The crowd wanted 449-pound Desmond Watson to score a touchdown late in the Gasparilla Bowl on Friday against Tulane. Coach Billy Napier had another plan and the Florida Gators loved it.
Rather than the senior defensive lineman getting the score, Napier called a handoff for 5-foot-9, 173-pound walk-on running back Anthony Rubio.
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Rubio ran into the end zone and the entire team erupted. They were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct but no one worried with the game at 32-0 before the PAT.
That’s because Anthony Rubio is the son of Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
The younger Rubio is following his father’s footsteps in going to UF, but the product of Belen Jesuit in Miami redshirted last season and had not seen any action this season until Friday. Rubio had six carries for 32 yards and that score as the Gators pulled away in the second half in Tampa.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Florida Gators RB, Marco Rubio’s son, scores TD in Gasparilla Bowl