GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Booed as he left the Swamp three weeks ago, Florida coach Billy Napier got a much different send-off Saturday night. A rousing ovation.
Graham Mertz threw a touchdown pass, Montrell Johnson ran for a score and Florida used a stout defensive effort to beat UCF 24-13 on Saturday night and give Napier consecutive wins for the first time in nearly a year. “It’s evident that we took a step in the right direction on defense," Napier said. After spending much of their bye week trying to find more consistency on that side of the ball, the Gators (3-2) held the Knights to 108 yards on the ground — the third-lowest rushing total during coach Gus Malzahn's four seasons — and notched five sacks.
It led to the second disappointment in two weeks for the Knights (3-2), who were coming off a 48-21 loss to Colorado. UCF dug itself an early hole when Malzahn went for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 43 early in the second quarter. Quarterback KJ Jefferson was stopped for no gain, and the Gators took over in plus territory.
Florida scored three plays later to take a double-digit lead, 14-3. Johnson made it 21-3 with a 3-yard leap, and Trey Smack's short field goal put the Gators up 24-3 at halftime. UCF played considerably better in the second half and had chances down the stretch, but third-down struggles ended any chance the Knights had of rallying.
Mertz completed 19 of 23 passes for 179 yards, including a 13-yarder to Elijhah Badger for a score. Highly tout.
