Graham Mertz threw for 179 yards and a touchdown while Florida’s defense stifled one of the FBS’ top running games in a 24-13 nonconference win over Central Florida on Saturday night in Gainesville, Fla.
In improving to 3-2, the Gators limited the Knights (3-2) to 108 yards on 40 carries, over 200 yards less than their per-game average entering Saturday (326.0). Florida held top UCF rusher RJ Harvey to 75 yards on 16 attempts.
Mertz completed 19 of 23 passes and directed an offense that was more efficient than flashy. The Gators finished with a modest 359 yards but played a turnover-free game and converted all four of their chances in the red zone.
All of Florida’s points came in the first half, as it established a 24-3 advantage by the break. It initiated the scoring at the 7:02 mark of the first quarter when Mertz found Elijhah Badger for a 13-yard TD, capping a game-opening 15-play, 75-yard drive.
Grant Reddick converted a 27-yard field goal on UCF’s opening possession, but that was it for the Knights until the second half. Meanwhile, the Gators ripped off 17 unanswered points to establish an insurmountable advantage.
Ja’Kobi Jackson scored on a 1-yard run with 12:50 left in the first half, cashing in on a short field of 43 yards. Montrell Johnson Jr. upped the advantage to 21-3 with a 3-yard scoring run with 1:50 remaining, and Trey Smack made it a three-touchdown cushion at intermission with a 28-yard field goal.
Reddick nailed a 37-yard field goal on the Knights’ first possession of the third quarter, capping a drive that lasted nearly 8 1/2 minutes. But the visitors’ only touchdown came on Harvey’s 13-yard run with 7:50 left in the game.
UCF quarterback KJ Jefferson, an Arkansas transfer, completed 12 of 22 pass attempts for 165 yards and an interception. He played under constant duress, absorbing five sacks that cost his team 37 yards.
–Field Level Media
