Florida Finally Puts Away Southern Mississippi, 24-20

A hostile environment doesn’t bother Southern Mississippi. The Golden Eagles have made a name for themselves by giving Southeastern Conference teams fits on the road.

On Saturday, it was Florida’s turn. The 14th-ranked Gators survived the challenge but needed a fourth-quarter touchdown and a late defensive stand to hold on, 24-20, before a crowd of 82,882 at Florida Field.

It marked the first time Florida has won after trailing in the fourth quarter under Coach Steve Spurrier. Errict Rhett, who rushed for 120 yards, ran three yards for the winning touchdown a little more than five minutes after the Gators fell behind, 20-17.

“We expect to win coming into every game. It doesn’t matter the opponent, whether its a SEC team or not,” said Tommy Waters, whose 17-yard pass to Mark Montgomery put Southern Mississippi ahead with 14:55 to go.

Rhett, who moved into third place on Florida’s career rushing list, scored his second touchdown of the day with 9:42 to go.

The Golden Eagles took the ensuing kickoff and drove 69 yards to the Florida 13 before stalling. Waters’ fourth-down pass fell incomplete in the end zone.

The victory was the fifth in a row for Florida (6-2), which extended the nation’s second-longest winning streak at home to 17 games. Southern Mississippi fell to 6-4, with three of its losses coming on the road against SEC teams.