Vanderbilt Commodores 10 Florida Gators 34

For what seemed the first time in a long time, the Florida Gators got a solid performance at the quarterback position and from the wide receivers in their 34-10 win at Vanderbilt in Nashville.

On paper, this was a dominating win like the previous game against Georgia. But Florida’s run game wasn’t as strong, with the backs being bottled up quite often. The defense showed its strength once again, pressuring the Vanderbilt quarterbacks and making big plays in the secondary. Overall, this was a good night, but skepticism of the offense is still warranted.

Treon Harris was the star for the Gators, hitting on several big pass plays, and adding 49 yards in rushing. That includes two touchdown runs that helped give the Gator offense diversity on a night when the running game didn’t look as strong. Overall, the Gators rushed for 214 yards, but both Matt Jones and Kelvin Taylor were bottled up at the line. Jones rushed for 90 yards and Taylor added 55 yards, but it was Harris’ legs that came up with the big yards when the Gators needed it.

Harris really came on in the second half, including deep pass plays to receivers Ahmad Fulwood and Quinton Dunbar. But the catch of the night wasn’t from a Gator receiver. Instead, it was cornerback Jalen Tabor with a spectacular one-handed interception to kill a Vanderbilt scoring threat.

Nov 8, 2014; Nashville, TN, USA; Florida Gators running back Kelvin Taylor (21) runs for a score during the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Vanderbilt Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

On defense, the Gators forced four turnovers against Vandy, with two in the first half that bailed out a sluggish offense with favorable field position. Early on, the Gators had trouble stopping the Vanderbilt run game, but held the Commodores to no rushing yards in the second half. Vanderbilt did get some second-half passing yardage in their efforts to catch up, but overall, after a slow first quarter, the Gators tightened up.

The win keeps the Gators alive in the SEC East race. Next week’s game against South Carolina remains crucial. But the losses they need – two from Mizzou and one from Georgia against Auburn –remain possible. Tonight’s win shows the Gators can still finish strong this season, but that won’t come unless there’s further improvement in the offense.