JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Knowshon Moreno leapt into the end zone and was quickly surrounded by all his Georgia teammates - yes, all of them.
Answering Coach Mark Richt's pregame challenge, about 70 players rushed from the Georgia sideline following Moreno's first-quarter touchdown, jumping up and down and celebrating wildly. Florida just watched, stunned by the brazen Bulldogs.
An even bigger party unfolded a few hours later.
Moreno ran for a career-high 188 yards and three scores, Stafford threw three touchdown passes and BCS No. 18 Georgia upset the 11th-ranked Gators 42-30 on Saturday in a game filled with big plays and momentum shifts.
"I can't tell you how much fun it was in the locker room, and I wish everybody could have seen it," Richt said.
The Bulldogs (6-2, 4-2 SEC) sacked Heisman Trophy hopeful Tim Tebow six times and contained the Gators' high-scoring offense most of the game. The result was a rare victory for Georgia in one of the South's most heated rivalries.
Florida (5-3, 3-3) had dominated the series since 1990, winning 15 of the past 17 meetings and 8 of 9. Georgia turned it around Saturday, taking advantage of Tebow's bruised nonthrowing shoulder and Florida's porous defense.
Richt set the tone before thegame. Richt, who had been 1-5 against the Gators in the "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party," uncharacteristically orchestrated an on-field celebration earlier in the week to follow his team's first touchdown.
"I told them if they didn't get a celebration penalty after ourfirst score, all of them would be doing early morning runs," said Richt, who chastised his players two weeks ago for jumping on Vanderbilt's midfield logo following a 20-17 victory. "I wanted to make sure we left this game with our hearts on the field."
They also left the Gatorsheartbroken.
"It hurts a lot," said Tebow, who was 14 of 22 passing for 236 yards and 1 touchdown. "We were in control of getting to Atlanta. We were focused. We thought we would bounce back from the two losses, and we were playing well. We thought that was a game we should have won."
Georgia still doesn't control its path in the SEC East race, but the Gators would need even more help to win the division.
The mass celebration following Moreno's first touchdown run drew two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and forced the Bulldogs to kick off from the 8-yard line. It also drew the ire of Florida players.
"I think it was real disrespectful," linebacker Brandon Spikes said. "It got the crowd into it, and we were kind of shocked to see the whole team rush on the field. I just feel like it was a big disrespect. No class."
Florida Coach Urban Meyer huddled his players on the sideline and had them jumping up and down and vowing to get even. They scored on the ensuing possession, but emotion only carried the Gators so far.
It couldn't overcome another poor defensive performance. The defending national championswere exposed in losses to LSU and Auburn, and Kentucky's Andre Woodson picked them apart in a close game last week.
Georgia was even better.
"We just didn't stop the run," safety Tony Joiner said. "We played lousy up front, including myself in the box."
Moreno did most of the damage, picking up yards inside and out, breaking tackles and outrunning defenders right and left. Stafford took advantage, using play-action passes.
"We ran the ball well, and when we had to throw the ball, we threw the ball well," said Moreno, who had a career-high 33 carries.
The Bulldogs sealed the victory when Tebow fumbled a snap with 2:23 remaining. The turnover set off a raucous celebration on the sideline, then at midfield and again in the same end zone as the first one.
Georgia finished with its most points in the series since a 44-0 victory in 1982.
"We came out and played with emotion," Georgia center Fernando Valasco said. "I'm not saying we haven't been playing with emotion in the past, but there was a different feeling for this game. Everyone wanted to beat Florida, and we worked hard for two weeks to get to this point."
Sports, Pages 40 on 10/28/2007