GAINESVILLE — Locked in the early moments of the second half in a tense matchup with South Florida on Saturday afternoon, University of Florida quarterback John Brantley looked to his left and saw Jeff Demps sprinting down the left sideline with 11 Bulls and a roar of 90,000 fans following him.
"It changes (the game) big time," Brantley said. "It's a monster swing and just takes a lot of pressure off people. To see him running down that sideline, it's a great feeling."
Suddenly the Gators felt much better.
"He's just a great player who you want to get the ball to in that situation," center Mike Pouncey said. "He was an All-American in track and he'll be an All-American here, as well."
Demps, the NCAA 100-yard dash champion last spring, took a handoff with less than 8 minutes to go in the third quarter of a tie game and it was 14-7 a few seconds later as he raced 62 yards for the key score in an eventual 38-14 Gators win in the first meeting between the two schools on Saturday.
"Jeff Demps is a guy you want to have the ball," UF coach Urban Meyer said. "We were very conscious of that in the second half."
After getting just three carries in the first half, which ended up tied and with Chris Rainey out of the contest with a concussion, Demps had eight second-half carries and finished with a career-high 139 yards. He also returned a pair of kickoffs for 95 yards.
"It feels good," Demps said. "But at the same time, I'm not satisfied."
It's quickly starting to look like he's become the fire that ignites the Gators, however, with Tim Tebow and last year's other top offensive weapons mostly gone to the NFL. In the season opener last week, Miami (Ohio) had just kicked a field goal to pull within 21-12 with 13:24 left in the game. But Demps' 72-yard touchdown run moments later put an end to any doubts about the outcome.
His long run on Saturday seemed to fire up the Gators, once again, as they went on a tear after his touchdown.
A 30-yard punt return by Janoris Jenkins set up UF's third score, a 4-yard run by Mike Gillislee that made it 21-7 with 4:44 to go in the third quarter. Florida defensive end Justin Trattou then picked off USF quarterback B.J. Daniels and ran it back 35 yards for another score.
