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Thursday, April 25, 2024

A car collided with Troy's defensive bus on its way to Florida Field on Saturday, and the bus kept on going up Interstate-75.

That was Troy's first mistake.

The Trojans' defense would make many more by the end of the night.

Led by an unstoppable first-half offensive showcase, No. 4 UF trashed its non-conference foe 59-31 on Saturday.

The Gators scored touchdowns on all seven of their first-half possessions, as Troy's defense appeared to be suffering from whiplash.

The offense, led by sophomore quarterback Tim Tebow, looked unstoppable at its best and impressive at its worst.

Six different UF players scored touchdowns in the first half.

It's that kind of production that won't be so easy to duplicate as the Southeastern Conference season begins.

"That's very exciting," UF coach Urban Meyer said. "Obviously, that's going to change. Reality sets in."

Tebow completed 18-of-25 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns.

Tight end Cornelius Ingram led the team with seven receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown.

It was a complete reversal in the second half, as Troy outscored UF 24-10 after the break. Meyer said he wasn't too bothered by the second-half meltdown.

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"I'm not disappointed at all," Meyer said. "We're 2-0, man. A lot of teams around the country aren't 2-0."

On special teams, the Gators blocked two punts.

Return specialist Brandon James, who was reportedly suspended for last week's game, shook off and side-stepped tacklers to huge gains.

Going into this week's highly anticipated showdown with Tennessee, UF (2-0) looks primed and prepared to defend The Swamp.

Well, except for that young, athletic defense that gave up 336 yards, but even Meyer was quick to defend the team's perceived weak link.

"(Co-defensive coordinators) Charlie Strong and Greg Mattison were ready to pull their hair out," Meyer said. "I'm not disappointed in the defense at all. I thought they played hard. … The secondary is still a concern."

Troy marched down the field for most of the second half, outscoring UF 24-3 before a late Gators score.

A lack of push from the defensive tackles and miscues in the secondary - problems Meyer mentioned after last week's match - appeared again.

But the offense and special teams deserve some blame, too.

Up 49-7 at the half, UF stumbled and gave up two touchdowns in the third quarter.

Normally sure-handed receiver Andre Caldwell fumbled on UF's first play of the second half for the Gators' first turnover.

Caldwell hurt an MCL late in the game and went in for an MRI afterward.

Freshman Chris Rainey committed the second turnover, losing the ball on a kickoff return after Troy had cut the deficit to 49-17. The Trojans made Rainey pay by marching 57 yards on nine plays for their third touchdown.

After the amazing first half, the Gators went scoreless on the first five possessions of the second half.

"I don't think anybody was letting up or worried about what they were going to do after the game," Tebow said of the drop off. "It was mostly my fault. I'm the quarterback, and I've got to manage the offense and find a way to make first downs. I didn't do that."

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