BATON ROUGE, La. — The Florida Gators knew they would need something special Saturday to win at LSU.
The Gators came up with something historic.
To beat LSU on its home field and defend its SEC East title, UF completed the longest pass play in Tiger Stadium history — a 98-yard touchdown catch by freshman Tyrie Cleveland — and delivered a goal line stand for the ages during the final seconds.
UF safety Marcell Harris led the charge to corral LSU tailback Derrius Guice inside the 1-yard line as time expired to send coach Jim McElwain’s Gators (8-2, 6-2 SEC) back to the SEC title game on Dec. 3.
The play completed an improbable 16-10 win for a two-touchdown underdog missing seven starters while vindicating a coach and a team that had failed to deliver a signature road win despite vying for back-to-back SEC East titles.
“It’s no small feat to go to that championship game back-to-back,” McElwain said. “I just can’t tell you how proud I am of our players, our staff and happy for the Gator fans that, you know, don’t think we’re very good, but all we do is end up back in Atlanta.
“So that’s pretty cool.”
The victory also fired a salvo at the LSU Tigers, who earlier in the week called the banged-up Gators “scared” to come to Baton Rouge.
LSU’s lack of sympathy irked the Gators, given the game originally had been slated for Oct. 8 in Gainesville until Hurricane Matthew forced UF officials to postpone it. The tense negotiations between school officials to reschedule the game did not help, either.
The animosity spilled over during pregame warm-ups, including some shoving between LSU star tailback Leonard Fournette and UF secondary coach Torrian Gray. During the opening kickoff, the Tigers were flagged for a personal foul penalty that left Florida freshman linebacker Vosean Joseph without a helmet.
The Gators did not back down.
“We were terrified of them boys,” UF All-SEC cornerback Jalen Tabor joked. “I guess out of fear, we fought back.”
Time and again, UF beat the odds to ultimately stun an announced crowd of 102,043 clad mostly in purple and gold.
LSU (6-4, 4-3) looked to be the superior team from the jump but repeatedly squandered opportunities, allowing Florida to hang around until it was too late for the Tigers.
“We shot ourselves in the foot,” LSU coach Ed Orgeron said. “It just came down to execution. Gotta give it to our guys. They fought.
“We always thought we would win the game as poorly as we played.”
The Tigers could do no wrong early.
With Fournette a game-time decision, Guice stepped in and was unstoppable as the Tigers marched down the field in 12 plays to grab a 7-0 lead.
A 32-yard field goal by the Gators’ Eddy Pineiro — his first of three on the day — cut the lead to 7-3. But LSU immediately drove down the field again to reach the UF 7.
On first-and-goal, though, UF defensive tackle Caleb Brantley burst through the line of scrimmage and stripped Guice of the football and Florida linebacker Kylan Johnson recovered the ball. The Tigers’ ills inside the 10-yard line were just beginning.
The Gators consistently bent, but they did not break again. The Tigers’ next three trips inside the 10-yard line produced just three points.
“We knew they couldn’t do nothing with us,” said Brantley, who finished with three tackles for a loss. “We knew we just had to do our job. Everyone does their job, they can’t get in.”
Meanwhile, UF’s offense seemed to pose little threat to the Tigers and ended the first half with three consecutive three-and-out possessions. But the Gators wasted little time once they got the ball again.
Pinned on the 2-yard line, quarterback Austin Appleby launched a pass down the sideline to freshman receiver Tyrie Cleveland, who cradled the ball and shook off LSU cornerback Donte’ Jackson on his way to the end zone.
“That really just got everything going,” UF cornerback Quincy Wilson said.
The completion was the longest at UF since Cris Collinsworth, then a freshman quarterback, connected with Derrick Gaffney for a 99-yard pass in 1977 at Rice.
“Are you telling me then, Tyrie has a chance with a television career in broadcasting,” McElwain joked.
The Gators would ride a bruising run game and their defense the rest of the way.
Guice and Fournette entered the day as the nation’s top tailback tandem, but UF sophomore tailback Jordan Scarlett outdid both of them. He finished with a game-high 108 rushing yards.
“I thought we put a dent in those guys,” McElwain said. “That’s a heck of a defense, guys. Let’s not sell it short.”
The Tigers entered the day having allowed just 10 touchdowns – fewest in the nation – and allowed just one to the Gators.
But UF’s defense ultimately ruled the day to deliver a win that left some Gators searching for the right words.
“To win and secure the SEC East in Louisiana on the 1-yard line — I’m speechless, man,” defensive end CeCe Jefferson said. “I’m speechless.”
