The Florida Gators blew out the Kentucky Wildcats 48-20 as a host of players stepped up. / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- It's been a long season, but Saturday's Florida Gators' win over Kentucky was truly fun and much-needed.
From starting with inexcusable blowout losses at home, quarterback shuffling due to rotations and injuries, questionable performances in wins and even last week's heartbreaking loss to Tennessee, the 2024 campaign has been hard to deal with for many.
Considering all of that, Saturday's 48-20 win over Kentucky for homecoming was needed for everyone, whether its a football player, coach, staff member, family member, fan or even media member (trust me, I've had long conversations with fellow Gators Illustrated writer Kyle Lander and the boys at Hightop Sports about how this season has gone).
Everyone needed a victory on Saturday, and everyone got one. Well, everyone except for Kentucky.
It wasn't just a random win, either. It was storybook-esque in some ways.
The Gators snapped a three-game losing streak to the Wildcats behind a record-tying night from Jadan Baugh in his first-career start. He'll now find himself in the record books for most rushing touchdowns in a single game alongside Trey Burton and Tim Tebow with his five scores.
Pretty good company, right?
Florida's defense intercepted three passes, which ties the total from last season. It's who intercepted those passes that stand out.
Trikweze Bridges, an Oregon transfer who's been a backup for almost the entire season got one, and Devin Moore, who's battled injuries for his entire career, got another and nearly scored on it.
The best one, though, came from Cormani McClain, whose controversial story almost everyone in college football knows about and who even survived outside rumors of a summer dismissal, recorded a pick-six in his first appearance as a Gator.
There's not many stories like that, and I, an unbiased journalist in a press box that sends out constant "no cheering" reminders, couldn't help but smile as nearly the entire UF sideline celebrated in the end zone.
That same defense also had a goal line stop and forced four total turnover-on-downs. I don't remember the last time a Gator defense dominated like that, and it's in the midst of its best streak of performances since 2019.
DJ Lagway, in only his second-ever start, had five of his seven completions go for over 40 yards and threw for 259 yards in the win. Not bad for the 19-year-old who's been thrusted into the starting role twice now and will be expected to lead the way for the rest of the season.
Even Cam Carroll, a transfer running back who's dealt with a severe knee injury from last season, got his first carries as a Gator.
Most of all, it was the Gators first true-four-quarter game probably since the win over South Carolina in 2022. Sure, Kentucky scraped into the lead a bit, but it never truly felt like the Gators lost control (even if I told David Waters of Gators Breakdown I was a bit nervous about the lead going into halftime).
I've decided to keep this week's Cam Column relatively short, positive and even hopeful. I've written long enough about the coaching miscues, previous defensive issues and overall lack of preparedness from the beginning of the season.
Now, I want to make it clear. In no way am I "sunshine pumping." Florida's schedule only gets tougher with matchups against Georgia and Texas in back-to-back weeks (what a game that was, by the way) before hosting LSU and Ole Miss. All of which are playoff contenders.
It's going to be tough. It's going to be rough. There's a chance Florida doesn't win any of those games. Sorry, just being honest. And, I know a blowout win over Kentucky is the standard at a place like Florida, not a rare exception, but Saturday's win over the Wildcats was needed just to feel good about something with this season and even build confidence going forward.
We all saw how better the team looked after a bye following the win over Mississippi State. It was a complete night-and-day difference for that defense. A confidence-boosting win in dominating fashion over an SEC opponent combined with a two-week prep and recovery period for an upcoming matchup against Georgia is just what the Gators needed.
We'll see what happens, but at least there's one feel-good performance from the 2024 season.