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Gators Turn The Tides Against 'Bama

Tribune photo by SCOTT ISKOWITZ

Ahmad Black #35 holds up the SEC sign after Florida beat Alabama 31-20.

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By MICK ELLIOTT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 7, 2008

Updated: 12/07/2008 02:51 pm

ATLANTA - As multicolored streamers rained down on the Florida Gators in celebration of their 31-20 victory against No. 1-ranked Alabama on Saturday evening, the chant of "S! E! C! ... S! E! C!" resonated throughout the Georgia Dome.

Down on the field Tim Tebow, the square-jawed, tackle-breaking, touchdown-making quarterback, was taking a victory lap, waving a giant Gator-logoed flag. Coach Urban Meyer hugged everyone in sight. A joyous cacophony of whoops and hollers were being exchanged by players in wild celebration of their SEC title and expected spot in the BCS National Championship Game.

Exhilarated and exhausted, the Gators had earned their moment. In a battle against the previously undefeated Crimson Tide, a team of muscle and might, Florida countered with more than their calling card speed and skill. They brought toughness.

"I love these players," Meyer said. "You don't hear me say that too often. I love the way they fight. I love what they're made of. That will go down as one of the great wins in Florida football history."

The team that this season trailed only in the single game it lost took repeated shots to the jaw but never went down. The Gators trailed early. They trailed again, 20-17 starting the fourth quarter.

They didn't flinch.

NoBama.

Even with injured playmaker Percy Harvin on the sideline, the game ultimately became a snapshot of Florida's 12-1 success. Going against Florida's weapons is like having 11 billiard balls thrown your way, all at the same time.

Not even Alabama's stellar defense, allowing an average of 11.5 points per game, could bat all of them away.

"We've got so many weapons," wide receiver Riley Cooper said. "We had confidence."

Florida kept on coming, and in the end, scored the game's final 14 fourth-quarter points.

The stake through Alabama's previously undefeated heart came with 2:50 left to play, a 5-yard touchdown pass from Tebow to Cooper. It capped an eight-play, 65-yard drive that chewed up almost five minutes.

"He put it right on the spot," Cooper said of Tebow's third and final TD pass. "What a rush of emotion. I knew we had the game in the bag right then."

Alabama knew it, too.

"When the score is 20-17, we didn't finish like we need to, and they did," Alabama coach Nick Saban said. "That's the difference in the game, and Tebow made a lot of those plays."

The Gators would need every one of Tebow's 14 completions of 22 attempts for 216 passing yards, and his 57 yards on 17 carries. They needed little freshman running back Jeff Demps' 1-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter and 53 yards on 14 carries. And they certainly had to have the step-up performance by receivers Louis Murphy (four catches for 86 yards) and David Nelson (three for 27 yards, including a 5-yard TD), and tight end Aaron Hernandez (three for 43).

Florida kicked off to Alabama, sent the Crimson Tide offense to the sideline with a three-and-out and then went 59 yards in nine plays for a touchdown.

It was Florida's offense at its sharpest. Tebow threw to Murphy for 14 yards on Florida's second play from scrimmage. He broke a 14-yard run, passed to Nelson for 9, and finally threw 3 yards to Carl Moore for the touchdown on third and goal.

It was the ninth time this season Florida scored on its first possession.

What happened next, however, was something the Gators had never seen.

Suddenly, for the first time all year, Florida trailed in the first quarter.

It took Alabama two plays - a 64-yard pass from John Parker Wilson to Julio Jones and an 18-yard scoring run by Glen Coffee - to make it 7-7. On the Tide's next possession, a 30-yard field goal by Leigh Tiffin made it 10-7.

Alabama lined up for a 49-yard field goal to extend its advantage, but instead - needing 9 yards for a first down - faked the kick. The Gators' Terron Sanders made the tackle after only a 1-yard gain.

"The fake is based on the look," Saban said. "They weren't in the right look for us to run the fake, so we should have kicked the field goal."

With the shift of momentum, the Gators responded with a 51-yard Tebow-to-Riley Cooper pass to set up a 29-yard Jonathan Phillips field goal that evened the score at 10.

They got a break on the ensuing kickoff when Alabama return man Javier Arenas stepped out of bounds at his 4-yard line, and UF quickly went 57 yards on nine plays after the Tide punted from its 10. Tebow hit Nelson for the 5-yard score and a 17-10 lead at the half.

But again the momentum would shift. Alabama had two possessions in the third quarter, scoring 10 points - a 2-yard TD run by Mark Ingram and a 27-yard Tiffin field goal - and controlling the ball for 10:33 of the 15-minute period.

Then Tebow took over.

Throughout his star-spangled Florida career, one thing Tebow had never done was bring the Gators back from behind in the fourth quarter. No longer.

The Gators started the fourth quarter by going 62 yards in 11 plays, Demps scoring from the 1 for a 24-20 lead with 9:21 left.

The door was open.

"We just gathered all the offense up and said, 'We have a chance to go win it here,'" Tebow said. "We were very excited and we had momentum. Throw it on our shoulders and let's go get it. We were able to put that drive in and it kind of sealed the game."

Reporter Mick Elliott can be reached at (813) 281-2534.

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