Live Blog: The Wars for Florida

It’s, as the NCAA Football series tells me, the Battle for the Seminole War Canoe. And it’s my first dedicated live blog of a game this year.

“Oh,” you say, what about that other one earlier today?”

Well, that wasn’t just one game. This one will be, with some UCF-USF tidbits sprinkled in, considering I’ve got two TVs set up and will be watching both games simultaneously.

Speaking of that game, it’s 10-7, USF, after the Delbert Alvarado Experience delivered on a short kick.

This USF-UCF tilt is being played at a much higher level than I would have expected. Also, for those who don’t know/care about USF football, former ‘Bama recruit (and the reason for Nick Saban’s comments about USF’s academic standards) Mike Ford is out for this game. That basically means Matt Grothe’s shouldering more of the load than he should.

Also, Grothe will be 21 on Monday, so there’s one hell of a birthday party waiting for him on the other end of this game should the Bulls win. (He’s listed as in a relationship on Facebook. We’ll see about that come Monday.)

Speaking of, the fauxhawked one just nearly got beheaded, then scrambled for a first down.

His next pass turns into a pick-six for UCF, which then gets called back, but UCF is hanging much tougher than I would have ever expected.

Good read on Major Wright here; he’s leading what should be the key unit in this game, UF’s secondary. They were great last week against

Brent Musberger and Kirk Herbstreit are standing in front of the worst green screen since John McCain’s last speech.

Florida comes out in the all-blue, ESPN shows Mr. Two Bits, and the Gators take the field to the frenzied roars of 90,000 men, women and children.

There are few greater spectacles in sport.

“Into this fire steps Robert Marve,” Musberger intones.

Erin Andrews, looking pretty as always, gets Urban Meyer to say, “I think we’re going to see the old Percy Harvin play some ball today.” Oh, boy.

The opening kickoff flies into the end zone and the Hurricane catching falls end over end. Miami fans would prefer those verbs be reversed.

Graig Cooper for just a yard on the opening carry. Marve’s first pass is dropped by Leonard Hankerson. Their first third down is an incompletion.

On comes Brandon James, whose mere presence apparently causes a badly shanked punt. Florida will start in Miami territory.

Tebow introduces Harvin, Chris Rainey, and James.

First two UF plays are a pass dropped at the sideline and a Tebow keeper for a yard.

Five wide on third down, and Tebow scrambles for the first. The yellow hanky is just Miami offsides, so UF will continue their drive from Miami’s 23.

Timeout by Florida with 12:54 left in the first quarter. About the earliest one I’ve ever seen in any game of organized football.

It’s still USF 10, UCF 7, with about four minutes left in the first half.

Percy Harvin’s first play of the 2008 season gets nine on a sweep. The Gators are looking like a storm of blue hornets right now, whizzing about the field.

Tebow goes deep on second down, and Aaron Hernandez does his best p