability to scramble, extend and escape," Napier explained. "We had him dead to right a bunch tonight and the guy’s a good player. I think we had our opportunities.”

There were debates regarding the second best passer in the SEC entering the 2022 season behind Alabama's Bryce Young. Through four games, Hooker has certainly made his case as not only worthy of his second-team Preseason All-SEC honor, but perhaps in hindsight he should have been considered for the first-team.

Redzone results made the difference

In a high-scoring affair, efficiency matters. Tennessee was more efficient than Florida where it mattered most on Saturday night.

The Gators went 4-of-6 in the redzone but its two failed attempts resulted in a turnover on downs and a fumble that Tennessee recovered. The Vols, meanwhile, went a perfect 6-of-6 in the redzone, scoring all of their 38 points from inside of UF's 20-yard line — five touchdowns and a field goal.

Even two field goals at the end of Florida's unsuccessful redzone series would have changed the result of the game in the Gators' favor. Those drives ended with a negative two-yard rush by Richardson on 4th and 2 at the 20-yard line in the first quarter and a fumble by Richardson on a rush for no gain at the 13-yard line in the early fourth quarter.

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