GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The UK defense didn’t know who Trey Burton was before Saturday’s loss to Florida.

Everyone is likely to know him now.

Burton, a freshman listed at quarterback on the depth chart, set a Florida record by scoring six touchdowns against the Cats, the most ever for a freshman. He led the Gators (4-0, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) to a 48-14 win over the Cats (3-1, 0-1 SEC) on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Only four players in SEC history had ever scored six touchdowns in a game.

Senior linebacker Ronnie Sneed said Burton didn’t show up on film as UK scouted Florida this week.

“Not at all,” Sneed said. “They came out with some new stuff and put the ball in his hands.”

Burton finished with five carries for 40 yards and five touchdowns, completed a pass for 42 yards, and had five receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown. The Cats fell behind 21-0 early after Burton’s first two scores and a Mike Hartline interception that was returned for a touchdown, never fully recovering.

“We came in with a three-game win streak on the road in SEC games,” UK head coach Joker Phillips said. It was his first loss as head coach. “The formula for success has been to not turn the ball over, to not get penalties and to out-rush our opponents.”

The Cats finished with 99 rushing yards, were penalized seven times for 44 yards and Hartline threw a pair of interceptions. Those were the first turnovers by UK this year. The Cats remained within two touchdowns of the Gators into the middle of the third quarter, but Burton and the Gators wouldn’t be stopped.

A breakout performance by senior wide receiver Chris Matthews wasn’t enough for the Cats. Matthews had his best game since transferring to UK last year, finishing with six catches for 114 yards and two touchdowns. But the rest of the offense was stymied as Florida pulled away. Neither junior wide receiver Randall Cobb nor senior tailback Derrick Locke scored a touchdown in the game.

Both Hartline’s turnovers came at crucial points. His pick-six put Florida up by three scores before the Cats got on the board, and the first interception came after the offense had moved into field goal range.

“(The interceptions) were big,” said Hartline. “Especially when the other team doesn’t turn the ball over. I’m not going to say I’m going to play every game perfect. I try to battle as hard as I can. Especially the pick-six, it’s hard to bury. It’s just a discipline thing on my part.”

With another SEC road trip awaiting the Cats next weekend, Phillips said the Cats will have to get back to the blueprint that gave them success against Georgia, Auburn and Vanderbilt last season. Phillips said the Cats’ goal is still to win the SEC East.

“We’ve got to learn from it,” Phillips said. “We go on the road next week. Those are the things that we have to get figured out. We can’t turn over the football, can’t have stupid penalties … Our guys fought. We went toe-to-toe if you look at the first half.”

After a week of talk of an historical upset, Cobb was disappointed. Florida extended its winning streak over UK to 24 consecutive games. The blowout score, with two Gator touchdowns coming after the outcome was no longer in doubt, made things worse.

“It sucks,” he said. “There’s no other way to put it. I had so much confidence going into this game, and I felt that we were ready.”

GAME NOTES

All nine touchdowns scored in the game were scored by players wearing No. 8 jerseys. Matthews and Burton both wear it and, and Florida defensive back Jeremy Brown returned an interception for a touchdown while wearing a duplicate number with Burton. Burton usually wears No. 13 but changed for this game … Matt Roark blocked a Florida extra point in the third quarter, the sixth blocked kick of his career. He also had two receptions for 18 yards and a tackle on punt coverage … Junior linebacker Danny Trevathan did not play in the first quarter after violating an unspecified team rule. He registered just two tackles on the night … Locke eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the fourth consecutive game. He finished with 103 yards on the night.