2012 Florida Gators football

SEC Eastern Division co-champion
Sugar Bowl, L 23–33 vs. Louisville
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Eastern Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 10
AP	No. 9
Record	11–2 (7–1 SEC)
Head coach	Will Muschamp (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Brent Pease (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Dan Quinn (2nd season)
Base defense	Multiple 4–3
Home stadium	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium^[1]
Seasons ← 2011 2013 →

2012 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Eastern Division
No. T–5 Georgia xy	7	–	1	12	–	2
No. 9 Florida x%	7	–	1	11	–	2
No. 8 South Carolina	6	–	2	11	–	2
No. 23 Vanderbilt	5	–	3	9	–	4
Missouri	2	–	6	5	–	7
Tennessee	1	–	7	5	–	7
Kentucky	0	–	8	2	–	10
Western Division
No. 1 Alabama x$#	7	–	1	13	–	1
No. 14 LSU *	6	–	2	10	–	3
No. T–5 Texas A&M	6	–	2	11	–	2
Mississippi State	4	–	4	8	–	5
Ole Miss *	3	–	5	7	–	6
Arkansas	2	–	6	4	–	8
Auburn	0	–	8	3	–	9
Championship: Alabama 32, Georgia 28
# – BCS National Champion $ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant * Ole Miss and LSU vacated all wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll

The 2012 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 2012 college football season. The Gators competed in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and played their home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus. The 2012 season was the Gators' second under head coach Will Muschamp. They finished the season with 11–2 overall, 7–1 SEC. The team was invited to the 2013 Sugar Bowl, where they lost to the Louisville Cardinals, 33–23.

Schedule

The 2012 Orange and Blue Debut game was played on April 7 at 1 p.m. and was televised on Sun Sports.^[2] Blue defeated Orange 21–20 in front of 38,100 fans.^[3]

The October 20 game against South Carolina hosted ESPN's College Gameday.^[4] In addition, their road games against Texas A&M and Tennessee were also hosted by College GameDay.

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	Bowling Green*	No. 23	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	ESPN	W 27–14	84,704
September 8	at Texas A&M	No. 24	Kyle Field College Station, TX (College GameDay)	ESPN	W 20–17	87,114
September 15	at No. 23 Tennessee	No. 18	Neyland Stadium Knoxville, TN (College GameDay) (rivalry)	ESPN	W 37–20	102,455
September 22	Kentucky	No. 14	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	SECN	W 38–0	87,102
October 6	No. 4 LSU	No. 10	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	CBS	W 14–6	90,824
October 13	at Vanderbilt	No. 4	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN	ESPNU	W 31–17	40,350
October 20	No. 9 South Carolina	No. 3	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (College GameDay)	CBS	W 44–11	90,833
October 27	vs. No. 12 Georgia	No. 3	EverBank Field Jacksonville, FL (rivalry)	CBS	L 9–17	84,644
November 3	Missouri	No. 8	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	ESPN2	W 14–7	90,496
November 10	Louisiana–Lafayette*	No. 7	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	SECN	W 27–20	86,482
November 17	Jacksonville State*	No. 7	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	PPV	W 23–0	82,691
November 24	at No. 10 Florida State*	No. 6	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry)	ABC	W 37–26	83,429
January 2, 2013	vs. No. 22 Louisville*	No. 4	Superdome New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl) (College GameDay)	ESPN	L 23–33	54,178
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released before game time

Source:^[5]

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	23	24	18	14	11	10	4	3	3 (1)	8	7	7	6	5	4	9
Coaches	23	23	17	14	12	11	6	4	3	8	7	7	6	5	4	10
Harris	Not released						6	3	3 (1)	8	7	7	5	5	4	Not released
BCS	Not released							2	2	7	6	6	4	4	3	Not released

Roster

2012 Florida Gators roster

Quarterbacks

6 Jeff Driskel – sophomore
9 Jacob Guy – freshman
10 Tyler Murphy – sophomore
12 Jacoby Brissett – sophomore
13 Christian Provancha – sophomore
17 Skyler Mornhinweg – freshman
19 Ryan McGriff – freshman

Running backs

16 Scott Peek – senior
23 Mike Gillislee – senior
24 Matt Jones – freshman
32 Chris Johnson – sophomore
33 Mack Brown – sophomore
35 Jessie Schmitt – freshman
37 Mark Herndon – freshman
41 Hunter Joyer – sophomore

Wide receivers

1 Quinton Dunbar – sophomore
4 Eric Rumph – junior
8 Trey Burton – junior
13 Latroy Pittman – freshman
15 Ryan Parrish – junior
30 Michael McNeely – sophomore
33 Chris Maignan – junior
81 Darius Masline – freshman
83 Solomon Patton – junior
85 Frankie Hammond – senior
86 Raphael Andrades – freshman
87 A. J. Mobley – sophomore
89 Stephen Alli – junior

Tight ends

11 Jordan Reed – junior
18 Kent Taylor – freshman
20 Omarius Hines – senior
80 Tevin Westbrook – sophomore
82 Bair Diamond – freshman
84 Colin Thompson – freshman
88 Clay Burton – sophomore

Offensive line

50 Sam Robey – senior
62 Cole Gilliam – junior
63 Trip Thurman – freshman
64 Kyle Koehne – junior
65 Tommy Jordan – freshman
66 James Wilson – senior
67 Jon Halapio – junior
68 John Reichardt – senior
70 D. J. Humphries – freshman
71 Matt Patchan – junior
72 Jonotthan Harrison – junior
73 Xavier Nixon – senior
74 Jessamen Dunker – freshman
75 Chaz Green – sophomore
76 Max Garcia – Incoming Transfer
77 Ian Silberman – sophomore

Defensive line

2 Dominique Easley – junior
4 Damien Jacobs – junior
6 Dante Fowler – freshman
7 Ronald Powell – junior
44 Leon Orr – sophomore
57 Dakota Wilson – freshman
58 Nick Alajajian – senior
68 John Reichardt – junior
73 Sharrif Floyd – junior
90 Jonathan Bullard – freshman
91 Earl Okine – senior
93 Kedric Johnson – junior
94 Bryan Cox Jr. – freshman
95 Alex McCallister – freshman
98 Quinteze Williams – freshman
99 Omar Hunter – senior

Linebackers

1 Jon Bostic – senior
3 Jelani Jenkins – junior
11 Neiron Ball – sophomore
12 Antonio Morrison – freshman
25 Gideon Ajagbe – sophomore
28 Jeremi Powell – freshman
34 Lerentee McCray – senior
36 David Campbell – junior
48 Wes Owings – freshman
49 Darrin Kitchens – junior
51 Michael Taylor – sophomore
53 Cody Adams – freshman

Cornerbacks

5 Marcus Roberson – sophomore
8 Jeremy Brown – junior
14 Jaylen Watkins – junior
15 Loucheiz Purifoy – sophomore
22 Hugh Miles – freshman
24 Brian Poole – freshman
27 Willie Bailey – freshman
31 Cody Riggs – junior

Safeties

9 Josh Evans – senior
10 Valdez Showers – freshman
20 Marcus Maye – freshman
21 Jabari Gorman – sophomore
21 Evan Schroeder – freshman
22 Matt Elam – junior
26 De'Ante Saunders – sophomore
27 Ben Peacock – freshman
29 Rhaheim Ledbetter – freshman
30 Tim Clark – junior

Punters

0 Grant Van Aman – freshman
4 Kyle Christy – sophomore
39 Todd Fennell – freshman
40 Justin Vogel – freshman

Kickers

16 Austin Hardin – freshman
19 Caleb Sturgis – senior
47 John Crofoot – junior
95 Francisco Velez – junior
97 Brad Phillips – junior

Long snappers

43 Kyle Crofoot – freshman
46 Drew Ferris – junior
54 Christopher Guido – senior

Coaching staff

Wide receivers coach Aubrey Hill resigned during the offseason, so Pease and graduate assistant Bush Hamdan coached wide receivers.

Name	Current responsibilities	Joined staff
Will Muschamp	Head coach	2011
Brent Pease	Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks*	2012
Dan Quinn	Defensive coordinator	2011
D.J. Durkin	Linebackers/Special Teams	2010
Tim Davis	offensive line/Running game coordinator	2012
Brian White	Running Backs	2009
Derek Lewis	Tight Ends	2011
Travaris Robinson	Defensive Backs	2011
Bryant Young	Defensive line	2011

Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Raphael Andrades WR	Tallahassee, Florida	Lincoln	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Feb 1, 2012
Raphael Andrades WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Willie Bailey CB	Hallandale, Florida	Hallandale	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Apr 6, 2011
Willie Bailey CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jonathan Bullard DE	Shelby, North Carolina	Crest	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	Jan 7, 2012
Jonathan Bullard DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Bryan Cox Jr. DE	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	St. Thomas Aquinas	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	Jan 21, 2012
Bryan Cox Jr. DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jessamen Dunker OL	Boynton Beach, Florida	Boynton Beach	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	315 lb (143 kg)	Mar 21, 2011
Jessamen Dunker OL	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Dante Fowler DE	St. Petersburg, Florida	Lakewood	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Feb 1, 2012
Dante Fowler DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Austin Hardin K	Atlanta, Georgia	Marist Brothers	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Jun 22, 2011
Austin Hardin K	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
D.J. Humphries OL	Charlotte, North Carolina	Mallard Creek	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	270 lb (120 kg)	Aug 5, 2011
D.J. Humphries OL	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Damien Jacobs DT	Scooba, Mississippi	East Mississippi C.C.	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	295 lb (134 kg)	Dec 21, 2011
Damien Jacobs DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A
Matt Jones RB	Seffner, Florida	Armwood	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Feb 15, 2011
Matt Jones RB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Rhaheim Ledbetter S	Boiling Springs, North Carolina	Crest	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jul 15, 2011
Rhaheim Ledbetter S	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jafar Mann DT	Stone Mountain, Georgia	Stephenson	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	275 lb (125 kg)	Mar 25, 2011
Jafar Mann DT	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Marcus Maye S	Melbourne, Florida	Holy Trinity	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Jul 18, 2011
Marcus Maye S	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Alex McCalister DE	Clemmons, North Carolina	West Forsyth	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jan 23, 2012
Alex McCalister DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Skyler Mornhinweg QB	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	St. Joseph's	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Jan 27, 2012
Skyler Mornhinweg QB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Antonio Morrison LB	Bolingbrook, Illinois	Bolingbrook	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Aug 3, 2011
Antonio Morrison LB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Latroy Pittman WR	Citra, Florida	North Marion	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Aug 18, 2010
Latroy Pittman WR	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Brian Poole CB	Bradenton, Florida	Southeast	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Jun 14, 2011
Brian Poole CB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jeremi Powell MLB	Largo, Florida	Pinellas Park	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Feb 19, 2011
Jeremi Powell MLB	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Kent Taylor TE	Land O' Lakes, Florida	Land O' Lakes	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Oct 27, 2011
Kent Taylor TE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Colin Thompson TE	Warminster, Pennsylvania	Archbishop Wood Catholic	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	May 5, 2011
Colin Thompson TE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Quinteze Williams DE	Tyrone, Georgia	Sandy Creek	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	Mar 30, 2011
Quinteze Williams DE	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 5 Rivals: 3 247Sports: 4 ESPN: 4
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2012 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Season summary

Bowling Green

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bowling Green	7	0	7	0	14
• Florida	0	14	3	10	27

Date: September 1
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Texas A&M

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Florida	7	3	3	7	20
Texas A&M	3	14	0	0	17

Date: September 8
Location: Kyle Field

Tennessee

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Florida	7	3	17	10	37
Tennessee	7	7	6	0	20

Date: September 15
Location: Neyland Stadium

Kentucky

	1	2	3	4	Total
Kentucky	0	0	0	0	0
• Florida	3	21	7	7	38

Date: September 22
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

LSU

	1	2	3	4	Total
LSU	3	3	0	0	6
• Florida	0	0	7	7	14

Date: October 6
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Vanderbilt

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Florida	0	11	7	13	31
Vanderbilt	7	0	0	10	17

Date: October 13
Location: Vanderbilt Stadium

South Carolina

	1	2	3	4	Total
South Carolina	3	3	2	3	11
• Florida	7	14	16	7	44

Date: October 20
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Georgia

	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida	0	6	0	3	9
• Georgia	7	0	3	7	17

Date: October 27
Location: Everbank Field

Missouri

	1	2	3	4	Total
Missouri	0	7	0	0	7
• Florida	0	0	7	7	14

Date: November 3
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Louisiana-Lafayette

	1	2	3	4	Total
Louisiana	3	0	14	3	20
• Florida	3	7	3	14	27

Date: November 10
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Jacksonville State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Jacksonville St	0	0	0	0	0
• Florida	10	0	7	6	23

Date: November 17
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Florida State

#6 Florida Gators (10–1) at #10 Florida State Seminoles (10–1)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Florida	3	10	0	24	37
Florida State	0	3	17	6	26

at Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, Florida

Date: November 24
Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
Game weather: Sunny • 66 °F (19 °C) • Wind N/NW 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)
Game attendance: 83,429
Referee: Brad Allen
Automated ScoreBook

Game information

Florida

Jeff Driskel
15/23, 147 Yds, TD
Mike Gillislee
24 Rush, 140 Yds, 2 TD
Jordan Reed
4 Rec, 54 Yds

Florida State

EJ Manuel
18/33, 182 Yds, TD, 3 INT
12 Rush, 54 Yds, 2 TD
Rashad Greene
5 Rec, 65 Yds

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	FLA	FSU
1	9:13	14	54	5:47	Florida	39-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis	3	0
2	6:53	10	54	4:59	Florida	45-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis	6	0
2	5:26	3	21	1:20	Florida	Mike Gillislee 9-yard touchdown run, Caleb Sturgis kick good	13	0
2	0:00	9	56	2:10	Florida State	50-yard field goal by Dustin Hopkins	13	3
3	10:27	4	25	1:06	Florida State	Nick O'Leary 6-yard touchdown reception from EJ Manuel, Dustin Hopkins kick good	13	10
3	8:30	2	26	1:49	Florida State	EJ Manuel 1-yard touchdown run, Dustin Hopkins kick good	13	17
3	4:24	4	13	1:15	Florida State	53-yard field goal by Dustin Hopkins	13	20
4	13:27	13	64	5:53	Florida	32-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis	16	20
4	11:01	1	37	0:08	Florida	Mike Gillislee 37-yard touchdown run, Caleb Sturgis kick good	23	20
4	7:00	5	32	2:23	Florida	Quinton Dunbar 14-yard touchdown reception from Jeff Driskel, Caleb Sturgis kick good	30	20
4	2:33	4	56	1:25	Florida	Matt Jones 32-yard touchdown run, Caleb Sturgis kick good	37	20
4	0:00	11	77	2:28	Florida State	EJ Manuel 22-yard touchdown run	37	26
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							37	26

Sugar Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Louisville	14	10	6	3	33
Florida	0	10	0	13	23

Date: January 2
Location: Mercedes-Benz Superdome
Game weather: Indoors (dome)

Players drafted into the NFL

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL club
1	23	Sharrif Floyd	DT	Minnesota Vikings
1	32	Matt Elam	S	Baltimore Ravens
2	50	Jon Bostic	LB	Chicago Bears
3	85	Jordan Reed	TE	Washington Redskins
4	104	Jelani Jenkins	LB	Miami Dolphins
5	164	Mike Gillislee	RB	Miami Dolphins
5	166	Caleb Sturgis	K	Miami Dolphins
6	169	Josh Evans	S	Jacksonville Jaguars

References

^ University of Florida Sports Information Department. "Florida 2012 Media Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
^ "Orange & Blue Debut, Presented by Sunniland, Set for April 7". gatorzone.com. Archived from the original on January 27, 2012. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
^ "Gator Football Boxscores". gatorzone.com. Archived from the original on October 8, 2012. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
^ "ESPN College Football". espn.com. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
^ "Gator Football Schedule/Results - GatorZone.com". Archived from the original on April 28, 2011. Retrieved December 28, 2011.

v t e Florida Gators football
Venues	The Baseball Park (1906–1910) University Athletic Field / Fleming Field (1911–1930) Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (1930–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Alabama Auburn Florida State (Florida Cup) Georgia Kentucky LSU Miami (Florida Cup) Tennessee
Culture & lore	History The Pride of the Sunshine Gator Chomp Mr. Two Bits Gatorade 1992 SEC Championship Game 2009 SEC Championship Game
People	Head coaches Ring of Honor All-Americans UF Athletic Hall of Fame Starting quarterbacks Statistical leaders NFL draftees
Seasons	1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold