WATCH: 75-yard touchdown pass gives Tennessee early lead over Florida
Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker connected with receiver JaVonta Payton on a 75-yard touchdown pass to put Tennessee up 14-10 in the second quarter against Florida. Hooker found a wide open Payton downfield with nothing but green in front of him.
The score was the second of the evening for the Volunteers. Running back Tiyon Evans struck first on a 47-yard run that tied the game at 7 in the first quarter.
Florida is coming off of a tough 31-29 toad loss against No. 1 Alabama this past week. Tennessee is opening SEC play after going 2-1 through three nonconference games.
A senior transfer from Mississippi State, Payton is in his fifth year playing college football. He also caught a touchdown against Tennessee Tech in Week 3.
The Gators quickly answered the Tennessee touchdown pass with a touchdown run to retake the lead, 17-14. They took that narrow lead into halftime at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
A victory against a team of Florida’s caliber would be monumental for the Volunteers. The program has struggled mightily in recent years and is in its first season under coach Josh Heupel. Along the same lines, it would be detrimental for Florida. The Gators already have one SEC loss and another would seriously hurt their chances of making the conference championship game.
Florida backup quarterback Anthony Richardson is supposedly available from a hamstring injury, but the Gators are sticking with Emory Jones. The latter was 12-of-15 passing for 104 yards and a touchdown at halftime. He also has nine carries for 41 yards.
Hooker, on the other hand, is 9-of-13 for 183 yards and two touchdowns. The Volunteers are certainly putting up a fight to make this game a lot more interesting than many anticipated. They’ll continue SEC play next week against Missouri while Florida will turn its attention to Kentucky.
But with a half still left to go Saturday, all focus is on whether Tennessee can pull off the upset in Gainesville.