Florida Upsets No. 7 Texas 27-24 Behind Backup Quarterback Tramell Jones Jr.
In his first career start, Tramell Jones Jr. threw two touchdowns as Florida rallied past No. 7 Texas on the road.
Florida handed No. 7 Texas a second straight loss on Saturday, rallying from a two-touchdown deficit to win 27–24 in Austin behind a composed performance from first-time starting quarterback Tramell Jones Jr.
Jones, starting in place of the injured Aaron Philo, threw two touchdown passes to Lacota Dippre and finished 22-of-35 for 155 yards. Jadan Baugh scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, and the Florida defense shut down the Longhorns late to seal a season-defining result in front of 103,989 fans at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
A slow start, then a rally
Texas led 17–3 in the second quarter after Raleek Brown’s 32-yard touchdown run and a 63-yard punt return for a score by Ryan Niblett, the third of his career. The Gators found the end zone just before halftime, with Jones connecting with Dippre to cut the lead to 17–10.
Florida carried that momentum into the third quarter, marching 15 plays over eight minutes and scoring again through Dippre to level the game at 17–17. A 28-yard field goal by Patrick Durkin gave Florida its first lead, and Baugh broke outside for an 11-yard touchdown to make it 27–17.
Texas responded when Arch Manning escaped pressure on fourth down and found Emmett Mosley V for 62 yards, setting up a nine-yard touchdown pass to Cam Coleman. But Florida’s defense held from there, sacking Manning five times in total and forcing a game-clinching fumble on the Longhorns’ final possession, recovered to allow the Gators to run out the clock.
What it means
The win is Florida’s first on the road against a top-10 opponent since 2012, and it steadies a season that had wobbled. The Gators had risen as high as No. 8 after a 4–0 start under first-year coach Jon Sumrall before consecutive blowout losses left the defense under scrutiny. Against Texas, that same unit was excellent after the opening two drives, limiting the Longhorns’ big-play receivers and allowing only one first down across Texas’s first three second-half possessions.
Florida improved to 5–2 and 3–2 in the Southeastern Conference. Texas dropped to 4–2 and 1–2. Manning threw for just 173 yards and was sacked repeatedly, and coach Steve Sarkisian was blunt afterwards. “We didn’t play good football today,” he said. “They controlled the ball in the second half and our inability to convert on short yardage” hurt his team.
The Longhorns also lost star edge rusher Colin Simmons to an apparent ankle injury in the fourth quarter, adding to a growing list of concerns. Jones, meanwhile, was measured about his breakout. “I didn’t take it any bigger than it was,” he said. “It feels great, but this is just the start.”
Texas, one of the nation’s best defensive teams on paper, gave up scoring drives of 15 and 14 plays in the second half, unable to get off the field as the Gators controlled the clock. Florida’s ability to sustain drives and convert on the ground proved decisive, and it allowed the visitors to keep the Longhorns’ high-powered offence off the field for long stretches.
Florida travels to face No. 1 Georgia on October 31, while Texas hosts No. 9 Mississippi on October 24.
Sources
Reports from the Associated Press, ESPN, Texas Athletics and Florida Athletics (October 2026).