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SPRING: Leak Leads Orange to 38-24 Victory
Quarterback Chris Leak (Getty Images)
GatorCountry.com
Posted Apr 9, 2005

A record crowd of 58,500 fans turned out for Coach Urban Meyer's debut in The Swamp Saturday as the Orange rode four Chris Leak touchdown passes to a 34-28 victory over the Blue in the annual spring game.

The crowd was the largest home crowd ever for an Urban Meyer-coached team, eclipsing the 46,788 that attended Utah's game with California in 2003.

Leak connected for three first quarter touchdown passes as part of a first half 14-20, 221-yard performance. In the first quarter, Leak hit Dallas Baker with two touchdown passes, a 38-yarder that Baker hauled in with one hand before falling into the end zone with 6:30 remaining, and a 48-yarder on a throwback to the left that Baker took down the sideline and in for the score with 4:17 left. The third touchdown pass of the quarter was a 16-yarder to Chad Jackson to give the Orange a 20-0 lead with 13 seconds left.

The Blue came back with a couple of second quarter touchdowns to cut the Orange lead to 20-14. Freshman quarterback Josh Portis drove the Blue 65 yards to a touchdown, getting the score on a three-yard pass to Jemalle Cornelius with 9:14 left in the half. Portis directed the Blue to a second touchdown that took only three plays. Two Portis scrambles netted 17 yards, then Portis fired a 37-yard touchdown pass to Bubba Caldwell with 6:52 remaining.

Leak got the Orange back on track with a five-yard pass to a diving Baker on the final play of the first half, finishing off a 68-yard drive. Baker also had a 28-yard catch on the drive.

For the game, Baker caught six passes for 134 yards and three touchdowns.

Portis threw his third touchdown pass of the game in the third quarter, a 22-yarder to Jemalle Cornelius with 12 seconds remaining in the period. He would also throw a touchdown pass to Kenneth Tookes in the fourth quarter, a 28-yarder on the final play of the game.

Cornelius Ingram got the final score of the game for the Orange on a one-yard run. Ingram and Markus Manson were the game's leading rushers with 68 yards each.

Portis finished the game with 253 passing yards on a 20-31 effort. He also ran for 39 yards on eight carries. Caldwell was the top receiver for the Blue with eight receptions for 149 yards.

For the Orange, Jackson had seven catches for 87 yards.


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