Florida Notes

Florida in 2010: The Florida Gators started the 2010 season as a much younger team playing numerous freshman and come to the Outback Bowl with one of the nations top ten defenses The Gators (7-5) rank in the top three of the powerful SEC in seven statistical categories including Total Defense (where they rank 10th nationally), Pass Defense, Interceptions, Pass Efficiency Defense , Opponents First Downs, Kickoff Returns and Punting.

Welcome Back: This will be the fourth appearance by the Gators in the Outback Bowl where they are 1-2. Florida lost to Michigan 38-30 in 2003, and to Iowa 37-17 in 2004, then defeated Iowa 31-24 in 2006.

Gator Tradition: This is the 104th season of Florida football, compiling on overall record of 661-379-40. The Gators have won three National Championships, eight SEC Championships and have produced three Heisman Trophy winners, 236 All Americans and many other major award winners. Most recently Florida was 48-7 over a four year stretch from 2006-2009, which included two of their National Championships.

Gators in the Bowls: This will be the Gators 38th Bowl game. They hold an 18-19 record in bowls, but has won four of their last five bowl games.

Feature Players: Florida’s ground attack is by committee with seven players rushing for at least 260 yards, led by RB Jeff Demps with 531 yards and a 6.0 average per carry. Trey Burton has 371 yards and 11 TDs while RB Mike Gillislee has 315 yards and RB Chris Rainey 300 yards in just seven games including a 6.7 average per carry.

The Gators passing game is led by QB John Brantley who has completed 61.3% of his passes for 2,020 yards and 9 TDs. Jordan Reed also completed 18-33 passes for 192 yards. Their favorite targets are WR Deonte Thompson who has 36 catches for 548 yards and Burton with 30 catches. WR Carl Moore has 27 receptions for 349 yards while Rainey notched 22 catches and 3 TDs.

The Gator defense is anchored by SS Ahmad Black who has 102 tackles, fifth best in the SEC, including 9 tackles for a loss, 3 forced fumbles and 3 interceptions. Red shirt freshman LB Jelana Jenkins added 73 tackles and 2 sacks, while DE Justin Trattou notched 56 tackles and a team-leading 10 tackles for a loss. LB Jonathan Bostic has 52 tackles and 3 interceptions.

Florida’s special teams are a strength as Chas Henry leads the nation in punting with a 46.4 average and WR/KR Andre Debose leads the SEC and ranks 8th in the nation in Kickoff Returns with a 29.7 average.

Coach Urban Meyer: This is Urban Meyer’s sixth season at the helm of the Gators where he has compiled a 64-15 record. He is 103-23 overall in 10 years as a head coach. Meyer is a three-time National Coach of the Year and has led Florida to two National Championships. Meyer came to the Gators after two years at Utah where he led the Utes to a 12-0 record and No. 4 national ranking in 2004.