Gators quarterback Tramell Jones Jr., in his first home start, threw for 133 yards and two interceptions in Saturday night's loss to Oklahoma. (Photo: Emma Brugna/UAA Communications)
Sunday, November 8, 2026 | Football
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida's offense struggled to move the ball all night, but the Gators still had a chance to make things interesting Saturday against Oklahoma.
Down 13-7 in the third quarter, Florida faced fourth-and-3 in the red zone. Rather than attempt a 34-yard field goal to cut the deficit to three, head coach Jon Sumrall decided to go for it.
"I felt like it was going to take 14 points at least," Sumrall said. "And we haven't been down in the red zone enough for me to feel real confident that we're going to get a bunch more trips."
Quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. took the snap, faked a handoff to Jadan Baugh and rolled right. With pressure closing in, Jones threw off his back foot toward Eric Singleton Jr., but Oklahoma defensive back Courtland Guillory made a play on the ball and intercepted it in the end zone.
Oklahoma got the ball, and the Gators lost any momentum in their 23-7 loss at sold-out Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
"Eric was wide open, tried to put it on him," Jones said. "Corner made a great play. It fell off. We can't have those interceptions. Can't have any turnovers. You gotta play turnover-free football, especially in the red zone. Especially when we're in scoring distance."
The decision to go for it was bound to draw scrutiny, particularly with Florida trailing by only six points. A successful conversion could have put the Gators in position to take the lead. Instead, the interception gave Oklahoma an opportunity to seize control.
Sumrall said analytics factored into his decision, citing "the book" that he and other coaches use to evaluate those situations. He also thought Singleton might have been "grabbed a bit" on the play, but no penalty was called.
Whatever the reasoning, Florida came away empty-handed. And Oklahoma made the most of the opportunity.
Following the interception at the 6:22 mark of the third quarter, the Sooners controlled the ball for 17 minutes and 30 seconds of the remaining 21:22 of playing time.
Oklahoma's game-clinching drive in the fourth quarter lasted 20 plays, covered 89 yards and consumed 12 minutes and 45 seconds. Oklahoma capped the drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass from quarterback John Mateer to Isaiah Sategna III.
"They took the air out of the football, and they bled it," Sumrall said. "That's a frustrating deal. You want to get off the field so bad to get our offense another shot of making it a game and we couldn't find an answer."
The Sooners scored 10 unanswered points after the interception, while Florida never returned to the red zone. The Gators punted, turned the ball over on downs while trying to rally and watched Jones throw another interception on their final possession.
Florida managed just 203 yards of offense, its lowest total of the season and its fewest since a 26-7 loss at Miami last season. The Gators had only 141 yards in that game, with quarterback DJ Lagway and Billy Napier leading the offense.
Florida finished 0-for-2 on fourth-down attempts Saturday and is now 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) in those situations this season.
The Gators' offensive struggles were evident throughout the night, but they were still within one score when Sumrall made his decision. A field goal would have made it a three-point game. A conversion might have given an offense searching for answers a much-needed spark.
Instead, the gamble failed, and Oklahoma took control of a game Florida never seriously threatened to reclaim.
"Right now, we're stalling, and there's not a whole lot of things that we're making look easy,'' Sumrall said. "We're making some things harder than they need to be, I feel like at times. I don't really have an explanation for it right here, right now."
Down 13-7 in the third quarter, Florida faced fourth-and-3 in the red zone. Rather than attempt a 34-yard field goal to cut the deficit to three, head coach Jon Sumrall decided to go for it.
"I felt like it was going to take 14 points at least," Sumrall said. "And we haven't been down in the red zone enough for me to feel real confident that we're going to get a bunch more trips."
Quarterback Tramell Jones Jr. took the snap, faked a handoff to Jadan Baugh and rolled right. With pressure closing in, Jones threw off his back foot toward Eric Singleton Jr., but Oklahoma defensive back Courtland Guillory made a play on the ball and intercepted it in the end zone.
Oklahoma got the ball, and the Gators lost any momentum in their 23-7 loss at sold-out Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
"Eric was wide open, tried to put it on him," Jones said. "Corner made a great play. It fell off. We can't have those interceptions. Can't have any turnovers. You gotta play turnover-free football, especially in the red zone. Especially when we're in scoring distance."
The decision to go for it was bound to draw scrutiny, particularly with Florida trailing by only six points. A successful conversion could have put the Gators in position to take the lead. Instead, the interception gave Oklahoma an opportunity to seize control.
Sumrall said analytics factored into his decision, citing "the book" that he and other coaches use to evaluate those situations. He also thought Singleton might have been "grabbed a bit" on the play, but no penalty was called.
Whatever the reasoning, Florida came away empty-handed. And Oklahoma made the most of the opportunity.
Following the interception at the 6:22 mark of the third quarter, the Sooners controlled the ball for 17 minutes and 30 seconds of the remaining 21:22 of playing time.
Oklahoma's game-clinching drive in the fourth quarter lasted 20 plays, covered 89 yards and consumed 12 minutes and 45 seconds. Oklahoma capped the drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass from quarterback John Mateer to Isaiah Sategna III.
"They took the air out of the football, and they bled it," Sumrall said. "That's a frustrating deal. You want to get off the field so bad to get our offense another shot of making it a game and we couldn't find an answer."
The Sooners scored 10 unanswered points after the interception, while Florida never returned to the red zone. The Gators punted, turned the ball over on downs while trying to rally and watched Jones throw another interception on their final possession.
Florida managed just 203 yards of offense, its lowest total of the season and its fewest since a 26-7 loss at Miami last season. The Gators had only 141 yards in that game, with quarterback DJ Lagway and Billy Napier leading the offense.
Florida finished 0-for-2 on fourth-down attempts Saturday and is now 10-for-17 (58.8 percent) in those situations this season.
The Gators' offensive struggles were evident throughout the night, but they were still within one score when Sumrall made his decision. A field goal would have made it a three-point game. A conversion might have given an offense searching for answers a much-needed spark.
Instead, the gamble failed, and Oklahoma took control of a game Florida never seriously threatened to reclaim.
"Right now, we're stalling, and there's not a whole lot of things that we're making look easy,'' Sumrall said. "We're making some things harder than they need to be, I feel like at times. I don't really have an explanation for it right here, right now."
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