BATON ROUGE, La. — “Theirs but to do & die, into the valley of death rode the six hundred.”
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, the famed British poet, wrote those words in his poem “The Charge of the Light Brigade.”
Replace “valley of death” with Death Valley and “the six hundred” with the 70-or-so players who made the trip to Baton Rouge for the Florida Gators, and the task remained the same: This game was Florida’s to do or to die.
Ultimately the Gators (8-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference) won, 16-10, defeating No. 16 LSU (6-4, 4-3 SEC) in the most impressive win of coach Jim McElwain’s Florida tenure.
A win meant a trip to the Southeastern Conference Championship game. A loss meant leaving their fate in the hands of Tennessee, which would have to lose one of its two remaining SEC games for Florida to get to Atlanta.
“No, man,” Defensive lineman CeCe Jefferson said. “We’re a bunch of guys – we’re independent guys. We don’t like to depend on anybody to win or lose to decide our fate.”
With feet planted into the purple paint of the end zone, the “Welcome to Death Valley” sign at their backs and 102,043 fans roaring, Florida’s chance to retain control of the title came down to the game’s final play.
Fourth down. Ball at the 1-yard line. Three seconds left.
At the snap, LSU’s Derrius Guice took the handoff and tried to jump over the pile of linemen. He was pulled down from behind. The ball landed about a foot short of the goal line, and Florida rushed the field.
“That’s what we do, man,” offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor shouted as coaches, players and fans alike bounced, hugged and shrieked.
Austin Appleby led the offense for Florida, throwing for 144 yards and a touchdown on 7-of-17 passing. However, more than half of that yardage came on one play.
Backed up at his own 2-yard line and trailing 7-3 in the third quarter, Appleby dropped back, cocked his arm and zipped the ball down the right sideline.
He underthrew freshman wideout Tyrie Cleveland, who managed to slow down and get under the ball. This allowed LSU defensive back Donte Jackson to catch up and make a play.
But instead of breaking up the pass, he missed the ball and the tackle, tumbling out of bounds and letting Cleveland escape for a 98-yard score.
“We truly were fighting for each other,” Appleby said. “When things didn't go our way, no one flinched. We stayed together. ... When we needed to make a play, time and time again guys stepped up."
It was the longest play from scrimmage in the history of Tiger Stadium and the second-longest pass play in Florida history.
“We had great protection,” Appleby said. “I had all day back there. I gave him a chance, and he went out there and made a play."
Other than that play, though, Florida’s offense flowed mainly through its running backs.
Sophomore Jordan Scarlett led the way with 108 yards on 22 carries while true freshman Lamical Perine contributed 38 yards on seven carries as well.
“I think we played with some pad level and we played with some resolve and some finish and some energy,” coach Jim McElwain said. “That's the way you have to play the game. I thought they did that."
Meanwhile, on defense, Caleb Brantley made the game’s most impactful play for the Gators.
Following one methodical 80-yard drive, LSU was 65 yards into a second one at the Florida 10-yard line.
Guice took a handoff and ran left where he met Brantley, who punched the ball out. Linebacker Kylan Johnson recovered, and the Gators went on to shut out the Tigers in the first half.
Johnson’s counterpart, true freshman linebacker David Reese, led the Gators in tackles for the second game in a row, this time amassing 12.
The win was the first for the Gators in Death Valley since Tim Tebow quarterbacked the team in 2009 and Florida’s first overall win over LSU since 2012.
“We came in with a purpose, we played the way we needed to play and it wasn't pretty,” McElwain said. “But I'm going to tell you this, the future's bright for the Gators.”
Jalen Tabor celebrates with fans after Florida's 16-10 win over LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Nov. 19, 2016.
