Florida takes the belt, 41–14, at a neutral site over Ohio State.
AP poll, week 14: Florida No. 4 at Ohio State No. 1 · No. 1 that week: Wisconsin. The belt vs. the polls →
Where this game sits in the lineage
Florida took the belt here, ending Ohio State’s run of 122 days and 10 defenses (reign #260) and starting reign #261. It lasted 263 days and 4 defenses, until Auburn took it on September 29, 2007.
For Florida this was its 16th shot at the belt; it had held the belt twice before — and it took it back here.
This is the only time Florida and Ohio State have met with the belt on the line.
Recap
Florida's defense suffocated Ohio State from the opening kick, forcing three turnovers while the Buckeyes managed just 82 total yards and converted only one third down all game. The Gators struck fast, with Chris Leak connecting on a touchdown pass to Dallas Baker in the first quarter before Percy Harvin punched in a rushing touchdown just minutes later to give Florida an early 14-7 lead. Ohio State's only touchdown came on an Antonio Pittman rush in the second quarter, but Florida's offense kept rolling with DeShawn Wynn scoring before halftime, then adding two Chris Hetland field goals and two more touchdowns—including a Tim Tebow rushing score in the fourth quarter—to cruise to a dominant 41-14 victory. The lopsided yardage advantage (370-82) and time of possession battle (24:48-11:52) told the story of complete Gator control, as Leak and backup Tebow both found the end zone through the air and on the ground.
- Dallas Baker touchdown reception (Q1 10:31) - Florida's first score set the tone early and showed Ohio State's secondary couldn't handle the Gators' passing attack
- Percy Harvin rushing touchdown (Q1 5:51) - Extended Florida's lead to 14-7 and showcased the versatility of the Gators' offense
- Troy Smith interception (Q1 2:49) - Reggie Lewis's pick highlighted Ohio State's offensive struggles and turnover problems throughout the game
- Tim Tebow rushing touchdown (Q4 10:30) - Punctuated Florida's dominance late as the backup QB added another score in the lopsided victory
Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.
Team stats
CFBD box scoreFull team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.
Key plays
CFBD play-by-play| When | Team | Yards | Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 14:44 | Ohio State | +0 yd | Aaron Pettrey extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 14:30 | Ohio State | +33 yd | Aaron Pettrey kickoff for 59 yards returned by Brandon James for 33 yards to the OSU 39, Ohio St penalty 15 yard face mask accepted. |
| Q1 10:31 | Florida | +14 yd | Chris Leak pass complete to Dallas Baker for 14 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 10:31 | Florida | +0 yd | Chris Hetland extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 6:47 | Florida | +20 yd | Chris Leak pass complete to Cornelius Ingram for 20 yards to the OSU 7 for a 1ST down. |
| Q1 5:51 | Florida | +0 yd | Chris Hetland extra point GOOD. |
| Q1 5:51 | Florida | +4 yd | Percy Harvin rush for 4 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q1 5:51 | Florida | +32 yd | Joey Ijjas kickoff for 62 yards returned by Anthony Gonzalez for 32 yards to the OSU 35. |
| Q1 2:49 | Ohio State | +1 yd | Troy Smith pass intercepted by Reggie Lewis at the Fla 28, returned for 1 yard to the Fla 29. |
| Q1 1:43 | Florida | +20 yd | Chris Leak pass complete to Cornelius Ingram for 20 yards to the OSU 47 for a 1ST down. |
| Q2 14:56 | Florida | +0 yd | Chris Hetland extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 14:56 | Florida | +2 yd | DeShawn Wynn rush for 2 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 13:32 | Ohio State | +18 yd | Antonio Pittman rush for 18 yards for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 13:32 | Ohio State | +0 yd | Aaron Pettrey extra point GOOD. |
| Q2 6:00 | Florida | +43 yd | Chris Hetland 43 yard field goal GOOD. |
| Q2 1:53 | Florida | +40 yd | Chris Hetland 40 yard field goal GOOD. |
| Q2 0:23 | Florida | +1 yd | Tim Tebow pass complete to Andre Caldwell for 1 yard for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q2 0:23 | Florida | +0 yd | Chris Hetland extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 10:30 | Florida | +1 yd | Tim Tebow rush for 1 yard for a TOUCHDOWN. |
| Q4 10:30 | Florida | +0 yd | Chris Hetland extra point GOOD. |
| Q4 10:10 | Florida | +22 yd | Joey Ijjas kickoff for 65 yards returned by Maurice Wells for 22 yards to the OSU 22. |
Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).
Player stats
CFBD player statsPassing
Ohio State
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Troy Smith | 4/14 | 35 | 2.5 | 0 | 1 | 1.4 |
Florida
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Leak | 25/36 | 213 | 5.9 | 1 | 0 | 77.4 |
| Tim Tebow | 1/1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 71.9 |
Rushing
Ohio State
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antonio Pittman | 10 | 62 | 6.2 | 1 | 18 |
| Chris Wells | 2 | 9 | 4.5 | 0 | 7 |
| Brian Hartline | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| Troy Smith | 10 | -29 | -2.9 | 0 | 13 |
Florida
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeShawn Wynn | 19 | 69 | 3.6 | 1 | 17 |
| Tim Tebow | 10 | 39 | 3.9 | 1 | 10 |
| Percy Harvin | 5 | 22 | 4.4 | 1 | 6 |
| Andre Jerome Caldwell | 3 | 13 | 4.3 | 0 | 11 |
| Kestahn Moore | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 0 | 6 |
| Chris Leak | 3 | 7 | 2.3 | 0 | 14 |
Receiving
Ohio State
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Hartline | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 0 | 13 |
| Antonio Pittman | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 0 | 11 |
| Anthony Gonzalez | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 0 | 8 |
Florida
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Percy Harvin | 9 | 60 | 6.7 | 0 | 17 |
| Cornelius Ingram | 4 | 58 | 14.5 | 0 | 20 |
| Jemalle Cornelius | 5 | 50 | 10.0 | 0 | 19 |
| Dallas Baker | 4 | 23 | 5.8 | 1 | 14 |
| Billy Latsko | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 0 | 11 |
| Andre Jerome Caldwell | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 1 | 5 |
Show more stats (4 more categories)
Interceptions
Ohio State
No recorded stats in this category.
Florida
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reggie Lewis | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
Ohio State
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Pettrey | 0/0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2/2 | 2 |
Florida
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Hetland | 2/2 | 100.0 | 42 | 5/5 | 11 |
Punt Returns
Ohio State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony Gonzalez | 1 | 13 | 13.0 | 13 | 0 |
Florida
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon James | 5 | 28 | 5.6 | 11 | 0 |
Punting
Ohio State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AJ Trapasso | 6 | 227 | 37.8 | 0 | 0 | 44 |
Florida
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eric Wilbur | 4 | 177 | 44.3 | 0 | 0 | 59 |
Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.
Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 270080194) · This game in the downloadable dataset