Ricky Pearsall makes one-handed grab amid vicious hit

Florida Gators wide receiver Ricky Pearsall just came down with arguably the catch of the college football season, and it’s barely in Week 4. 

The Gators, ranked No. 25 in the nation, are at home this Saturday, taking on Charlotte. And midway through the first quarter, with Florida already leading 7-0, Pearsall made this spectacular one-handed catch in traffic. 

On a first-and-10 from just inside their own 50-yard line, Florida quarterback Graham Mertz launched a strike to his junior wide receiver. The ball was a bit high, but that made no difference to Pearsall as he jumped up, making a spectacular Odell Beckham-esque catch between three defenders. You can check out Pearsall’s jaw-dropping catch in the video below. 

RICKY PEARSALL🤯

Unrealpic.twitter.com/OfQt2sOEWP

— On3 (@On3sports) September 23, 2023

The hit by the Charlotte defender also drew a flag for a potential targeting, but after review, the flag was picked up. Still, it was an impressive catch from Pearsall nonetheless. 

Pearsall finished off the game as Florida’s leading receiver with six receptions for 104 yards.  

Florida improves to 4-1

The Gators advanced to 4-1 on the season after picking up a 22-7 victory over Charlotte in the Swamp, Saturday night. Although the Gators did pick up the win, a few bad habits were on display against the 49ers. Florida lost the turnover battle to Charlotte with two fumbles lost. Meanwhile, Charlotte did not have a single turnover in the game. Another area of concern for the Gators on Saturday night was third and fourth down efficiency. They would finish the night 1-9 on 3rd downs and 0-1 on 4th down.  

Despite the hiccups, Florida’s pass game looked like it took another step in the right direction. The Gators finished the night with 259 passing yards courtesy of Mertz. Their starting quarterback was deadly accurate on the night, completing 20 of his 23 pass attempts. Not only that, Mertz used this game against Charlotte to work on his deep ball, as he averaged 11.3 yards per pass completion. 

Defensively, Florida did not force the 49ers into a single turnover. However, they harassed quarterbacks Jalon Jones and Trexler Ivy, recording four sacks in the game and six tackles for loss. 

Up next for Florida is a road matchup against the undefeated Kentucky Wildcats. Last season, the Gators were upset at home by the Wildcats 26-16. This year, Florida looks to return the favor in Kentucky’s home at Kroger Field.