Moving the Chains: Broadening Horizons

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There was a time in college football when the Florida Gators dominated the Miami Hurricanes. 

Between 1971 and 1977, the two teams met seven times.  Florida won them all handily, outscoring Miami by a cumulative total of 101 points.  

Cindy and I were students at the University of Florida in 1974.  We witnessed the Gators’ final game of the season – which was right in the middle of that seven-game winning streak over Miami – sitting in the stands in a torrential rain that felt like a monsoon.  

With a comfortable 28 – 7 lead, Florida kicked a meaningless field goal as time expired, thereby rubbing salt in the Hurricanes’ already painful wound.

I have no idea what was in the mind of Gator head coach Galen Hall at the time.  But I knew that somewhere down the road, Florida was going to pay for it.  

Four years later Miami got their revenge by beating the Gators.  Then the Hurricanes went on to win six of the next nine times they met after that.  

But the Gators weren’t the only ones who paid for it; so did every other team in the country.  

During that period of time Miami won a pair of National Championships: in 1983 and again in 1987.  

Then suddenly, Florida dropped Miami from their schedule in 1988.  

The Gators said it was because since all of the teams in the SEC teams were now required to play seven conference opponents per season instead of six, there was no longer room on their schedule for the Hurricanes. 

But according to Galen Hall, Miami was dropped so Florida could – ahem – ‘expand their horizons.’ 

The Gators broadened their horizon by beating Montana State in their 1988 season opener.  The Grizzlies were a sorry substitute for Miami: Florida won the game with ease, 69 – 0.  

But the Gator fans were happy.  And most certainly, the Miami fans had to be amused.  As for Montana, they were just glad to get paid for showing up.  

After that, Florida and Miami didn’t meet again until the 2001 Sugar Bowl.  By that time, Miami had two more National Championships (1989 and 1991) to their resume.  

And they wanted more.  

They got off to a fast start when the #2 Hurricanes beat the #7 Gators 37 – 20 in the Sugar Bowl  to conclude their 2000 season.  

Miami went on to capitalize from the momentum generated by that win and claim yet another National Championship in 2001, their 5^th in 20 years.  

Clearly someone had broadened their horizons since the end of their in-state rivalry, but it wasn’t the Florida Gators.

So what did the Gators do?  They resumed their rivalry with Miami in Gainesville in 2002.  Miami, the defending National Champions, were ranked #1, and Florida was ranked #7.   

The Hurricanes picked up where they left off, easily beating the Gators by a score of 41 – 16. 

Miami ended the season with a 12 – 1 record and a #2 ranking, their only loss being to Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl for the National Championship.  

Meanwhile, Florida finished the season unranked with an 8 – 5 record.  

As of last season, Florida and Miami met seven times since then.  The Hurricanes have the upper hand with five wins.  Ironically, during that period of time the Gators have the upper hand in National Championships, 2 – 0.  

Incidentally, the university president forced Galen Hall’s  resignation in the *midst of his 6^th season with the team (this was in 1989) for possible NCAA violations.  Hall departed Gainesville with a record of 40 – 18 – 1. 

*Gary Darnell coached the Gators for the duration of the 1989 season.

I’ve always had mixed emotions about Galen Hall.  On one hand, he led the 1985 Gator team to their first-ever SEC championship (although they were ineligible to officially be credited with the title because they were on NCAA probation for rule violations under prior coaching staffs).  

On the other hand, Hall’s departure opened the door for Steve Spurrier, the Gators’ first Heisman winner, to return to Gainesville the following season and take over as the head ball coach. 

And Spurrier, as every Georgia Bulldog fans knows (Spurrier’s teams beat the Bulldogs 11 times in his 12 seasons in Gainesville), accomplished what Galen Hall couldn’t.

And in 1996, Spurrier led the Gators to their first National Championship.  

That’s how you broaden a horizon.