1985 Florida Gators football team

Last updated

1985 Florida Gators football
Conference Southeastern Conference
Ranking
APNo. 5
Record9–1–1 (5–1 SEC)
Head coach
Defensive coordinator Charlie Bailey (1st season)
Home stadium Florida Field
Seasons
←  1984
1986  →
1985 Southeastern Conference football standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 4 Tennessee $ 5 –1 –09 –1 –2
No. 5 Florida 5 –1 –09 –1 –1
No. 13 Alabama 4 –1 –19 –2 –1
No. 20 LSU 4 –1 –19 –2 –1
Georgia 3 –2 –17 –3 –2
Auburn 3 –3 –08 –4 –0
Ole Miss 2 –4 –04 –6 –1
Vanderbilt 1 –4 –13 –7 –1
Kentucky 1 –5 –05 –6 –0
Mississippi State 0 –6 –05 –6 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • Florida ineligible for SEC championship due to NCAA probation.
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1985 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was the second for Galen Hall as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team, having coached the 1984 Gators' final eight games as their interim coach. Because of NCAA probation terms handed down the previous year, Hall's 1985 Florida Gators were ineligible to win the Southeastern Conference (SEC) title, receive a bowl bid, or appear on live television.

Contents

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 7at Miami (FL) *No. 5
W 35–2380,227 [1]
September 14 Rutgers *No. 3
T 28–2871,708 [2]
September 28at Mississippi State No. 11
W 36–2234,588 [3]
October 5at No. 8 LSU No. 11
TigerVisionW 20–078,598 [4]
October 12No. 14 Tennessee No. 7
  • Florida Field
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
W 17–1074,432 [5]
October 19 Southwestern Louisiana *Dagger-14-plain.pngNo. 5
  • Florida Field
  • Gainesville, FL
W 45–074,369 [6]
October 26 Virginia Tech *No. 2
  • Florida Field
  • Gainesville, FL
W 35–1870,119 [7]
November 2at No. 6 Auburn No. 2
W 14–1075,000 [8]
November 9vs. No. 17 Georgia No. 1
L 3–2482,327 [9]
November 16 Kentucky No. 11
  • Florida Field
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
W 15–1373,672 [10]
November 30No. 12 Florida State *No. 6
  • Florida Field
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
W 38–1474,461 [11]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[12]

Roster

1985 Florida Gators football team roster
PlayersCoaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
RB 27 Neal Anderson Sr
QB 12 Kerwin Bell So
WR 89 Ricky Nattiel Jr
FB 22 John L. Williams Sr
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Cruz Roja.svg Injured
  • Redshirt.svg Redshirt

Postseason

After the season, Sagarin Ratings (ELO-Chess), one of two NCAA recognized selectors created by Jeff Sagarin, an MIT math graduate and sports statistician, named Florida as the 1985 national champions, though Florida does not claim the title. Florida finished with a 9–1–1 overall record and an SEC record of 5–1, tying for first place in the ten-team SEC. [12]

Related Research Articles

The 1960 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1960 college football season. The season was Ray Graves' first of ten and one of his three most successful as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Graves' 1960 Florida Gators finished with a 9–2 overall record a 5–1 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), placing second among the twelve SEC teams—their best-ever SEC finish to date.

The 1962 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1962 NCAA University Division football season. The season was the third of Ray Graves' ten seasons as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Graves' 1962 Florida Gators posted a 7–4 overall record and a 4–2 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), placing fifth in twelve-team SEC. The Gators won the Gator Bowl again in 1962, upsetting ninth-ranked Penn State. They wore the Confederate Battle Flag on the side of their helmets to pump up the southern team facing a favored northern school.

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The 1968 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1968 NCAA University Division football season. The season was Ray Graves' ninth of ten years as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. The Gators offense was led by senior tailback Larry Smith, a first-team All-American. Among the season's highlights were the Gators' conference wins over the Mississippi State Bulldogs (31–14), Tulane Green Wave (24–7) and Kentucky Wildcats (16–14), and victories over the in-state rival Florida State Seminoles (9–3) and Miami Hurricanes (14–10). The Gators also suffered their worst loss since 1942—a 51–0 blowout by the Georgia Bulldogs. Graves' 1968 Florida Gators finished 6–3–1 overall and 3–2–1 in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), tying for sixth among the ten teams of the SEC.

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The 1980 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was the Florida Gators football team's second season under new head coach Charles B. "Charley" Pell, and marked a remarkable one-year turnaround for the Gators from their 0–10–1 record in 1979. The winless 1979 season was the worst season in Gators history, and it was Pell's first campaign as the new head coach of the Gators, after the Gators' previous head coach, Doug Dickey, was fired in the aftermath of a 4–7 season in 1978. Pell's 1980 Florida Gators posted an 8–4 overall record and a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record of 4–2, tying for fourth place in the ten-team SEC. The Gators capped their season with a 35–20 bowl victory over the Maryland Terrapins in the Tangerine Bowl, marking the first time in the history of major college football that a winless team received a bowl bid the following season. Linebacker David Little set the career record for tackles by a Gator and was consensus All-American. Receiver Cris Collinsworth was first-team All-American. The season features the famous "Run Lindsay Run" in the close loss to national champion Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1984 Florida Gators football team</span> American college football season

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The 1986 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was Galen Hall's third as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. The 1986 Florida Gators compiled a 6–5 overall record and a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record of 2–4, tying for 7th place among Ten SEC teams. This was the last year that Florida lost to the Kentucky Wildcats until 2018. This was the longest annual win streak of any team over another in NCAA history and the longest such streak in Southeastern Conference history.

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 1995 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 1995 NCAA Division I-A football season. The 1995 season was the Florida Gators' sixth year under head coach Steve Spurrier and was one of the most successful in school history, as the Gators finished the regular season unbeaten and untied for the first time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1985 Georgia Bulldogs football team</span> American college football season

The 1985 Georgia Bulldogs football team represented the University of Georgia as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by 22nd-year head coach Vince Dooley, the Bulldogs compiled an overall record of 7–3–2, with a mark of 3–2–1 in conference play, and finished fifth in the SEC.

The 1942 Georgia Bulldogs football team was an American football team that represented the University of Georgia in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1942 college football season. In their fourth season under head coach Wally Butts, the Bulldogs compiled an 11–1 record, shut out six of twelve opponents, won the SEC championship, and outscored all opponents by a total of 378 to 73. The Bulldogs' 75–0 win over Florida remains the largest margin of victory in the history of the Florida–Georgia football rivalry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1970 Auburn Tigers football team</span> American college football season

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 1984 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) during the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by first-year head coach Bill Arnsparger, the Tigers compiled an overall record of 8–3–1, with a mark of 4–1–1 in conference play, and finished second in the SEC.

The history of Florida Gators football began in 1906, when the newly established "University of the State of Florida" fielded a football team during its first full academic year of existence. The school's name was shortened to the University of Florida in 1908, and the football team gained the nickname "Gators" in 1911. The program started small, usually playing six to eight games per season against small colleges and local athletic club teams in north Florida and south Georgia. The Orange and Blue developed early rivalries with the Stetson Hatters from nearby Deland and Mercer Bears from Macon. During the 1910s, Florida began playing a wider range of opponents from more established football programs across the southeastern United States and faced off against several future rivals - such as Georgia, Georgia Tech, South Carolina, and Auburn - for the first time.

References

  1. ↑ "Bell passes Gators over Hurricanes". St. Lucie News Tribune. September 8, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "Rutgers ties third-ranked Gators, 28–28". Asbury Park Press. September 15, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Gators defeat Mississippi State". The Macon Telegraph & News. September 29, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Anderson runs and passes over LSU". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 6, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Gators defeat Vols". The Leaf-Chronicle. October 13, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Cajuns provide Gators' entertainment in UF win". Florida Today. October 20, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Florida extends streak at Hokies' expense". Daily Press. October 27, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Gators win war". The Tampa Tribune. November 3, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Top-ranked Gators fall to Georgia". The Index-Journal. November 10, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Florida 15, Kentucky 13". Florida Today. November 17, 1985. p. 4C – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Gators top FSU in Consolation Bowl". The Palm Beach Post. December 1, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
  12. 1 2 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide Archived 2015-12-08 at the Wayback Machine , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 107 (2015). Retrieved August 16, 2015.
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