Gators Trailing at Halftime in High-Scoring Affair vs. Texas A&M, 24-20

The Florida Gators head into the halftime break trailing to Texas A&M on the road, 24-20.

Photo: Anthony Richardson; Credit: Alex Shepherd

Do you like points? Well, the Gators and Aggies surely do.

The Florida Gators are on the road for just the second time this season taking on the Texas A&M Aggies in College Station. Following an 11 a.m. local time kickoff (noon ET), Florida is trailing Jimbo Fisher's squad 24-20 in front of the 12th man.

Multiple Texas A&M contributors were ruled out before the contest due to a flu outbreak within the program. Starting quarterback Conner Weigman was the most notable name on the inactive list, alongside fellow quarterback Max Johnson.

Haynes King, who's played in five games this season, earned the nod to lead the Aggies on the afternoon as a result. Florida didn't come in at full strength either, as leading wideout Justin Shorter was sidelined with a hamstring injury he dealt with during the week after being listed as questionable on the Wednesday depth chart release.

However, the missing starters didn't stop the scoring in the early going for either squad. It's a track meet in College Station.

Despite two false start penalties on right tackle Michael Tarquin on the first drive, the Gators drove 42 yards in nine plays behind the arm of Anthony Richardson, who found Ja'Quavion Fraziars and Ricky Pearsall at the intermediate levels of the field for gains of 17 and 23 yards respectively to move the chains.

Adam Mihalek connected from 50 yards to take an early 3-0 lead.

On the ensuing drive, Texas A&M running back Devon Achane reeled off the longest run of the Aggies season with a 65-yard carry on the first offensive play from scrimmage. Three plays later — following penalties by defensive backs Jason Marshall Jr. (facemask) and Jaydon Hill (pass interference) — Achane punched the ball in for a quick score to put the Aggies up 7-3.

The action continued for UF when it got the ball back for drive two, as running back Trevor Etienne got in on the explosive rushing action with back-to-back runs of more than 10 yards to push the Gators deep into Texas A&M territory.

This time, Florida capitalized on the early drive success — with help from a targeting penalty on A&M safety Jaylon Jones' hit on Pearsall — to retake the lead with a 10-yard touchdown run by Richardson. 

But, the lead was short-lived as the Aggies drove the field for another score on a swing pass in the red zone from King to an uncovered Achane on the right boundary.

Richardson quickly answered with a 60-yard rush on the third play of the next drive as the squads continued to trade blows on the scoreboard. Florida led 17-14 at the end of the first quarter.

The Aggies responded behind the arm of King to continue the onslaught of scoring. Looking to the likes of Moose Muhammad III and tight end Max Wright — who matched his season total in catches by hauling in three balls for 39 yards — for chunks of yards to march down the field more methodically than the first quarter scoring.

However, Florida got a stop inside the 10-yard line to force a 24-yard field goal by Randy Bond. The scoreboard accurately displayed the evenly matched game at 17-17. 

Florida answered with a field goal of their own.

After back-to-back punts, one by each team, the Aggies offense found their groove yet again behind the legs of Achane and wide receiver Evan Stewart, who turned a short pass into a long gain after the catch. That gave the Aggies the ball inside the Gators' 10-yard line with just over one minute remaining.

Achane scored his third touchdown of the afternoon to head into the halftime break up 24-20.

Texas A&M won the coin toss and elected to defer their option to the second half. The Aggies will receive the ball following the intermission with an opportunity to extend their four-point lead.

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