Florida Overcomes Mistakes

His quarterback threw for 407 yards, his tailback ran for 131 more, but when Steve Spurrier started handing out game balls, center David Jorgensen was at the top of the list.

Jorgensen’s outstanding deed: recovering one of his teammate’s fumbles.

Potent at one moment, mistake prone the next, No. 6 Florida had to breathe a big sigh of relief Saturday, forced to fight to the end for a 24-10 victory over No. 15 Georgia.

Rex Grossman surpassed 400 yards passing for the second time this month to keep the Gators (6-1, 4-1 in the Southeastern Conference) front and center in the race for the SEC East title. Tailback Earnest Graham returned to health and reached 100 yards for the first time this season.

The Gators gained 584 yards, their most ever in the 79-game history of the storied rivalry, but two lost fumbles, two interceptions, 106 yards in penalties and a host of other errors kept this game close until the end.

“It was real frustrating,” Jorgensen said. “We were getting upset, but we kept our heads, and in the fourth quarter, we knew it was ‘go time.’ That’s when we had to put the stake in their hearts, and we did it.”

With the Gators protecting a 24-10 lead, Florida safety Marquand Manuel forced a fumble by Georgia quarterback David Greene with five minutes left. On the next play, Jorgensen made the play that wrapped up his game ball--falling on Graham’s fumble to preserve the possession.

“I saw the ball pop out, and I wasn’t going to let it get away,” Jorgensen said.

The Gators ran the clock down to three minutes, and only then did they have a firm grasp on their 11th victory in the last 12 meetings against Georgia (5-2, 4-2).

“It was a funny game,” Spurrier said. “We seemed able to move the ball. We thought we could throw against them, and we thought we could run. We did those things pretty well, but we messed up a lot. I don’t have an explanation. We’re just happy to win the game.”

First-year Georgia Coach Mark Richt, who previously had success against the Gators as an offensive coordinator at Florida State, gambled and lost in a key situation early in the third quarter.

Trailing 17-10, Georgia drove from its 15 to Florida’s six to start the second half. Richt chose to go for it on fourth-and-two, and Greene missed a wide-open Verron Haynes, ending the best drive of the game empty-handed.

The Gators, who committed five turnovers in their 23-20 loss to Auburn two weeks ago, gave up three in the first half, which led to all 10 of Georgia’s points.