Florida Gators' Anthony Richardson dazzles with arm, legs in upset of Utah

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson had shown flashes of his potential as a backup for the Gators last season. On Saturday, he showed exactly what he could do as their starter.

Richardson had 274 total yards and three touchdowns as Florida upset No. 7 Utah 29-26 in front of a raucous 90,799, the largest crowd for a season opener in school history. He did everything the Gators needed with one highlight play after another — from a dazzling two-point conversion that left multiple defenders lying on the turf, to a huge fourth-and-2 conversion, to the game-winning 2-yard touchdown run with 1:25 remaining.

Richardson finished with a career-high three rushing touchdowns Saturday after entering the game with three rushing touchdowns in his career. The performance helped coach Billy Napier get his first win at Florida while handing the Utes a heartbreaking loss to open a season that began as a dark-horse College Football Playoff choice.

«My wife could call plays with that guy at quarterback,» Napier said of Richardson. «His legs, they're a difference maker. You saw it tonight. The fourth-down play, in the last drive. The two-point conversion, I mean, come on. He did that exact same thing in practice one day. I'm talking about the exact scenario.

»I think we're figuring out here that this guy's a pretty special player."

Richardson said he had pregame jitters but worked them out after the first few series. With the game on the line and Florida trailing 26-22 with the clock winding down, Richardson said Napier told him to go score the game winner.

«My heart kind of froze,» Richardson said. «I'd never really heard those words. Especially in a situation like that, with a crowd as big as that. Just having the