The 2007 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida as a member of the Eastern Division in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by third-year head Urban Meyer, the Gators compiled an overall record of 9–4 with mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing third the SEC's Eastern Division. Florida was invited to the Capital One Bowl, where the Gators lost to Michigan. The team played home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus.

Florida's quarterback was Tim Tebow, the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman Trophy.

Schedule

2012 Florida Football Media Guide , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 114 & 116 (2012). Retrieved September 16, 2012.GatorZone.com, Football, History, Florida Football 2007 . Retrieved November 25, 2011.

**The game aired in its entirety on all CBS stations on a regional basis in Florida, due to the Tennessee-Kentucky game going into 4 overtimes. It was joined in progress after the game ended, and updates of this game were aired for the Tennessee-Kentucky audience during the OT. As a result of both games airing at the same time, the majority of the first half effectively aired commercial-free.

Rankings

Before the season The Gators won the BCS Championship Game in Glendale, Arizona to cap off the 2006 season, the second national championship in school history. In addition, they won a school-record 13 games and the school's seventh official SEC title. The coaching staff remained, surprisingly, intact after 2006, which gave Meyer a third straight season at Florida with the same coaching staff. The schedule for the Gators played in their favor this season, as they faced their toughest opponents—such as Tennessee, Auburn, and Florida State—at home in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Despite the challenges of youth, the Gators were ranked in the top 5 in some preseason polls..Archived copy Fox Sports

Two highly rated recruiting classes from 2006 and 2007 filled up most of the depth chart, as few upperclassmen remained from last year's title team. Nine of 11 starters were replaced from their championship defense. While the offense lost fewer starters — only 8 — from the previous season, the Gators had to replace Chris Leak at quarterback. Leak was replaced by sophomore Tim Tebow, who shared quarterback duties with him last season.

Pre-season watchlists Tim Tebow (QB) – 2007 Maxwell Award Watch List Tim Tebow (QB) – 2007 Manning Award Watch List2007 Allstate Sugar Bowl Andre Caldwell (WR) – 2007 Maxwell Award Watch List Percy Harvin (WR) – 2007 Maxwell Award Watch List Derrick Harvey (DE) – 2007 Bednarik Award Watch List

Game summaries Western Kentucky

For the season opener, the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers filled the void left by the UCF Knights, who had decided to back out of the game in December 2006. This was the first contest between these two schools. It was also the first game in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium after the Gators won their 2006 SEC and national championships.

Sophomore quarterback Tim Tebow led the Gators to touchdowns on their first four possessions en route to a relatively easy 49–3 victory in intense early season heat. Tebow finished his first career start 13-of-17 for 300 yards and three touchdown passes, and added a rushing touchdown as well. True freshman quarterback Cameron Newton entered the game in the fourth quarter and rushed for a touchdown on the last play before lightning in the area caused an hour-long delay. When the weather failed to clear, the game was declared final with 8:23 remaining in the 4th quarter.

Troy

In the first half against the Troy Trojans, the Gator offense led by QB Tim Tebow scored a touchdown every time it had the ball. The special teams chipped in with two blocked punts, and, after allowing an early touchdown, the young Gator defense shut out their opponents for the rest of the half. The score stood at 49–7 after two quarters, the Gators having racked up over 350 yards of total offense, Tebow throwing 3 touchdown passes and running for another score in an impressive display of all-around dominating football.

After halftime, though, things changed in The Swamp. Florida received the second half kickoff and fumbled a few plays later, leading to a Troy touchdown. That sequence would set the tone for the rest of the game. The Gators seemed to lose their offensive rhythm and the point production dried up while Troy QB Omar Haugabook (30-53, 291 yards, 2 TDs) found his own rhythm, helping the Trojans outscore the Gators 24–10 over the final two quarters.

When the final whistle blew, Florida came away with a 59–31 victory. The outcome was never in doubt; the Gators 2nd half lead was always greater than 20 points. And their final stats looked impressive – they outgained the Trojans 500 to 336 and averaged 7 yards per offensive play. Tebow's numbers were solid as well; he completed 18 of 25 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns (with no interceptions) and rushed 19 times for a team-high 93 yards and 2 more TDs. In fact, his play earned Tebow honors as the Southeastern Conference offensive player of the week.

However, the second half lapses and miscues (Florida was hit with 11 penalties for 104 yards) made it obvious that the Gators gridders had plenty to work on as they prepared for their SEC opener against the Tennessee Volunteers the following Saturday.

Tennessee

On the 1st possession of the game in the steamy Swamp, the Tennessee Volunteers went three and out. On the ensuing punt, Brandon James took the return 83 yards for Gator touchdown. Things never did get much better for the visitors, as Florida rolled to an impressive 59–20 victory in the SEC opener for both teams.

There was, however, a brief period when it seemed that the contest would be much closer. The Gators ran out to a 28–6 lead by late in the 2nd quarter on two Tim Tebow touchdown passes and a Tebow touchdown run, along with the opening punt return. But then Tennessee QB Erik Ainge got his team's offense moving, throwing a touchdown pass just before halftime to cut the lead to 28–13 at intermission.

The Gators mounted a long drive to start the second half, but freshman Volunteer cornerback Eric Berry picked off a Tim Tebow pass (his first interception thrown in 2007) and returned it 93 yards for another Tennessee touchdown. When Florida's next drive ended in a punt, UT had the ball down only eight, 28–20.

But on the first play of the possession, Erik Ainge's handoff to running back Arian Foster was mishandled, and Gator linebacker Dustin Doe scooped up the loose ball and took it into the endzone for a Florida touchdown. Tennessee's momentum was washed away by the roar of 90,000 Gator fans, and the home team never looked back. Florida would end the game with 31 straight points, turning a close contest into a runaway.

Several Gators had excellent afternoons. Tim Tebow finished 14-19 passing for 299 yards with 2 TDs and 1 INT and rushed for 62 yards and 2 more TDs, and was awarded as the Walter Camp Foundation national offensive player of the week. Brandon James was the SEC special teams player of the week for his 193 yards and a touchdown on kick returns.Miami Herald And receiver Percy Harvin excelled as well, leading all players in rushing (9 attempts for 75 yards and 1 TD) and receiving (4 catches for 120 yards).

The Florida offense rolled up 556 yards of total offense, 255 on the ground. Meanwhile, the Gator defense also did its part, holding Tennessee to just 38 yards rushing with no first downs on the ground and 293 yards total offense.

Overall, the Gators put together a historically dominating performance. Their 59 points scored was the second-highest total in the history of the series (behind only UF's 62 in the 1995 contest), and the 39 point margin of defeat was the Vols' most lopsided loss to any opponent since 1981.Vols All Time Tennessee still leads the overall series by a narrow 19-18 margin.

Ole Miss

Though they looked dominant at times early in the season, the 2007 Florida Gator squad was a team that relied on many freshmen and sophomores in key roles. This inexperience was evident in their contest with the Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford, Mississippi. Thirty-five players on Florida's 60-man traveling roster had never played in a collegiate road game before, and it showed. But as the clock in Vaught–Hemingway Stadium ticked down to 00:00, the Gators had done enough to earn a tighter-than-expected 30–24 victory.

At different points in the game, the young Gators struggled on offense, defense, and special teams. They also committed 14 penalties for 127 yards, with several of the miscues either stalling Gator drives or helping the Rebel's scoring chances.

But once again, it was Tim Tebow who led Florida's charge to victory. The sophomore quarterback completed 20 of 34 passes for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. Once again, his favorite target was Percy Harvin, who had 11 receptions for 123 yards and a TD. Tebow also rushed 27 times for 168 yards and 2 more touchdowns, setting new Florida single-game records for rushing attempts and rushing yards by a quarterback and almost single-handedly running out the clock late in the game. In all, Tebow accounted for all 4 Gator touchdowns and 427 of his team's 507 total yards. For his efforts, Tebow was named the SEC's offensive player of the week for the 2nd time in the 2007 season.

The Rebels put up a valiant effort. Despite a sore shoulder, Ole Miss quarterback Seth Adams threw for 301 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a perfectly tossed 77-yard scoring strike that cut the Gator advantage to 3 late in the 3rd quarter. Mississippi's lead in the all-time series was reduced to 11-10-1. The Gator victory broke both a two-game losing streak to the Rebels and a three-game losing streak in games played in the state of Mississippi.

Auburn

The Gators were seeking revenge for last seasons's only loss (a 27–17 setback at Auburn) when the Tigers visited The Swamp. The Gator defense proved unreliable in the first half, allowing the Tigers to get two touchdowns, while Auburn exhibited its own top notch defense. While the Gators were able to mount a comeback in the second half, eventually bringing the game to a 17–17 tie, Auburn had the ball at the end of the game, and Auburn kicked a field goal as time expired to make the score 20–17, upsetting the number 4 ranked Gators. This loss was coach Urban Meyer's first in Gainesville, as well as his first loss since last year's loss to Auburn. This was the 82nd meeting between the two teams, with the Tigers bringing their record in the UF-Auburn series to 42–38–2 all-time. Auburn would be the only team Tebow has played, but never defeated. This game was notable for the fact that offensive coordinator and future Florida head coach Dan Mullen underwent an emergency appendectomy the night before, yet still called plays from the press box.

LSU

In one of the most anticipated games of the season, the Florida Gators traveled to Tiger Stadium to take on the LSU Tigers in a game that had conference and national title implications.

The Gators took an early lead by kicking a field goal on their first drive. Two drives later, the Gators mounted a 12-play drive that culminated in a Tim Tebow two-yard pass and an unbelievable catch made by Kestahn Moore to put the Gators up by ten. LSU immediately countered with a long drive of their own, going 80 yards in 16 plays, scoring on a Ryan Perrilloux option play to cut the Gator lead to 10–7. The Gators marched down the field again and scored on a Tebow run to put their lead back at 10 with 2:23 to play in the first half. LSU moved the ball right before the half, but kicker Colt David missed a 43-yard field goal.