The Florida–Tennessee football rivalry, also called the Third Saturday in September, is an American college football rivalry between the Florida Gators football team of the University of Florida and Tennessee Volunteers football team of the University of Tennessee, who first met on the football field in 1916. The Gators and Vols have competed in the same athletic conference since Florida joined the now-defunct Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1910, and the schools were founding members of the Southeastern Conference in 1932. Despite this long conference association, a true rivalry did not develop until the early 1990s due to the infrequency of earlier meetings; in the first seventy-six years (1916–91) of the series, the two teams met just twenty-one times. The Southeastern Conference (SEC) expanded to twelve universities and split into two divisions in 1992. Florida and Tennessee were placed in the SEC's East Division and have met on a home-and-home basis every season since. Their rivalry quickly blossomed in intensity and importance in the 1990s and early 2000s as both programs regularly fielded national championship contending teams under coaches Phil Fulmer of Tennessee and Steve Spurrier at Florida.
The 1966 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. The Gators competed in the University Division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). In their seventh season under head coach Ray Graves, the Gators compiled a 9–2 overall win–loss record, finished 5–1 and placed third among the SEC's ten teams. Led by quarterback Steve Spurrier, the Gators outscored their opponents by a combined total of 265 to 147 and concluded their 1966 season with a 27–12 victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the 1967 Orange Bowl. The Gators were not ranked in the final AP Poll, but finished No. 11 in the final UPI Coaches Poll.
The 1969 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. The season was the tenth, last, and arguably most successful season for Ray Graves as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Graves' 1969 Florida Gators finished their regular season with an overall record of 8–1–1 and an SEC record of 3–1–1, placing fourth among the ten SEC teams. Florida concluded the year with a Gator Bowl victory over SEC-champion Tennessee. Afterwards, Graves resigned from the head coaching position to become the university's athletic director, and was replaced by Tennessee head coach Doug Dickey.
The 1971 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1971 NCAA University Division football season. The season was Doug Dickey's second as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Dickey's 1971 Florida Gators finished with a 4–7 overall record and a 1–6 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), tying for eighth among ten SEC teams.
The 1990 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1990 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season marked the return of the Gators' Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Steve Spurrier to his alma mater as the new head coach of the Florida Gators football team.
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.
The 1992 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was Steve Spurrier's third as the Florida Gators football team's head coach, and the wins were harder to come by as the star-studded senior classes from 1990 and 1991 had graduated. The Gators racked up six tough Southeastern Conference (SEC) wins over the Kentucky Wildcats (35–19), LSU Tigers (28–21), Auburn Tigers (24–9), seventh-ranked Georgia Bulldogs (26–24), South Carolina Gamecocks (14–9), and Vanderbilt Commodores (41–21). They also suffered two crushing SEC losses to the fourteenth-ranked Tennessee Volunteers (14–31) in Knoxville, Tennessee, and the twenty-fourth-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs (6–30) on a Thursday night in Starkville, Mississippi.
The 1993 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1993 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was the fourth for Steve Spurrier as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. The Gators compiled a 10–2 overall record.
The 1966 Georgia Bulldogs football team represented the University of Georgia as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. Led by third-year head coach Vince Dooley, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 10–1, with a mark of 5–0 in conference play, and finished as SEC co-champion. In 1966, The Bulldogs had wins over seventh-ranked Florida and fifth-ranked Georgia Tech in the regular season and a win over tenth-ranked SMU in the Cotton Bowl Classic by a score of 24–9. Georgia finished as Southeastern Conference (SEC) co-champion with Alabama.
The 1993 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1993 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Volunteers offense scored 484 points while the defense allowed 175 points. Phillip Fulmer was the head coach and led the club to an appearance in the Florida Citrus Bowl.
The 1967 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1967 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Doug Dickey, in his fourth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of nine wins and two losses as SEC Champions and with a loss against Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. The Volunteers' offense scored 283 points while the defense allowed 141 points. At season's end, Tennessee was recognized as national champions by Litkenhous. Lester McClain became the first African American player in the program.
The 1969 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Doug Dickey, in his sixth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of nine wins and two losses and a loss against Florida in the Gator Bowl.
The 1970 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 1970 NCAA University Division football season. Under the leadership of head coach Ralph Jordan, Tigers completed the regular season with a record of 8–2. Auburn won the Gator Bowl against Ole Miss by a score of 35–28. They completed the season with a record of 9–2 and were ranked No. 10 in the AP poll and No. 9 in the Coaches Poll.
The 1973 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bill Battle, in his fourth year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of eight wins and four losses and a loss to Texas Tech in the 1973 Gator Bowl.
The 1971 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1971 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bill Battle, in his second year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of ten wins and two losses and a victory over Arkansas in the 1971 Liberty Bowl.
The 1965 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 1965 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Doug Dickey, in his second year, and played their home games at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of eight wins, one loss and two ties and a victory over Tulsa in the Bluebonnet Bowl.
The 1957 Tennessee Volunteers represented the University of Tennessee in the 1957 NCAA University Division football season. Playing as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the team was led by head coach Bowden Wyatt, in his third year, and played their home games at Shields–Watkins Field in Knoxville, Tennessee. They finished the season with a record of eight wins and three losses and with a victory over Texas A&M in the 1957 Gator Bowl.
The 1966 Vanderbilt Commodores football team represented Vanderbilt University in the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. The Commodores were led by head coach John Green in his fourth and final season and finished the season with a record of one win and nine losses.
The 1956 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team was an American football team that represented Georgia Tech as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1956 NCAA University Division football season. In their 12th year under head coach Bobby Dodd, the team compiled an overall record of 10–1, with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, and finished second in the SEC.
The 1966 Syracuse Orangemen football team represented Syracuse University in the 1966 NCAA University Division football season. The Orangemen were led by 18th-year head coach Ben Schwartzwalder and played their home games at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse, New York. After losing their first two games of the season, Syracuse won the next eight games, finishing the regular season with a record of 8–2 and ranked 16th in the Coaches Poll. They were invited to the 1966 Gator Bowl, where they lost to Tennessee.
