Florida Dominates Texas Longhorns in First Half at the Swamp

Arch Manning's first conference road start of his career isn't off to the worst start; it could be much, much worse for the New Orleans native.

But as of now, it's not looking too good.

After one half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, the No. 9 Texas Longhorns are down by two scores to Billy Napier and the Gators, 19-7, with the Gators scoring on all of their offensive possessions so far except for one that resulted in a fumble.

Manning is currently six for 12 in passing for only 63 yards and a passing touchdown, as the Longhorns' slow starts on offense plague them yet again in the first half in Gainesville.

Where is the Offense?

It's clear that the Gators have been doing their homework on their SEC counterparts in their two weeks since their 26-7 loss to the Miami Hurricanes.

Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway (2) throws the ball against the Texas Longhorns during the first half. — Oct 4, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway (2) throws the ball against the Texas Longhorns during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The Gators got on the board first with a five-yard rushing score by sophomore running back Jaden Baugh and would later tack on three with a minute left in the first quarter with a29-yard Trey Smack field goal to make it 10-0 Florida after the first quarter.

Thankfully, early in the second quarter, a positive blessed the Longhorns, as the team was able to force a fumble on tight end Hayden Hansen after a 20-yard gain, and linebacker Anthony Hill was able to recover the fumble, giving Texas a start at the Florida 46-yard line, which resulted in Arch Manning hitting running back Quintrevion Wisner for the six-yard touchdown in the back's first game since the season opener at Ohio State.

Outside of that, the Burnt Orange offense has been rather dormant, with Wisner only having four yards from three carries in the running game, and asside from a 14-yard rush by Manning and a 33-yard pass play from the quarterback to wide receiver Parker Livingstone, there hasn't been much to write home about.

Florida followed up that touchdown from the Horns with a passing score of their own, DJ Lagway finding wide receiver Dallas Wilson from 13 yards out, and then after forcing the Longhorns in punt formation after bringing up a fourth down, the Gators blocked Jack Bouwmeester's punt, causing it to roll out of the back of the end zone, resulting in a safety to bring the score to 19-7, where it is now.

The Gators are dominating the Longhorns in terms of total yardage (263-87) and in time of possession (19:51-10:09), and if this is a sign of things to come for the team in conference play, it's going to be a long two months for Steve Sarkisian's squad.

The second half will be back underway from "The Swamp" shortly on ESPN.