A TEXAS-SIZE MELTDOWN
McElwain says Gators suffered a whooping in rough season opener
ARLINGTON, Texas – They like to do things big in Texas. Coach Jim McElwain is no different.
But rather than serve up a huge boost for his program and catalyst for a strong 2017 season, Saturday’s seasonopening showdown between No. 17 UF and No. 11 Michigan turned into a Texas-sized disappointment for McElwain’s Gators.
In front of an announced crowd of 75,802 and a national TV audience looking on at AT&T Stadium near Dallas, the Gators were beaten soundly on both sides of the ball by the Wolverines and lost 33-17, snapping UF’s nation-leading 27-game win streak in season openers.
“They physically took it to us. Give them their due,” McElwain said. “They beat us every which way they could up front and we never had an answer.
“Plain and simple, take your whooping. I’m taking it.”
Both programs entered the game with sizeable question marks.
UF ended the day with even more to ponder, including who will be the team’s starting quarterback and whether the Gators’ young defense can evolve into another elite unit.
“We got to look at a lot of things,” McElwain said. “And yet it’s not time to hit the panic button. We’ve got a good football team.”
Once again, though, the Gators are a team with quarterback questions.
Earlier in the week, McElwain named redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks the starter over veterans Luke Del Rio and Malik Zaire.
Early on Saturday, Franks looked like the right choice. He completed a perfect 34-yard toss to receiver Josh Hammond on the game’s second play, but the 19-year-old quarterback soon began to show his inexperience on the big stage.
On the next play, Franks fumbled the snap, but recovered it. Later, Franks tripped after receiving the snap and lost seven yards.
Following a fumble on a third-down scramble by Franks, McElwain turned to Zaire, a graduate transfer from Notre Dame who arrived in June with many expecting him to secure the job.
“I just thought we needed to try and shake up the batting order,” McElwain said. “I thought Malik would be able to come in there and change pace.”
With his team trailing 26-17, Zaire energized the Gators’ offense on the opening drive. But facing third-and-6 from the Michigan 48 he was swarmed on a Wolverines’ blitz to end the threat.
UF went three-and-out on the next possession and punted back to Michigan with 8:45 remaining. It is not often a nine-point lead with nearly nine minutes left seems insurmountable, but this was one of those times.
“It was awful disappointing, I’ll tell you that,” McElwain said.
Meanwhile, the Gators’ defense had its own issues.
An earlier breakdown in the team’s young secondary allowed Michigan receiver Tarik Black to slip wide open in the end zone for a 46-yard touchdown. Nickelback Marco Wilson allowed Black loose, but the safety help from Shawn Davis never materialized.
The Gators secondary did not become discouraged. Pick-sixes by fifth-year senior Duke Dawson and first-year freshman CJ Henderson on consecutive series helped stake the Gators to a 17-13 halftime lead despite tallying just four first downs.
Both defensive scores followed third-down miscues by Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight, who sailed passes that ended up in the hands of UF’s defensive backs. Following the second, Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh had seen enough and replaced Speight with fellow senior John O’Korn.
Harbaugh went back to Speight to open the second half. He responded by going 5-of-6 passing for 52 yards to lead Michigan to the goahead score and a 20-17 lead.
The Wolverines also chipped in 28 rushing yards during the 10-play, 75-yard drive on the way to establishing an offensive balance teams only can dream of. Michigan ended the day with 215 yards rushing and 218 through the air.
“They had a pretty good plan,” McElwain said.
While it was just one loss at the start of a long season, given all the build-up leading to Saturday game the defeat felt a lot bigger.
“We have to stay together,” Hammond said. “That was the message in our locker room staying together.”