The Florida Gators got back on the winning side in The Swamp on Saturday as the Gators cruised to a 38-14 victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores. Florida fans expected the Gators to shine as they returned to The Swamp for homecoming, coming off a disappointing loss in Lexington to the Kentucky Wildcats. Even though the Gators were without three offensive starters today, the offense executed fine without Trevor Ettiene. So that meant more carries for Montrell Johnson as he led the Gators in rushing for 18 carries, 135 yards, and one touchdown.
California native Arlis Boadingham would have a great day as he led the Gators in receiving for seven receptions, 99 yards, and two touchdowns. Tampa native Eugene Wilson finally returned to full strength as he had eight receptions for 64 yards and scored his first Gator touchdown. Ricky Pearsall had four receptions for 34 yards but no touchdowns on the day against Vanderbilt, but he got a little banged up on one drive.
In the Gators 38-14 win over Vanderbilt, Head Coach Billy Napier earned his 50th career win as a head coach. Napier had a 40-12 record in four seasons at Louisiana, which led him to Gainesville. Last season, Napier led the Gators to a 6-7 season; this season, they are off to a 4-2 start, and they have a signature win over rival Tennessee.
Florida has another tough SEC road test next Saturday against South Carolina. The Gators won last year's meeting in Gainesville 38-6 and have not won in Columbia since 2019. Next Saturday's game will be a 3:30 game at Williams-Brice Stadium, and it's good that it's not at night because it's hard to win at night in Columbia. I still think this will be a tough game regardless because it is an evenly matched game, and the Gamecocks might want revenge for what happened last season in The Swamp. I do think if the Gators were to win, then it would be a key road win that Billy Napier would need.
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