Not only was there action on the field, but also plenty of other activities outside the venue as well. The fun started with the Gatorland Fan Fest, followed by the traditional Gator Walk into the stadium. The excitement peaked at noon ET when the gridiron action began.<\/p>\n
The game ended in a 45-45 tie after the defense stood strong in the final quarter. Overall, many familiar and unfamiliar names both received reps, and most importantly, there were no major injuries. And so, Gator fans got their first taste of Florida football under Jon Sumrall.<\/p>\n
Griffin remains at quarterback, getting three yards on one pass before an incomplete pass. But he keeps the Defense off the board with a 10-yard pass to Lloyd near midfield. He spikes the ball to stop the clock before connecting again on the left sideline with Ace Ciongoli for 9 yards, then Lloyd again for 11 yards.<\/p>\n Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!<\/a><\/p>\n Under 30 seconds left and Griffin jumps to catch a high snap, then swings it out to Lloyd for a loss of three. The Offense is forced into a fourth-and-9 situation, and the 49-yard field goal attempt by Clark goes wide, tying the score to end the game.<\/p>\n Four-and-out and a punt leads to score<\/p>\n Play restarts at second and 10, and Griffin is sacked for five yards, bringing up third and 15. A complete pass to Case for 3 yards isn’t enough to keep things going, so Miller Fealy comes in to punt the ball 36 yards. It’s now 45-42, Offense.<\/p>\n Two-minute timeout, game nears end<\/p>\n Griffin is back in and throws an incomplete pass before the two-minute timeout. 45-38, Offense. Announced attendance is 47,100.<\/p>\n Missed field goal follows red zone drive<\/p>\n Aaron Williams is now in at quarterback and his first pass is a deep throw to Marquez Daniel, who is unable to haul it in. His next attempt is too high for Jaylen Lloyd to catch at the sideline, and it’s now third and 10. Williams completes his third attempt for a gain of eight, setting up a fourth-and-2.<\/p>\n Williams gets the first down on the ground and gets seven yard, keeping the drive alive. A 25-yard pass to Justin Williams pushed things further downfield and Kevin Jimenez takes the ball on the ground for gains of 7 and 5 yards, respectively.<\/p>\n Now in the red zone, an incomplete pass from Williams on third-and-3 brings the field goal unit back out. The 34-yard attempt by Brandon Rabasco is missed wide left, and the Defense adds three points to its total. 45-38, Offense.<\/p>\n Offense drives into red zone, settles for field goal<\/p>\n Warner continues to get Orange and Blue Game reps, coming out to start the fourth quarter for the offense. London Montgomery gets a touch with a 6-yard run up the middle between a pair of passes, while Montgomery also gets in on the action with a 6-yard rush himself.<\/p>\n The ground game continues to grind and Warner keeps connecting on his short passes, including a 13-yard gain into the hands of Evan Chieca. However, the Defense makes a stand in the red zone, and the Offense settles for a 26-yard field goal attempt by Durkin, who sends it through the uprights for 3 points. It’s now 45-35, Offense, after the 65-yard drive.<\/p>\n Interception ends third quarter<\/p>\n Griffin remains under center, and the offense puts together gains of seven and eight yards for a first down. They managed to get another first down before Warner tossed his first pick of the afternoon. Marquez Daniel gets the interception and now it’s 42-35, Offense.<\/p>\n Will Griffin comes in, but stalls out<\/p>\n The true freshman Will Griffin takes over at quarterback and connects on his first attempt, on a pass running to his right, caught by Louis. Another pass toward the right sideline to Stockton gives him a first down. His third attempt is broken up by LJ McCray, forcing a third-and-2 situation; his next attempt hits the grass and it is time to punt.<\/p>\n Singleton makes the fair catch from Nicolas Inglis after traveling 39 yards in the air. It’s now 42-29, Offense.<\/p>\n Aidan Warner gets in on the scoring action<\/p>\n Aidan Warner is now under center for the Gators, but an illegal motion penalty negates a short passing gain before an incomplete pass. Then, Warner finds Jackson for a 21-yard gain to keep the drive alive, putting Blue on the other side of midfield.<\/p>\n Warner runs the ball on a short bootleg to his left for a 7-yard gain, followed by a 2-yard run up the middle by Brian Case. A pass interference call on Onis Konanbanny the next play gives the Offense 15 yards and a first down at the 15-yard line. Warner takes the ball himself again on the ground for a 19-yard touchdown scamper after he was sacked for 4 yards.<\/p>\n Durkin puts the PAT through the uprights, and it’s now 42-25, Offense after the 75-yard drive.<\/p>\n Second half opens with field-goal drive<\/p>\n Third quarter begins with a false start, but Jones is able to get his passing going again with a 35-yard reception by Abrams, followed by completions of 9 and 5 yards, respectively, to get his squad deep into the defense’s territory. However, they are forced into kicking a 29-yard field goal in a fourth-and-3 situation. It’s now 35-25, Offense.<\/p>\n Offense takes the lead before the halftime horn sounds<\/p>\n With Philo back in, the offense drives deep into the defense’s territory, setting up another touchdown pass over the middle to Mayes Jr. for his second score after a 60-yard drive. The PAT makes it 32-25 and the offense has its first lead of the day at the end of the half.<\/p>\n Bomb and a 2-point conversion ties game<\/p>\n Very first play, Jones gets in on the excitement with a 75-yard bomb to Micah Mayes Jr. for the touchdown. Team goes for two and succeeds with a catch in the shallow corner of the endzone to Stockton. Game is now tied at 25 apiece.<\/p>\n Philo connects with VB3 for a touchdown<\/p>\n Offense connects for four yards before Pryor is stopped for a loss of two. But a deep pass to Vernell Brown III is caught for a touchdown, followed by a successful PAT. It’s now 25-17, Defense.<\/p>\n Offense driving again, 2-minute timeout<\/p>\n The penalty puts Philo and the offense at the 40-yard line to start and Clark opens up with a 7-yard run. A short pass to Singleton gains just two, bringing up a third-and-1. Philo keeps it on a QB sneak to get the first down at midfield.<\/p>\n Philo connects with Clark at the sideline, but there’s no gain. Next play is a nice little play-action that he connects with Singleton for a 13-yard gain and another first down. And the two-minute timeout stops play. 25-10, Defense<\/p>\n Interception No. 2 of the day<\/p>\n Philo retakes the reins for the next series, nd Montgomery gets his first touch on the first play \u2014 a gain of one. Philo tries a downfield pass on second down, but misses Khaliel Jackson. He completes his third-down attempt for nine yards and just enough for the first down.<\/p>\n And the next throw is intercepted, plus a late-hit penalty at the end of the play. Defense now up 25-10.<\/p>\n Offense goes three-and-out<\/p>\n Offense takes over at the 20 with Jones still in, but the squad goes nowhere, resulting in a four-and-out on fourth-and-four. Clark punts it again, fair-catched by Stockton at the 25-yard line for a 44-yard punt. 18-10, Defense.<\/p>\n Touchdown Gators!<\/p>\n Jones is back at quarterback and he was still struggling to connect with his receivers until a nice reception by Louis for a 15-yard gain and a first down. Clearly, Tramell has things figured out as he tosses a bomb to Singleton for a touchdown shortly after. Personal foul is called on the defense \u2014 a 15-yard penalty that is assessed on the kickoff.<\/p>\n Durkin attempts the PAT… and it is good. It’s now a 15-10 game, with the Defense still leading.<\/p>\n A first down and a punt on the next possession<\/p>\n Duke Clark opens up the next possession with a 7-yard run and follows that with another 7-yarder for a first down. An incomplete pass to Singleton followed by a 9-yard sack puts the squad at 4th-and-18, and Clark punts it away to the 33-yard line. 15-3, Defense<\/p>\n Interception!<\/p>\n New drive starts at the 25-yard line and results in an interception on the first pass off a Philo throw. Coleman gets the pick at the 30-yard line with a 6-yard return for six points. 14-3, Defense.<\/p>\n Second quarter begins with a field goal<\/p>\n Now on the other end of the field, after the quarter change at the 22-yard line, facing a third-and-10, Philo is sacked for a loss of eight. Patrick Durkin attempts a 48-yard field goal and it is good! The offense is finally on the board. Defense 8, Offense 3.<\/p>\n Philo drives offense near red zone to end first quarter<\/p>\n Philo is back under center and gets his team a first down before fumbling a snap \u2014 but the offense recovers after a loss of four. Evan Pryor gets a touch after Baugh saw most of the work with Philo, getting a rush and a reception,and the Gators earn another first down after seeing fourth-and-short. End of the first quarter.<\/p>\n Gators get a first down, but nothing more<\/p>\n Jones stays in at quarterback for the next possession, starting at the 20-yard line, and with the help of Duke Clark on the ground, finally gets a first down. A team sack at the 27-yard line gives a loss of 11, making it third and 20, and with just five yards on the next play, the offense is forced to punt again. Stockton makes a fair catch at the 29-yard line, and things reset once again. Defense up 8-0.<\/p>\n Second offensive possession<\/p>\n Now in at quarterback is Tramell Jones, who goes three-and-out on 1-for-2 passing. And then the Gators punt it 61 yards to change possession. Byron Louis gets a touch but can’t do much. Three points for the turnover on downs and one for the punt. Defense up 6-0.<\/p>\n Game on!<\/p>\n The opening drive saw the offense looking pretty sharp, with Aaron Philo leading his squad downfield, connecting on his first four passes and five of his first six before. A fourth-and-1 at the 30-yard line resulted in a turnover on downs after Baugh was unable to gain the yard. That gives the defense three early points.<\/p>\n Gators exit the tunnel ahead of the big game<\/p>\n Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeere comes the Gators!<\/p>\n Pregame warmups<\/p>\n With three-quarters of an hour remaining until kickoff, the fans have started filling the seats while the team gets its pregame reps in on the north side of the field.<\/p>\n Orange and Blue Game pregame gallery<\/p>\n Tip of the hat to Alan Youngblood of the Gainesville Sun for getting these early shots of the action.<\/p>\n A near-empty Swamp is always a bit of an eerie scene, but very soon, Gator fans will be trickling into the aisles and preparing to see the Orange and Blue in action for the first time this year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Pride of the Sunshine prepares for an afternoon of gridiron action with some warmup tunes.<\/p>\n Gatorland Fan Fest underway!<\/p>\n The excitement started early, with a packed crowd on hand already at 10 a.m. ET \u2014 a full half hour before the gates open. As you can see from the video below, things are already rocking and rolling outside of the Swamp.<\/p>\n There is also plenty of tailgating action happening in the parking lot as well.<\/p>\n Where to watch Florida’s Orange and Blue Game<\/p>\n The 2026 edition of the Orange and Blue Game will not be televised or live-streamed. The game will be broadcast via audio stream, which can be found at FloridaGators.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Orange and Blue Game schedule of events9 a.m. ET: Pregame Gatorland Fan Fest9:20 a.m. ET: Gator Walk10:30 a.m. ET: Stadium gates openNoon ET: KickoffOrange and Blue Game format<\/p>\n The team will split into two squads, one offense and one defense. The game will feature four 15-minute quarters with a running clock. The clock will only stop for scores, penalties, change of possessions and during the last two minutes of each half. There will be a five-minute halftime.<\/p>\n For the scoring system, the offense will get six points for a touchdown and three points for a field goal. After touchdowns, the offense will get one point for kicking an extra point, two points for a conversion from the three-yard line and four points for a conversion from the 10-yard line.<\/p>\n For the defense, they will get six points for a turnover, three points for a three-and-out or turnover on downs and one point for a forced punt.<\/p>\n Follow us\u00a0@GatorsWire<\/a>\u00a0on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky<\/a>, and like our page on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators<\/a> news, notes and opinions.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/89570602007-2270891907.jpg\")
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