Live blog: Gators win third national title

Good evening from Miami, where Florida and Oklahoma are meeting for the national championship. This is Times staff writer Greg Auman, and I'll be running tonight's live blog -- keep checking back tonight for updates, notes and commentary throughout the game. We'll have all the updates in the comments here, and you're welcome to drop in your questions and comments there as well.

Comments

[onlygatorz]

Go Gators!!!!!

[flsportsfan83]

Is Teebag wearing jorts?

[onlygatorz]

Jealous Loser

[Greg Auman]

Among the pregame festivities was a collection of nine former Heisman Trophy winners -- Danny Wuerffel, Tony Dorsett, Marcus Allen, Doug Flutie, Ty Detmer, Gino Torretta, Joe Bellino, Andre Ware and Desmond Howard. Oklahoma's Billy Sims is also apparently in attendance, but wasn't at the Heisman news conference.

Tonight's game of course features two more Heisman winners in Florida's Tim Tebow and Oklahoma's Sam Bradford. The former Heisman winners spoke to the distractions that can come with playing a bowl game immediately winning the Heisman. ...

[Steve]

Is Percy on the field?

[flsportsfan83]

Why is this game even being played? UTAH IS THE NATIONAL CHAMPION

[Stacy]

Go Sooners! But regardless of the outcome, what great role models are the 2 QB's??

[Greg Auman]

Great note from our sports photo editor, Stefanie Boyar, who notes that UF quarterback Tim Tebow has changed the Bible verse on the eyeblack under his eyes.

Tebow usually has Philippians 4:13, but tonight, he's turning to another well-known source of inspiration: John 3:16. (For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.)

[Greg Auman]

Just to update our earlier note, Billy Sims is here and is being recognized with nine other Heisman winners on the field before the game. And no, he's not still yelling "BOOMER!" ...

[Greg Auman]

And if you're looking for omens: the winning horse from the seventh race today at Tampa Bay Downs was named ... Go Tebow Go. Honest ...

[Greg Auman]

Big cheers from the crowd here as former Gators quarterback Danny Wuerffel is introduced. Wuerffel and I both have the balding-with-goatee thing going on.

Sims also gets a big cheer, and is decidedly more rah-rah-fire-up-the-crowd than Wuerffel.

Crowd tonight is at least two-thirds Gators, probably one-third Sooners ...

[Greg Auman]

To answer Steve's question from earlier, Percy Harvin is now on the field. He's running warmups in the end zone with his fellow receivers, eight minutes before the opening kickoffs. Looks fine, though we won't really know until the first time he gets the ball ...

[Times Editor]

Florida kicks off to Oklahoma, which opens the game on its 24-yard line.

[Greg Auman]

Major Wright has the first major hit of the night -- Sam Bradford lobs a pass down the Florida sideline to receiver Manuel Johnson, and Wright comes over from safety and crushes him. It'll be on SportsCenter in a few hours, regardless of who wins tonight ...

[Greg Auman]

To all the corners I've beaten before: Sam Bradford converts a third-and-7 with a 24-yard sideline pass to receiver Juaquin Iglesias ...

[Greg Auman]

A sack by Brandon Hicks forces a third-and-long, and Oklahoma has to punt from the UF 45 after its first drive ... touchback, Gators start on their 20.

[Greg Auman]

Percy Harvin seems just fine. On third and 8 on UF's first drive, Tim Tebow finds him across the middle for a 19-yard gain and UF's first first down.

[Greg Auman]

My goal here is to have less than 90 percent of the comments. We have our first ridiculously unnecessary review, as officials stopped the game to review a pass clearly thrown over the head of UF's Louis Murphy. I'm thinking the game will end around midnight ...

[Greg Auman]

Tim Tebow threw just two interceptions in 274 passing attempts all season. He's thrown one in his first five throws tonight, as Oklahoma's Nic Harris jumped a wide route to Riley Cooper and picked off the Tebow pass.

Oklahoma has the first turnover and has the ball at the Gator 45. Can they convert that into points?

[Greg Auman]

Hey, make that the Oklahoma 45 ...

[Greg Auman]

Can an offensive lineman derail a drive? Sure -- Oklahoma's Duke Robinson was flagged for a personal foul, then had a holding call that negated a 30-yard pass to the Florida 10. As a result, Oklahoma has to punt again, and Florida will start its second drive again deep in its territory, starting at the 14.

These two prolific offenses are still scoreless, 10 minutes ...

[Greg Auman]

And I thought USF was the only school that did the double-numbering thing. Florida's Emmanuel Moody, wearing No. 21, went for no gain on first down -- he wears the same jersey number as safety Major Wright.

UF has its first offensive wrinkle, with Percy Harvin taking a direct snap for a 5-yard gain.

And Tim Tebow is now 3-for-3 on third downs, having hit Aaron Hernandez for a 7-yard gain.

[Terry Lucas]

Boomer Sooner! Let's go OU!

[Terry Lucas]

UF should have borrowed the USF cheerleaders for the game... After seeing the best UF has to offer on television, I almost choked on my dinner. Go OU!

[Greg Auman]

Make that 4-for-4 on third downs -- Tebow hits Aaron Hernandez again on third down, gaining 21 yards to the 21.

UF did the Harvin direct snap trick again, this time with Tebow lined up as a tight end (hey, NFL scouts!) on the left side. Alas, UF was flagged for a false start -- for a sec, thought it might be a rare Heisman Trophy winner flagged for false-starting, but it was Phl Trautwein.