What Happened

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — South Florida’s Nico Gramatica kicked a 20-yard field goal as time expired and the down-south, cross-state foe Bulls shocked 13th-ranked Florida 18-16 before a sold-out, bummed-out crowd Saturday night at Spurrier/Florida Field. 

Gramatica’s game-winner came after the Bulls — nine days removed from upsetting 25th-ranked and 2024 College Football Playoff participant Boise State at Tampa — capped an eight-play, 87-yard drive over the final 2:26, with the Gators defense doing its part in handing USF one of its biggest victories in school history by committing a disastrous unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty and a handful of missed tackles on a long catch-and-run.

The victory gave the Bulls, in just their 25th year in Division I and FBS classification, wins over Florida, Florida State, Miami in their short history. 

Senior quarterback Byrum Brown completed 23 of 36 passes for 263 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing 17 times for 66 yards. Brown’s 66-yard scoring strike late in the third quarter gave the Bulls their first lead of the game. The Gators, thanks to a 40-yard punt return by dynamic freshman Vernell Brown III, managed to retake the lead on a DJ Lagway short scoring toss to Eugene Wilson III, but the home team, despite getting the ball back twice more, left the door open for Brown and friends. 

The Bulls kicked it in. 

USF began the close-out drive at its 11. On second-and-10, defensive back Dijon Johnson was called for pass interference. On the very next snap, tailback Alvon Isaac was stopped for no gain at the 24, but in the middle of a mini-shoving match defensive lineman Brendan Bett was flagged for spitting on a player, resulting in a 15-yard penalty and automatic ejection. The ball was moved to the South Florida 39, where on first down Brown threw a short pass in the flat to Isaac, who turned the corner, broke two tackles and made another defensive back miss as he dashed 29 yards up the USF sidelines to the Florida 32. In field-goal range.

From there, it was a slow green-and-gold bleed out, with either Brown or Isaac moving the ball to the UF 2 and calling a timeout with three seconds left. 

Gramatica, the son of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers kicker and Super Bowl champion Martin Gramatica, split the uprights from inside point-after range. It was his third field goal of the night.

USF out-gained UF in total yards, 391 to 355, and on defense made Lagway look uncomfortable most of the night. The sophomore finished 23 of 33 for 222 yards, one touchdown and a first-half interception. The Gators out-rushed the Bulls, though barely, 133 to 128, led by sophomore Jadan Baugh’s 93 yards on 18 carries. 

Through the first 48 minutes, the game featured nothing but field goals; three by Florida’s Trey Smack (from 28, 36 and 25) and two by Gramatica (38 and 25), with neither team able to finish drives. The Gators led 9-6 until what looked like a promising UF march, with a first down at midfield, stalled and ended in a punt. The Bulls took over at their 14, got out of a hole with a 15-yard completion from Brown to Mudia Reuben, then turned the game on its head. 

On third-and-5 from his 34, Brown got his fast-breaking, high-tempo offense to the line and got the ball snapped as the Florida defense was caught — and confused — in mid-substitution. Singleton sprinted upfield and Brown lofted a strike that split defensive backs Johnson and Sharif Denson, both of whom looked like they could make a play on the ball. Instead, the two dove past each other, the ball hit Singleton in stride and he went untouched into the end zone for the Bulls’ first lead of the game at 13-9. 

The Gators’ ensuing possession answer was a three-and-out followed by a high snap from punt formation by Rocco Underwood, a 2024 first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection, that sailed over the head of Tommy Doman and rolled out of the end zone for a safety that pushed USF’s margin to 15-9 with 13 seconds to go in the third quarter. 

Then came Brown’s big return, Lagway’s scoring toss, the lead, the momentum and the crowd doing its part. It wasn’t enough. 

 

 

What it Means

Get ready for what Ron Zook used to call “noise in the system.” USF, meanwhile, now has to be considered one of the Group of Five front-runners for a possible CFP berth.

In the Spotlight

Brown, the senior from Raleigh, North Carolina, was the best player on the field against Boise last weekend and the best on the field Saturday. 

Staggering Statistic

The Gators were flagged 11 times for 103 yards, several of them stalling drives or extending ones on defense. Quite a drastic turn after the season-opening 55-0 win against FCS-classed Long Island when the Gators had zero penalties. They were a huge reason UF punted on six of its seven possessions in the second half. 

Up Next

Florida (1-1) dives into the meat cleaver portion (the first one) of a 2025 schedule that is ranked as the most difficult in the country this season. The Gators open their SEC slate Sept. 13 with a night game at No. 3 LSU (2-0), which faces Louisiana Tech later tonight. Come what may, then it’s a trip down the Florida Turnpike to face fifth-ranked Miami, which blew out the home team at “The Swamp” by a 41-17 count a year ago. 

Email senior writer Chris Harry at chrish@gators.ufl.edu