NCAAF

Florida Gators at Texas Longhorns

· NCAA - Football
4-5, 1-2 Away
Final
17 - 49
8-1, 5-1 Home

Ewers' 5 TD passes lead No. 5 Texas in 49-17 rout of struggling Florida

Highlight: Ewers' career-high five TDs power No. 5 Texas past UF

Ewers connected on open passes to Matthew Golden and Gunnar Helm for touchdowns in the first quarter. Quintrevion Wisner took a screen pass 50 yards for a score before Ewers connected with Golden again for a 32-yard strike in the second.

Texas (8-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference, No. 5 CFP ) led 35-0 at halftime.

Coach Steve Sarkisian had said the Longhorns had been struggling to find their rhythm offensively in recent weeks, but they dialed up big play after big play against the Gators. Texas had 12 plays of more than 20 yards.

“The explosiveness of the offense showed back up today,” Sarkisian said.

Wide receiver Isaiah Bond returned to the lineup after missing a game with an ankle injury and had a 44-yard run on a misdirection play and a 34-yard touchdown off a screen pass.

“We want people to feel our speed. We want people to fear our speed,” Sarkisian said.

Ewers' easy day could have been even bigger if not for a couple of deep throws dropped by receivers. He was replaced by Arch Manning in the third quarter after his fifth touchdown pass.

The five TDs were a career high for Ewers and one shy of a school record. The big numbers on a short afternoon were a confidence boost for a quarterback who was briefly benched two games ago in a loss to Georgia and who has been playing with a nagging abdomen injury.

“Who wouldn’t be confident after that performance by the whole offense?” Ewers said. “I’m just trying to get the ball in the playmakers’ hands, and they make all the plays.”

Florida (4-5, 2-4) started Yale transfer Aidan Warner at quarterback because freshman DJ Lagway is still recovering from a hamstring injury. Warner, who was third team when the season started, was 12 of 25 passing for 132 yards and two interceptions.

“It got out of hand in the first half. You looked up and the game was over,” Napier said. “Aidan fought his tail off out there today. ... You go into the game understanding that you’re playing with your third quarterback, and you know you have to defend them, and we did not do that.”

The takeaway Florida: Getting routed on the road will only raise questions about athletic director Scott Stricklin's decision to give Napier such a public statement of support for another season. The loss drops Napier's record to 15-19. Tough, close losses to rivals Tennessee and Georgia had suggested the program was improving, even if not winning, but the Gators were overwhelmed by Texas.

“I’m thankful for our players,” Napier said of the vote of confidence. "I do think when you look at the roster as a whole, we have a ton of young talent that I think will continue to develop. They’re learning, they’re going through this experience, and I think that will prove beneficial in the future.”

Texas: After allowing 11 sacks in the previous two games, the offensive line protected Ewers well most of the day. He was sacked on the opening drive but was seldom harassed again. Some quick reads and short passes also kept the pressure off. Texas wants to avoid hits on Ewers that could aggravate his abdomen strain.

Poll implications Texas put together the kind of all-around impressive performance that can be important for late-season positioning in the rankings and for playoff implications. The Longhorns should move up after No. 4 Miami’s loss to Georgia Tech.

Setting the tone The game was still 0-0 when Texas converted a fourth-and-1 from its own 24 and got the first down by inches. The drive ended with the game's first touchdown.

“I believe in our players,” Sarkisian said. “I really didn’t blink. I was going for it.”

Up next Florida hosts No. 14 LSU next Saturday.

Texas plays at Arkansas next Saturday.

How To Watch

How can I watch Florida Gators vs. Texas Longhorns?
  • TV Channel: Gators at Longhorns 2021 College Football, week 11, is broadcasted on ABC.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.

Matchup Prediction

Longhorns: 91.0%
Gators: 9.0%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Scoring Summary

TEX TD 1st Period 3:43 Matthew Golden 29 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
TEX TD 1st Period 3:11 Gunnar Helm 22 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
TEX TD 2nd Period 5:54 Quintrevion Wisner 50 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
TEX TD 2nd Period 1:19 Matthew Golden 32 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
TEX TD 2nd Period 0:23 Jaydon Blue 5 Yd Run (Bert Auburn Kick)
TEX TD 3rd Period 12:52 Isaiah Bond 34 Yd pass from Quinn Ewers (Bert Auburn Kick)
FLA FG 3rd Period 7:03 Trey Smack 23 Yd Field Goal
FLA TD 3rd Period 1:30 Jadan Baugh 2 Yd Run (Trey Smack Kick)
TEX TD 4th Period 14:55 Jerrick Gibson 14 Yd Run (Bert Auburn Kick)
FLA TD 4th Period 8:27 Ja'Kobi Jackson 7 Yd Run (Trey Smack Kick)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/57.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originFLA https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/ncaa/500/251.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originTEX
20 1st Downs 23
6-14 3rd down efficiency 5-11
0-0 4th down efficiency 2-2
329 Total Yards 562
132 Passing 352
12/25 Comp/Att 22/33
5.3 Yards per pass 10.7
197 Rushing 210
41 Rushing Attempts 31
4.8 Yards per rush 6.8
4-35 Penalties 7-70
3 Turnovers 1
1 Fumbles lost 1
2 Interceptions thrown 0
32:06 Possession 27:54

Game Information

DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium

Location: Austin, TX
Attendance: 103,375 · Capacity:
Full Standings

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