1991 Florida Gators football team
American college football season
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The 1991 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1991 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was Steve Spurrier's second as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. The Gators were led by quarterback Shane Matthews and first-team All-American defensive tackle Brad Culpepper.[2]
| 1991 Florida Gators football | |
|---|---|
SEC champion | |
| Conference | Southeastern Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 8 |
| AP | No. 7 |
| Record | 10–2 (7–0 SEC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive scheme | Fun and gun |
| Defensive coordinator | Ron Zook (1st season) |
| Base defense | 4–4–3[1] |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Ben Hill Griffin Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7 Florida $ | 7 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Alabama | 6 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 11 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 14 Tennessee | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 17 Georgia | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi State | 4 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LSU | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vanderbilt | 3 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Auburn | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ole Miss | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kentucky | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Spurrier's 1991 Florida Gators compiled the first-ever ten-win season in program history, an overall record of 10–2 and a perfect SEC record of 7–0.[3]
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 7 | San Jose State* | No. 6 | W 59–21 | 83,067 | [4][5] | |||
| September 14 | 7:30 p.m. | No. 17 Alabama | No. 6 |
| ESPN | W 35–0 | 85,069 | [6] |
| September 21 | 3:30 p.m. | at No. 18 Syracuse* | No. 5 | ABC | L 21–38 | 49,823 | [7][8] | |
| September 28 | vs. No. 21 Mississippi State | No. 14 | TBS | W 29–7 | 69,328 | [9] | ||
| October 5 | 8:00 p.m. | at LSU | No. 13 | PPV | W 16–0 | 72,019 | [10] | |
| October 12 | 7:30 p.m. | No. 4 Tennessee | No. 10 |
| ESPN | W 35–18 | 85,165 | [11] |
| October 19 | 1:00 p.m. | Northern Illinois* | No. 6 |
| W 41–10 | 83,708 | [12] | |
| November 2 | 3:30 p.m. | at Auburn | No. 6 | ABC | W 31–10 | 83,714 | [13] | |
| November 9 | 4:00 p.m. | vs. No. 23 Georgia | No. 6 | ESPN | W 45–13 | 81,679 | [14] | |
| November 16 | Kentucky | No. 5 |
| W 35–26 | 84,109 | [15] | ||
| November 30 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 3 Florida State* | No. 5 |
| ABC | W 14–9 | 85,461 | [16] |
| January 1, 1992 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. No. 18 Notre Dame* | No. 3 | ABC | L 28–39 | 76,477 | [17] | |
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Rankings
Game summaries
San Jose State
The season opened with a 59–21 victory over the San Jose State Spartans.
Alabama
The Gators defeated Alabama, 35–0. Spurrier treasured the wins against the Crimson Tide: "Those victories early – '90, '91 – really got us started there at Florida ..."[18]
Syracuse
The 1991 season also included a disappointing 38–21 road loss to the seventeenth-ranked Syracuse Orangemen in the Carrier Dome.[3]
Mississippi State
The Gators had a dominating confidence win over the twenty-first-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs, 29–7.
LSU
Florida blanked the LSU Tigers 16–0.
Tennessee
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | 2 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 18 |
| • Florida | 7 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
- Date: Saturday, October 12
- Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida
- Game attendance: 85,165
- Television network: ESPN
| 1 | TENN | C. Smith tackles Matthews for a safety | TENN 2-0 | |
| 1 | FLA | T. Jackson 2 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 7-2 | |
| 2 | FLA | Everett 29 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 14-2 | |
| 2 | TENN | Fleming 4 yard pass from Kelly (Becksvoort kick) | FLA 14-9 | |
| 2 | FLA | Rhett 4 yard run (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 21-9 | |
| 2 | TENN | Becksvoort 43 yard field goal | Florida 21-12 | |
| 3 | FLA | Rhett 3 yard run (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 28-12 | |
| 3 | TENN | Becksvoort 23 yard field goal | Florida 28-15 | |
| 4 | TENN | Becksvoort 23 yard field goal | Florida 28-18 | |
| 4 | FLA | Kennedy 44 yard interception return (Czyzewski kick) | Florida 35-18 | |
The Gators defeated the fourth-ranked Tennessee Volunteers 35–18.[19]
Northern Illinois
Florida beat Northern Illinois 41–10 .
Auburn
The Auburn Tigers fell to Florida 31–10.
Georgia
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Florida | 7 | 21 | 3 | 14 | 45 |
| Georgia | 3 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
- Date: Saturday, November 9
- Location: Gator Bowl, Jacksonville, Florida
- Game attendance: 81,769
| 1 | FLA | W. Jackson 4 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 7-0 | |
| 1 | UGA | Parkman 41 yard field goal | FLA 7-3 | |
| 2 | FLA | Rhett 13 yard run (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 14-3 | |
| 2 | FLA | Houston 36 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 21-3 | |
| 2 | FLA | Sullivan 61 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 28-3 | |
| 2 | UGA | Parkman 25 yard field goal | FLA 28-6 | |
| 3 | FLA | Czyzewski 25 yard field goal | FLA 31-6 | |
| 3 | UGA | Hastings 5 yard pass from Zeier (Peterson kick) | FLA 31-13 | |
| 4 | FLA | W. Jackson 9 yard pass from Matthews (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 38-13 | |
| 4 | FLA | W. Jackson 24 yard pass from Fox (Czyzewski kick) | FLA 45-13 | |
The Gators defeated rival and twenty-third-ranked Georgia Bulldogs 45–13.[20]
Kentucky
Florida clinched its first SEC title with a hard-fought win over the Kentucky Wildcats, 35–26. "The Gators appeared on their way to a comfortable victory with a 28-6 lead in the third quarter. That's when the UF band started playing the song "Pour Some Sugar on Me" by Def Leppard and students began throwing little sugar packets into the air. Then UK quarterback Pookie Jones went wild, almost spoiling the party. "[21]
Florida State
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida St | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 9 |
| Florida | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida
- Date: November 30
- Game attendance: 85,461
- TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson and Bob Griese
- Recap/Box
| Game information |
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First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
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Among the Gators' 1991 victories, the 14–9 defensive upset of the Florida State Seminoles was a particularly memorable victory played in front of a record home crowd (the previous record set only five weeks earlier vs. Tennessee).[3] The Gators scored touchdowns on a first-quarter run by tailback Errict Rhett, and a 72-yard bomb from Shane Matthews to wide receiver Harrison Houston in the third quarter, and held on to win. Gators defensive ends Darren Mickell and Harvey Thomas kept Seminoles quarterback Casey Weldon off balance and on the run in the second half, and, in the fourth quarter, Gators safeties Will White and Del Speer combined to break up a fourth-down pass to the end zone by Weldon with two minutes remaining§, thus saving the victory for Florida.[22]
Sugar Bowl
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Fighting Irish | 0 | 7 | 10 | 22 | 39 |
| Gators | 10 | 6 | 0 | 12 | 28 |
- Date: September 14
- Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, LA
- Game attendance: 76,447
- Game weather: Indoors
- TV announcers (ABC): Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
The Gators closed out their season with their first New Year's Day bowl appearance since 1974, a 39–28 defeat by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the Sugar Bowl, and were ranked seventh in the final Associated Press Poll.[3] Florida won the team's first official SEC championship, 59 seasons after joining the conference as a charter member. Quarterback Shane Matthews repeated as SEC Player of the Year in 1991.[23]
Roster
| 1991 Florida Gators football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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NFLdraft
The following Gators were selected in the 1992 NFL draft after the season.[24]
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 105 | Tony McCoy | Defensive tackle | Indianapolis Colts |
| 5 | 119 | Dexter McNabb | Fullback | Green Bay Packers |
| 5 | 127 | Cal Dixon | Center | New York Jets |
| 6 | 156 | Tony Rowell | Center | Los Angeles Raiders |
| 7 | 182 | Tim Paulk | Linebacker | Atlanta Falcons |
| 8 | 206 | Hesham Ismail | Guard | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 9 | 241 | Ephesians Bartley | Linebacker | Philadelphia Eagles |
| 10 | 264 | Brad Culpepper | Defensive tackle | Minnesota Vikings |
| 12 | 309 | Mike Brandon | Defensive end | Indianapolis Colts |
