They finished for 13: Benson rushes for 3 TDs, Florida State wins 24-15 at The Swamp
GAINESVILLE — There were no style points. Only one of the sweetest victories in the history of this rivalry.
With injured quarterback Jordan Travis watching from a sky box, backup quarterback Tate Rodemaker was good enough, running back Trey Benson was dominant enough and the Florida State defense was resilient enough to power No. 5 Florida State to a 24-15 victory Saturday night in The Swamp.
The win gives Florida State a 12-0 record and undefeated regular season for only the sixth time in school history. The Gators see their season end at 5-7.
Florida State’s players wore T-shirts that read, “FinishFor13” in pregame warmups. And the Seminoles did just that, rallying from a 12-0 deficit and outscoring the Gators 24-3 down the stretch.
Benson was the hero on offense when the Seminoles desperately needed one. He rushed for 95 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries to carry Florida State to the win.
The first half could not have gone much worse for the Seminoles.
Playing without Travis, Florida State fell behind 12-0 midway through the second quarter.
UF got on the scoreboard early in the second on a 5-yard touchdown run by Montrell Johnson. That came at the end of a 13-play, 70-yard drive that was helped by a bizarre personal foul call against the Seminoles.
With UF facing a third-and-long at the Florida State 10-yard line, FSU safety Akeem Dent came free on a blitz and appeared to sack Gators quarterback Max Brown for a 10-yard loss. But referee Jeff Heaser called Dent for a personal foul, even though the safety appeared to hit Brown in the chest.
The Gators then extended their lead to 10-0 on a short field goal after getting the ball in great field position. The drive went just 23 yards on five plays but resulted in a 35-yard field goal.
Two drives later, Tate Rodemaker was sacked for a safety after a 62-yard punt by Florida pinned the Seminoles deep in their own territory.
Florida State was able to claw its way back into the game just before halftime with a 10-play, 90-yard touchdown. Rodemaker completed a 29-yard pass to Jaheim Bell, and running backs Trey Benson and Lawrance Toafili both broke off nice runs on the drive.
It was capped off by a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Benson to cut the Gators’ lead to 12-7 at the break.
Florida State then opened the second half with a six-play, 75-yard touchdown drive — finished off with a 36-yard touchdown scamper by Benson — to take its first lead of the game, 14-12.
But Florida then answered right back with an 11-play, 56-yard field goal drive to go ahead by one midway through the third quarter. Then the Seminoles reclaimed the advantage, 17-15, with a 19-yard field goal by Ryan Fitzgerald with 7:17 left.
Benson then scored his third and final touchdown to secure the win.
Next up for Florida State is the ACC Championship Game against Louisville next Saturday in Charlotte.
Stay connected with Warchant.com for complete postgame coverage.
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