Florida-Florida State rivalry.html



Florida–Florida State rivalry
Teams	Florida Gators Florida St. Seminoles
Originated	1958
Series	Florida leads, 32-19-212
Current Champion	Florida
Trophy	None
Florida (32) 1958 1959 1960 1962 1963 1965 1966 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1991 1995 1997* 1997 2001 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008	Florida St. (19) 1964 1967 1977 1978 1979 1980 1987 1988 1989 1990 1992 1993 1995* 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003
Ties (2) 1961, 1994
*Sugar Bowl

See also: Florida Gators football and Florida State Seminoles football

The Florida-Florida State rivalry, sometimes called "The Battle for the Governor's Cup" or the "Sunshine Showdown", is an athletic rivalry between the two flagship universities of the state of Florida: the University of Florida and Florida State University. Although both schools participate in a range of intercollegiate sports, the competition between the Florida Gators and Florida State Seminoles has tended to focus on football.

Florida dominated the early contests, but the series has been more balanced since then. While the Gators lead the overall series 32-19-2 [1], the series is tied 17-17-1 since Bobby Bowden became FSU’s head coach in 1976. Since 1990, one or both squads have often been highly ranked coming into the game, adding national championship implications to an already heated rivalry.

History

Roots of a rivalry

The University of Florida has been fielding an officially sanctioned football team since 1906. Though Florida State University (then known as “Florida State College”) played football for several years around 1900, it became a women’s college in 1905 and remained so until 1947, when the football team was re-established.

Almost immediately, pressure began building for the Gators to play the new team in-state. Some believe that it took an act of the Florida state legislature to force the contest to take place. This is not exactly true – a bill demanding a UF vs. FSU football series was proposed in 1955 but was voted down. However, the schools bowed to pressure from state leaders and agreed to schedule a yearly series starting in 1958.³

One of the conditions that the University of Florida put on the agreement was that the contest must always be held in their home stadium, Florida Field in Gainesville. Since 1964, however, the game site has alternated yearly between the Gators’ field and the Seminoles’ home turf of Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee.

Early Contests

After the Florida State College for Women was integrated as Florida State University, the newly formed football team was struggling. Though it had some success early on, by the late 50's the FSU football teams were constantly having horrible seasons. The two teams first played each other on 1958 in Gainesville with Florida winning 21-7. The Seminoles would not win a game in the series until the first game in Tallahassee that was played in 1964. The Gators would dominate the rivalry in its formative years, the Gators were a remarkable 16-2-1 against the Seminoles from 1958 until 1976.

One particularly poor stretch in the 1958-76 slump for the Seminoles was from 1969-72 when wide receiver Barry Smith was playing for Florida State. He didn't play in the 1969 contest since freshmen were not eligible then but recalled the 1970-72 games in a recent Tampa Tribune article,

". . . My sophomore year . . . I ran a reverse . . . and I remember being nailed by Jack Youngblood. I remember watching the ball being pitched to me and thinking, when the ball was about halfway, that it was kind of race to see whether he was going to get to the ball first or me. He was foaming at the mouth. I still have nightmares from the hit he gave me . . . My junior year, we were 5-0 and Florida was 0-5. There is no question that we were the much better team, and they beat us . . . My senior year, we're playing Florida at home and we're 4-0. They had a decent team, but it wasn't like the year before . . . Chan Gailey was their quarterback, and he had a big game. That game was a blowout. They torched us. It got so bad, I had to throw a touchdown pass . . ." [2]

The arrival of Bowden & the rise and fall of Pell

Bobby Bowden arrived at Florida State in 1976 and began to turn around the anemic program. After losing his first game against Florida in 1976, the Seminoles would win the next four in the rivalry, their first wins in the series since 1967. This would begin a decade and a half period in which the rivals would take turns running off winning streaks against the other.

The Gators changed leadership as well, hiring Coach Charlie Pell from Clemson University to replace Doug Dickey in 1979. After a dismal 0-10-1 first season, Pell quickly turned around the Florida program, fielding championship-contending teams by the early 1980s.

Under Pell's leadership, Florida took their turn dominating the rivalry from 1980-1986, including putting a series-record 53 points on the scoreboard in the 1983 contest. However, an NCAA investigation of Florida's football program revealed multiple violations of rules in the early years of Pell's tenure. Pell was fired and the program put on probation beginning in 1985. For the next 3 seasons, Florida played with a reduced number of scholarship players and Gator football games could not appear on television, setting the program back considerably and allowing Florida State to sign more talented in-state high school recruits.

In 1986, the Gators extended their winning streak against FSU with a 17-13 upset in Tallahassee. However, FSU then ran off four consecutive victories over Florida as they became a fixture in the top-10 rankings and Florida's program floundered under heavy NCAA sanctions.

From the arrival of Bowden in 1976 to the end of the 1980s, the series was tied 7-7. The return of a familiar face to the Gators' sideline before the 1990 season would bring the rivalry to new national prominence.

1990 - 2000

Steve Spurrier, who had won a Heisman Trophy as Florida's quarterback in 1966, returned to coach the Gators for the 1990 season. The decade the followed has been the most meaningful decade in the Florida-Florida State rivalry so far. Because of the Sugar Bowl rematches in 1994 and 1996, they met 12 times through the period. And each time, they were each ranked in the top ten in the national rankings.

The decade began auspiciously with the first meeting of top-10 squads in the history of the rivalry (UF #6, FSU #8) heading into FSU's 45-30 win in Tallahassee ⁴. The stakes were even higher the following year in Gainesville, as both teams were ranked in the top 5 (FSU #3, UF #5). The Gators had just clinched their first SEC Championship while the Seminoles were still feeling the sting of a defeat at the hands of the rival Miami Hurricanes. The game was a defensive struggle that culminated in a Gator defensive stand late in the 4th quarter to preserve a 14-9 win. FSU won the 1992 contest in Tallahassee, yet another meeting of top ten squads.

1993 brought about a collection of talent perhaps unequaled in the history of the rivalry. Two future Heisman trophy winners in Charlie Ward and Danny Wuerffel were starting at quarterback. The #1 Seminoles beat the #7 Gators 33-21, and went on to win the National Championship. In the 1994 contest in Tallahassee, Florida held a 31-3 lead at the start of the 4th quarter, but a furious FSU comeback ended in a 31-31 tie in what became known as the "Choke at Doak". The teams were given a rematch in the Sugar Bowl ("The Fifth Quarter in the French Quarter"), which the Seminoles won 23-17. The #3 Gators beat the #6 Seminoles 35-24 in Gainesville in 1995, capping off Florida's first undefeated regular season.

For national championship implications, 1996 was the high point of the series. Both teams were undefeated and ranked #1 (UF) and #2 (FSU) coming into their regular season finale in Tallahassee, where the Seminoles won a hard-fought contest 24-21. However, the season belonged to Florida, as their 52-20 win in a Sugar Bowl rematch gave them their first national title. FSU was #1 and undefeated coming into the 1997 contest against the #10 Gators in Gainesville, but Florida won again 32-29. After these setbacks, Florida State closed out the decade with 3 straight victories over Florida, winning the 1998 and 2000 games in Tallahassee and the 1999 contest in Gainesville on their way to a second national championship.

Florida State and Florida combined for 14 conference championships and 3 national championships during the 1990s. Through those years, FSU held a 7-4-1 advantage in a rivalry that was arguably the most important in college football during that time.

2001-Present

After a period when every game in the rivalry had national title implications, each squad suffered through some less successful seasons after the turn of the millennium. Florida won 37-13 at home in 2001 while the Seminoles won next year's contest in Tallahassee 31-14. The 2002 game marked the first time neither squad was ranked in the top-10 coming into the game since 1983.

Both teams were almost back in the top 10 for the Florida State's 2003 victory in Gainesville (UF #11, FSU #9), but Florida would drop completely out of the top-25 before the 2004 contest. That game was the first to not air on a broadcast network in over a decade, as ESPN carried the game from Tallahassee. Led by lame duck coach Ron Zook, Florida upset the #10 Seminoles, 20-13.

This would start a streak of 5 straight games in which Florida defeated their archrivals as the Gators returned to national prominence under coach Urban Meyer (winning the program's second national championship in 2006) while Florida State struggled through several sub-par seasons. Through the 2008 season, Florida held a 6-2 advantage in the period.

Game Results

Florida victories are shaded ██ blue. Florida State victories shaded in ██ red.

*Sugar Bowl

Notable Games

1969 - Cappleman Crunch

Both Florida and Florida State were 2-0 when the teams met in 1969. The Gators had defeated number one ranked University of Houston two week prior and FSU was off to a good start as well. The Gators won this matchup 21-6 on the back of a defensive surge that was unparalleled in Gator history. The Gator defense, led by junior defensive lineman Jack Youngblood (5 sacks) and sophomore defensive lineman Robert Harrell, sacked Cappelman 11 times for -91 yards leaving FSU with a total of -18 yards rushing in the game. In addition to the pass rush, the FSU offense fumbled the ball eight times, losing five. Two other Gator Sohopmores starred in the game as well, All-American wide out Carlos Alvarez and quarterback John Reeves. The Gators went on to a 9-1-1 record including a victory over the University of Tennessee in the Gator Bowl.

1993 - Ward to Dunn

The Seminoles came into The Swamp ranked #1 and looking to play for the national championship. Florida had clinched the SEC championship and were themselves ranked in the top 5. Early on it looked to be a Florida State rout, as the Seminoles took a 27-7 lead into the 4th quarter. However, Florida scored two quick touchdowns to make the score 27-21. With 6 minutes remaining, the Seminoles faced 3rd down at their own 21 with a Florida crowd so loud the stadium was registered as an earthquake. Unfazed, Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Charlie Ward hit freshman Warrick Dunn up the sideline for a game clinching touchdown and a 33-21 FSU win.

1994 - The Choke at Doak

One of the greatest fourth quarter comebacks of all time. The Gators led the Seminoles 31-3 at the start of the 4th quarter. However, the Seminoles scored 28 points in the final quarter to tie the game 31-31. The Seminoles then won a rematch in the Sugar Bowl 23-17, referred to as, "The Fifth Quarter in the French Quarter."

1996 - #1 vs #2

The #1 ranked Gators came in to Tallahassee heavily favored against the #2 ranked Seminoles. The Noles got off to a quick start when Peter Bouleware blocked Florida's first punt of the game, resulting in a touchdown. By the end of the 1st quarter, FSU led UF 17-0. Although the Gators eventually narrowed the margin, the Seminoles still won 24-21.

1997 Sugar Bowl - Rematch for a title

Because of the upsets to both the previous #3 Nebraska, losing to Texas in the Big 12 Championship game, and #2 Arizona State losing to #4 Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, the #3 Gators played the #1 Seminoles in the Sugar Bowl for the National Title. Though the game was close in the first half, Danny Wuerffel and the Gator offense got going after halftime against the highly-ranked Seminole defense and won going away, 52-20.

1997 - The Greatest Game Ever Played in the Swamp

The Seminoles came in ranked #1 while UF came in #10 with a record of 8-2. However, Gator senior tailback Fred Taylor would have a monster day, scoring four touchdowns as the Gators upset the Seminoles 32-29. Down 25-29 with 2:33 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Gators began a drive from their own 20 yard line. The first play was a 63 yard pass from Doug Johnson to Jacquez Green to the Seminoles 17 yard line. Taylor then ran the ball to down the two yard line, and scored his fourth touchdown on the next play. The Gators drove 80 yards in 44 seconds on three plays. On the ensuing Seminoles' drive, Linebacker Dwayne Thomas intercepted Thad Busby's third down and eleven pass with 1:06 remaining to seal the win for Florida.

1998 - Not In Our House

This 1998 battle between the in state rivals started before the whistle even blew. A pre-game fight caused Florida's starting senior safety, Tony George, and a couple walk on FSU players who were not even dressed out to be ejected from the game. In the midst of the fight, it is rumored that Florida quarterback Doug Johnson attempted to peg FSU coach Bobby Bowden with a football. Johnson did later apologize Bowden, claiming that he had no target, he just threw the ball. Florida State's defense came in the ballgame rated #1 in the nation, Florida's defense was rated #1 in the SEC, so the game was set to be a defensive battle. Florida struck first with a 50 yard Doug Johnson touchdown pass, but Seminoles Peter Warrick and Travis Minor put the Seminoles in scoring position twice and Placekicker Sebastian Janikowski kicked two field goals to make the game 7-6. After a Florida punt the seminoles were at their own 5 yard line and Florida forced a safety. And then Doug Johnson drove Florida deep into Florida State territory after the Safety Kick, but Florida State's defense stiffened and forced Florida to settle for 3 points. At halftime, the game was 12-6, Florida. In the second half Florida State's defense held Florida scoreless. Florida State's first touchdown of the game came when Marcus Outzen connected with Peter Warrick on a touchdown throw, then later in the game, Peter Warrick threw a touchdown to Ron Dougans. The game ended 23-12, with Florida State the winner.

2003 - The Swindle in the Swamp

This contest was marred by controversy, as the ACC-affiliated officiating crew made questionable calls on multiple fumble/no-fumble plays that went against Florida.^{56 7}Still, Florida held a 34-31 lead late in the fourth quarter when Seminole QB Chris Rix hit WR PK Sam for a 52 yard touchdown pass, giving Florida State a 38-34 win. Before the winning score, Rix had completed a 1st down pass on 4th and 17 deep in Seminole territory to keep the drive alive.

After the game, a fight broke out on the field between the Florida and Florida State players after some Seminole players celebrated the win by jumping on the "F" logo in the center of Florida Field. FSU's athletic director apologized on behalf of the university for sparking the incident⁸ and both schools took steps to make sure similar incidents did not reoccur.

2004 - Ron Zook Field

The 7-4 Florida Gators came into Doak Campbell Stadium, where the Gators had not won since a 17–13 victory in 1986, to play the #9 ranked Seminoles. That night the field was named Bobby Bowden Field in honor of the legendary Florida State coach. However, the night belonged to Florida coach Ron Zook, as he led his team to a 20–13 win, something not even Steve Spurrier accomplished as head coach.⁹ This was something of a personal vindication for Zook, who had recently been told that he would be terminated as head coach after the end of the season. Although Zook had been ridiculed by some Gator fans throughout his tenure at UF, the fans in attendance gave him a standing ovation as the Gator team triumphantly lifted Zook onto their shoulders. This game has led some UF fans to jokingly refer to Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium as "Ron Zook Field."¹⁰ As might be expected, this nickname given to the field by some Gator fans has only served to further fuel the fire of the rivalry between these two football teams and their fan bases.

References