GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- After struggling to create separation against UGA's secondary, UF's offensive attack racked up 27 catches for 410 yards and produced 21 points in Florida’s 56-0 shutout victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday.
Gators quarterback Kyle Trask torched the opposing secondary, completing 25-of-37 passes for 363 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, along with one touchdown on the ground. Eleven different Gators would help Trask throw for a career-high in passing yards and more than any UF quarterback since Tim Tebow's 482 yards in the 2010 Sugar Bowl.
As expected, tight end Kyle Pitts made his presence known as well, accumulating 59 yards and a touchdown off three catches. However, it was Lamical Perine who put Florida on the scoreboard early in the second quarter. The senior ball carrier had a quiet afternoon altogether, recording just 13 yards on four carries, but kicked things off with a one-yard receiving touchdown as well.
Leading the way on Saturday afternoon was Trevon Grimes, who led all Florida receivers with four catches for 95 yards and a touchdown, with 66 of those yards coming from the first offensive play of the third quarter.
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Grimes credits the unselfishness and work ethic of his fellow wide receiver teammates.
“We’re a brotherhood,” said Grimes. “Nobody really is stingy when it comes to getting the ball. We know we all have a love for each other, so at the end of the day, when someone makes a phenomenal catch, I feel like I made a phenomenal catch. I feel like the biggest thing the receivers have on this team is a bond that can’t be broken.
"It’s such a good feeling to see another receiver do something big because we know how much work he put in. It’s just an honor to have receivers like that on our team.”
The receivers had a rough outing against a solid Georgia secondary, and with the inconsistency in Florida’s run-game, Dan Mullen and the offense went back to the drawing board and made the unit a focal point against Vanderbilt.
“After we had our team meeting last Sunday, Coach Mullen came to us and said we're going to throw the ball around,” Tyrie Cleveland said. “We want to get the ball in our hands and make plays. The whole week of practice was fast tempo, going hard and being very detailed about our routes and assignments.”
Mullen did just that and displayed the depth against the Commodores, which gave the coaches the ability to rotate and keep players fresh throughout the game. That could be a significant reason why the offense has manufactured so much success, along with the guidance of wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales.
“I think what it allows you to do is call plays and understand that we’re not calling plays maybe to get it to this guy or get it to that guy. We call the play and we’ll take what the defense gives us,” Mullen said. “Not just that, as we’re taking what the defense gives us we’re getting to somebody that’s a pretty good player. It’s not like, ok, hey, they’re forcing us to throw it to this guy all week. No, let’s throw it to that guy. We have no problem with that. I also think the leadership of the receiver core and what coach Gonzales has done is unbelievable.
"If you look at those guys and how they celebrate together, I mean, according to this, our leading receiver had four catches on the day. We completed 25 passes; the leading receiver had four. They celebrate with each other. There’s no arguments or fights over series. I go position-by-position and each position probably had eight catches, but they split time and they don’t care.
"Two team captains play the same position, and to be honest with you, I can’t tell you who's started how many games; I never hear about it. All I ever hear from those guys is go out on the field and play hard, play special teams, be a team player, do what’s right. It just shows how unbelievable of leaders they are. I don’t know how many teams have two wide receivers that are captains, that play the same position, and split time and it’s not a complete meltdown. It just shows the leadership of that position and what coach G’s been able to do with them.”
UF needed a confidence boost before journeying up to Columbia for next week's matchup with Missouri, which is aiming for its third consecutive victory against the Gators.
