To most people, it was a garbage-time touchdown. However, for Anthony Rubio and and the Florida Gators, it was extremely significant. Rubio, the son of Florida Senator Marco Rubio, is a walk-on running back on the Gators' roster and scored a touchdown with a little over a minute remaining in Florida's 33-8 victory over Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl. After the 5-foot-9, 173-pound running back broke the end zone plane, the entire Florida sideline erupted in celebration, resulting in a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty on the Gators. But with the game in hand, Florida was not concerned about the penalty. What mattered was the touchdown scored by the walk-on redshirt freshman.
DJ Lagway and Florida put together a strong finish to a difficult season. They closed it out in the Gasparilla Bowl. Lagway shook off a mistake-filled first half to throw for 305 yards and a touchdown in Florida’s sloppy 33-8 victory over Tulane on Friday. Trey Smack kicked a Gasparilla Bowl-record four field goals for the Gators (8-5), who also got a late TD run from walk-on running back Anthony Rubio, son of U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, in their fourth consecutive victory.
After the game, Rubio spoke with ESPN Gainesville's Jesse Simmons to talk about how he felt. "That was insane," Rubio said, still holding on to what sure looked to be the touchdown ball (ball security; you love to see it). "Well, first I want to thank God… that was awesome, my guy; what a great experience."
