With more than 90,000 screaming fans at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Oklahoma marched into The Swamp for the first time in program history to take on the Gators.
However, this wasn’t the first time these two teams had met. First, the Gators faced the Sooners in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game in Miami, where Florida came out on top, 24-14. Next, they played in the 2020 Cotton Bowl, where the Sooners came away with a 55-20 win. With the all-time series tied at one apiece, a lot was riding on this game.
The game started with an Oklahoma field goal, and the Sooners didn’t look back, adding another seven points in the second quarter. In that quarter, the Sooners’ leading tackler, senior linebacker Owen Heinecke, had an assisted sack against Gators quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. After the sack, Heinecke did the famous Gator Chomp celebration as senior defensive lineman Taylor Wein mimicked taping the mouth of the gator shut.
The roaring crowd fell silent as the momentum the Gators tried to build died out. The moment went viral on social media, with lots of fans and critics calling it one of the most disrespectful and toughest celebrations they’ve seen. It also drew attention to the Sooners’ defense and all the pressure they were putting on the Gators.
Heinecke finished with 10 tackles, bringing his season total to 63. Jones was sacked three times and lost his helmet, forcing him to sit out a play. He finished 10-of-22 for 133 yards and two interceptions, and Florida totaled just 203 yards.
The Sooners continued to put pressure on the Gators as they went on to win 23-7 in their first visit to The Swamp. Oklahoma improved to 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the SEC, while Florida fell to 5-4 and 3-4.
Florida coach Jon Sumrall spoke about the Oklahoma defense and how the offense matched up against it throughout the night.
“I think defensively, you have to continually respond and in a game like that, their defense outplayed our offense,” Sumrall said.
The Gators will travel to Lexington on Saturday to face Kentucky (7-2, 5-2 SEC). Coverage begins at 3:15 p.m. on WRUF 98.1-FM/850-AM/103.7 HD2 and at 6:15 p.m. on ESPN.
