It didn’t take long for the Texas Longhorns to put this game out of reach against the Florida Gators. Quinn Ewers gave it his all, helping the Longhorns take a 35-0 lead at halftime with four first-half touchdowns.

The win gives Texas their eighth-best ranking of the season and they now move to 4-1 in the SEC.

And Texas looked like a top team today. Sure, they played the hand of playing a third-year freshman quarterback, but the Longhorns still handled things rather underhandedly.

Here are the five biggest takeaways from the 49-17 win against Florida.

Was the bye week what Ewers really needed? The Florida Gators defense had forced six interceptions in the past two games. And with the way Ewers has thrown an interception in four straight games, it felt like Ewers might get a test.

And he accepted it. Ewers completed 19 passes on 27 attempts for a season-high 333 yards and season-high five touchdowns.

Ewers looked much more confident. He seemed out of rhythm at times on the first few drives with some inaccurate passes, but he cleaned that up pretty quickly with some great passes, like the second touchdown to Matthew Golden in the second quarter.

Check it out here:

These are the type of games Texas fans expect from their QB. He was smart with his decisions, such as the RPO pass to Gunnar Helm for his second touchdown, and he was quick with his feet, escaping pressure much better than in previous games this season.

After the missed kick on the first drive, Texas looked ready for another slow start, but they didn’t let that happen.

The second drive also could have been a quick three-and-out. But head coach Steve Sarkisian took a risk and converted a 4th-and-1 of his own at 24. After that play, Texas started to put their foot on the gas and put together some really good drives.

It was a big relief for Texas fans to see the team start scoring fast and early. It was also a relief to see the offensive line looking better as well. A big reason Texas looked good to start is the fact that the o-line didn’t allow a sack the rest of the game after the first drive.

Holding penalties still need to be limited, but the two biggest questions facing this Texas team looked much better this week.

The Gators hammered the defense in the second half with the run. Running back Ja’Kobi Jackson averaged 6 yards per carry for Florida. Texas’ defense allowed 197 yards on the ground, the most yards given up this season.

Florida leaned on the run game for most of the game due to playing a third-string QB, but Florida’s offensive line was still able to create some really strong holes for their running backs.

Players like Trey Moore should be seen as an exception to the struggling defense. Moore had a very strong game with two tackles for losses.

But even with that, it looked like Texas had trouble keeping Florida from driving the ground in the second half. It will be interesting to see how they react next game.

Mukuba’s impact on the defense was a big reason why Texas shut them out for most of the game.

Mukuba returned from injury and had six tackles on the season (two solo) and also intercepted a tipped pass from Aidan Warner to open the second half.

His coverage and ability to close gaps to make tackles were sorely missed by the defense against Vanderbilt.

“It felt extremely good to be there,” Mukuba said after the match.

Mukuba has been a big addition to the team this season after struggling in pass defense all season. He has revitalized that aspect of the defense all season.

Whenever Golden gets the ball, it seems like good things are happening.

The wide receiver had his second multi-touchdown game of the season against Florida on just three catches and 64 yards. In the last four games, Golden has completed just nine passes. But in those nine passes, he went for 173 yards and three touchdowns.

Last week’s game against Vanderbilt. Golden had just nine yards and two catches, but still had one of the best catches of the season for Texas, which helped score a touchdown.

Golden has far too much skill to average just three catches per game. Sure, he doesn’t have the speed of Isaiah Bond, but he’s still dangerous in the open field. His running style is nice, but when he can’t get open, his aggressiveness helps him rise above the defender for some great catches.

The Texas Longhorns are back in action next week as they head to Fayetteville, AR to play the Arkansas Razorbacks in a renewed rivalry.

The match kicks off at 11:00 AM CT on ABC.

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