The Result: No. 24 Virginia fought hard in a losing effort in Monday night’s Capital One Orange Bowl, falling to No. 9 Florida 36-28 at Hard Rock Stadium. The Hoos finish the season with a 9-5 record after two postseason losses to Top-10 teams.

The Turning Point: The Gators converted a pair of 4th downs that helped them secure the victory. The first came in the second quarter, with the Gators up 3, when Kyle Trask hit Freddie Swain for an 11-yard gain on 4th and 8. That drive resulted in a touchdown and put Florida up 10 at the break. The second conversion came early in the fourth quarter after UVa cut the deficit to 27-21, when Trask pitched to Lamichael Perine on an option play that resulted in a gain of two on 4th and 1 in Florida territory. The next play was a 30-yard pass and the Gators ultimately extended their lead to 33-21.

The Stat That Tells the Story: Florida rushed for 244 yards on 34 attempts in the win. The Gators racked a lot of chunk plays on the ground and scored three rushing touchdowns with an average of 7.2 yards per carry.

Wahoo of the Week: For the final time, it’s Bryce Perkins. The senior quarterback capped his career with another big game, throwing for 323 yards and four touchdowns in the losing effort. In the process, he broke Shawn Moore’s career record for total offense and departs as Virginia’s all-time leader in all-purpose yards.

Bronco’s Winning Formula:

24+ Points?: Yes (28)

+1 Turnover Margin?: No (Even)

+5 Average Starting Field Position?: Yes (+7)

1) Avoid allowing home run plays.

UVa gave up far too many big plays in Monday’s game to keep up with the Gators, with most of those big gains coming in the first half. Florida had eight pass plays of 15 yards or more and eight rushes of 10 yards or more. The Gators had a 61-yard rushing touchdown in the first minute of the game and finished the contest with three passing plays of 30 yards or more. Virginia’s defense struggled at times to make plays when the Gators had the ball in space and the overall health of the unit showed. And for that reason, we’ll grade on a bit of a curve here.

Grade: C-

2) Avoid negative plays on offense.

Considering the opponent, UVa did a decent job on this one. Florida’s pass rush was among the nation’s best and did get to Perkins for three sacks. But that is a far cry from the eight Virginia allowed at Notre Dame back in September, which underscores the progress the offensive line has made in the second half of the season. The Cavaliers had just three penalties on the night for a total of 14 yards and didn’t have a bunch of negative running plays despite struggling to move the ball on the ground once again. The one turnover on the night was a costly red-zone interception on a fade pass to Hasise Dubois, with UVa trailing 33-21 in the fourth. Overall, the Hoos did a nice job avoiding negative plays and gave themselves a chance to convert third downs throughout the night.

Grade: B+