Gators topple Mountaineers 48-10 on Senior Day

By Adam Silverstein
November 20, 2010

Saturday in The Swamp was a celebration for the Florida Gators’ senior class as they led their team for the final time at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to a dominant 48-10 victory over the Appalachian State Mountaineers. Florida (7-4) had lost its previous three games in Gainesville, FL, before defeating Appalachian State (9-2), a rarity for a senior class that was 19-2 at home going into this year.

Unlike the rest of the season, the Gators’ offense got a quick start on Saturday, scoring touchdowns on its first three possessions of the game and four of its first five. Florida led 28-0 going into halftime, but head coach Urban Meyer took his foot off the gas in the second half; UF still outscored ASU 20-10 in the latter part of the game.

Redshirt freshman tight end Jordan Reed led the way for the Gators with four touchdowns including three on the ground and one through their air to redshirt junior quarterback John Brantley in what was the first reception of Brantley’s career. UF’s leading passer, Brantley finished 16-of-22 for 222 yards and one interception.

Redshirt junior running back Chris Rainey dominated early with 40 yards rushing on the first drive including a 16-yard touchdown; he finished the day taking six carries for 87 yards and catching two balls for 23 yards. Reed carried the ball 11 times for 71 yards, and RBs sophomore Mike Gillislee and redshirt senior Emmanuel Moody tallied 56 yards apiece on the ground.

Florida’s players accounted for a number of career-highs in the contest. Redshirt junior wide receiver Deonte Thompson reeled in six catches for a career-high 100 yards, freshman defensive end/linebacker Ronald Powell swarmed for a career-high nine tackles, and redshirt junior cornerback Moses Jenkins and senior LB Brandon Hicks each notched a career-high seven tackles.

Hicks also forced a fumble in the second quarter that was eventually recovered by senior safety Ahmad Black; it led to Reed’s TD pass to Brantley. Senior punter/kicker Chas Henry made all six of his extra point attempts and punted the ball once for 42 yards.

The Gators finished with a season-high 311 rushing yards and 547 total yards while scoring seven touchdowns – the most this year. The final score was attributed to redshirt senior defensive tackle Gary Beemer, a walk-on who Meyer gave three carries inside the three in order to score his first career touchdown.

Saturday was an emotional day for Florida’s seniors. A number of players – including center Mike Pouncey and Black – were noticeably teary-eyed when being introduced before the game. Pouncey put his head down in Meyer’s chest and Black dropped to his knees in the end zone. After Beemer’s touchdown, his helmet came off in celebration and he pumped up the crowd while tightly holding onto the ball.

UF hopes to keep the emotion and energy going next week when they take on Florida State on the road in Tallahassee, FL, in the final game of the 2010 regular season. Kickoff will be set shortly for either 3:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2.

Photo Credits: The Gainesville Sun

6 Comments

  1. El Meester says:

    Nice pics…any way to link to bigger pics?

  2. Gatorbuc15 says:

    Congrats to the Senior class. They definitely had a memorable Senior Day.

  3. David says:

    A great day to be a Gator!!!! I was especially happy to see Powell, Floyd, and Elam have good games. Seeing Easley play was also good. I think with some changes, the future looks bright

  4. SaraGator says:

    Love that Meyer allowed his time on the field. It shows Meyer has a good heart and really appreciates the blue collared players.

    Thank you, seniors and Go Gators!

  5. Gatorgrad79 says:

    Go Gators – we will need more than emotion to beat noles next week! Hope Gators have a great week of practice and MAN UP against fsu…

  6. g8ter27 says:

    Love it when I am wrong. Excited for the win, lets finish thisthing on a strong note next week!

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