REPORTS

Back to back impressive wins make UF new #1

A week after blowing out Mississippi St. in the Swamp 52-0 to gain revenge for last year's upset, the Gators and Rex Grossman continued their dominance in Baton Rouge. Grossman threw for over 300 yards by halftime as the Gators routed LSU 44-15. Grossman finished 22-32 for a school record 464 yards (breaking Danny Wuerffel's record of 462 yards against Arkansas in 1996) and 5 TD passes. LSU cut Florida's lead 7-3 early in the first quarter, but the Gators responded with two more TDs to take a 21-3 lead after the 1st. It was the most points LSU had allowed in an opening quarter since 1980. Grossman has now thrown for 300+ yards in all five games this season, and with 20 TDs and only 3 INTs, is a leading Heisman candidate. UF has totaled over 500 yards of total offense in all 5 games, and won their last two games by a combined 96-15 against two top 25 teams.

WRs Jabar Gaffney and Reche Caldwell were outstanding once again, as Gaffney caught 5 passes for a career high 164 yards and 2 TDs and Caldwell added 6 catches for 120 yards and 1 TD. Earnest Graham and Robert Gillespie once again combined for over 100 yards to lead the Gators' ground attack. After this impressive performance, Florida leapfrogged Miami to retake the #1 spot in the AP poll, and now trails the Hurricanes by only 4 points in the Coaches poll. Miami defeated Troy St. 38-7, but their strength of schedule is now 116th out of 117 teams in division 1A. This will change as Miami still plays FSU, Virginia Tech, and Washington, all top 15 teams, but when the BCS first comes out next week, the 'canes will be very low due to the strength of schedule and computer ranking components.

#3 Oklahoma defeated #5 Texas 14-3 in a tight game to hold on to the #3 spot in the rankings. Texas fell to 11th as Nebraska stayed 4th and Virginia Tech moved up to 5th. Clemson had a bye week after pulling off a great victory at Georgia Tech last week, thanks to the heroics of Woodrow Dantzler, who was responsible for 418 of the Tigers 502 total yards...254 in the air and 164 on the ground, including a 38-yard scramble for a TD on the last play of the first half and a QB draw for the game winning TD in overtime.

The big game to look forward to is Miami at FSU. Florida St. has not lost a home game since Miami beat them in Wide Right 1 back in 1991, as they went on to win their last National Championship. But with FSU having a down season, Miami should be favored to win this year. Florida continues its SEC play at Auburn, while Clemson travels to N.C. St. Undefeated Maryland plays Georgia Tech, in a game becoming very important to the ACC standings.
MyGatorWorld.com
ESPN.com: College Football

Tar-riffic win!

In one of the most shocking upsets ever, the 0-3 North Carolina Tar Heels routed #4 FSU 41-9 for their first win ever against a top 5 opponent. In the biggest win in the program's 111 year history, UNC scored 34 unanswered points in the second half as they just layed the smack down on a shocked FSU team. It was FSU's worst loss since losing 52-20 to Florida in the National Championship game at the Sugar Bowl in January 1997 and their worst regular season loss since 1985. UNC jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but after a TD and a safety, FSU led at the half 9-7. The seminoles compeletely self-destructed in the second half, gaining only 34 yards. FSU never recovered after an 85-yard TD was called back due to holding with 6:23 to go in the third. The next series, star UNC linebacker Julius Peppers picked off a Chris Rix pass and set up a FG to take a 20-9 lead. QB Ronald Curry threw a 53-yd TD pass to a wide open Kory Bailey early in the 4th quarter to put the game away. FSU dropped to #18 and #15 in the latest polls and still has games vs #1 Miami, at #2 Florida, vs #9 Georgia Tech, and at #25 Clemson.

The #2 Florida Gators got off to a slow start at Kentucky, but finished strong with a 44-10 victory, their 15th straight against the Wildcats. Rex Grossman struggled most of the game, but still wound up with over 300 passing yards for the third straight game. Backup QB Brock Berlin came in in the 4th quarter and threw a 64-yard TD pass on his first play. Berlin finished 3-3 for 96 yards. The brightest spot for Florida was their running game as Earnest Graham ran 11 times for 86 yards and a 50-yard TD, where he toed the sideline all the way down and Robert Gillespie ran for 66 yards and caught 3 passes for 81 yards including a 52-yard TD. Gillespie, playing a great all-around game, also made several key blocks. Reche Caldwell caught 5 passes for 105 yards and a TD and Jabar Gaffney had 6 catches for 80 yards and 2 TDs. The Gators host Mississippi State next weekend, looking for revenge. The Bulldogs beat the Gators in Starkville 48-34 last season.

The Clemson Tigers continue to struggle, and this week it cost them. They trailed Virginia much of the second half before scoring back-to-back TDs to take a 24-20 lead in the 4th quarter. But with only five minutes to play and Clemson driving to put the game away, Woodrow Dantzler fumbled and opened the door for the Cavaliers. The fumble was the 3rd TO of the game for the Tigers. Clemson's defense was unable to stop the Cavs from driving 44 yards in 1:43 with no timeouts and scoring the game winning TD on 3rd and goal from the 1 with a pass from Spinner to McMullen with 0:01 left on the clock. Woodrow Dantzler was 25-34 for 251 yards and ran for 67 yards. The Tigers have continually underperformed this season and will have to play up to their ability to avoid getting embarassed when they visit #9 Georgia Tech next week. There were a lot of empty seats at the game...only 79,000 in attendance, so perhaps a little more noise would have made it harder on Virginia during that last drive, but Clemson should seriously think about if they consider Tommy Bowden the right coach for the job. Clemson has lost several close games under Bowden...the mark of bad coaching.

In the new polls, Fresno St. is now the highest ranked FSU team as the Bulldogs moved up to #10 and #13 as they defeated Tulane to go 4-0. Nebraska and Texas moved up to 4th and 5th after wins and Georgia Tech cracked the top 10 at #9, as the highest ranked ACC team. #1 Miami and #3 Oklahoma were both idle this weekend.
MyGatorWorld.com
ESPN.com: College Football

Gators, Tigers unimpressive in wins

Just a minute and a half into Saturday's game, #1 ranked Florida trailed for the first time this season. Not to FSU, or Tennessee, or Mississippi State, but to Louisiana Monroe, a team that went 1-10 last year and lost to 1-AA Sam Houston St. last week. After an embarassing start with two fumbles in their first 3 possessions, the Gators finally took a 7-6 lead late in the first quarter, and returned to form in the second quarter, outscoring the Indians 31-0 for a 38-6 halftime lead. The Gators went on to win 55-6 (not enough to cover the 56.5 point spread), as QB Rex Grossman threw for over 300 yards for the second straight week and 3 TDs. Star WR Jabar Gaffney caught 2 of the 3 TD passes and topped 100 yards receiving for the seconds straight week. Grossman finished 23-34 for 331 yards and one INT and backup Brock Berlin was 9-13 for 95 yards and a TD. Florida's two-headed running back, Earnest Graham and Robert Gillespie, combined for 150 yards on the ground, as UF outgained the Indians 600-105 in total yards. Still, the slow start was enough to drop the Gators to #2 in the ESPN coaches poll behind Miami, who demolished Rutgers 61-0. The Gators face their first test next week when #8 Tennessee aka Gator Bait visits the Swamp for their annual beating by the Gators. Florida has won 7 of the last 8 against Tennessee, their only loss coming at Tennessee in 1998 in overtime (with the help of 5 turnovers and a missed FG in OT).

Clemson similarly had an extremely embarassing start, with 1-AA Wofford striking first against the Tigers. It wasn't until mid-second quarter that Clemson took the lead at 17-14 and held it for good, finishing the game 31-0 for a 38-14 win. Heisman trophy candidate Woodrow Dantzler was 21-30 for 207 yards passing, 2 TDs, and one INT and also ran 13 times for 55 yards. Clemson's defense gave up an amazing 276 yards rushing, but only 36 yards passing to Wofford. The Tigers have yet another apparantly much needed warmup game as Duke visits Death Valley next weekend.

Fresno State, coming off their huge upset over then #12 Oregon St., proved they are for real with a 32-20 win at #23 Wisconsin. Fresno St. received a first place vote in the latest AP poll, where they surged up to #11. Washington had an impressive victory over Michigan, 23-18 and #4 Nebraska took out Notre Dame at home, 27-10.
MyGatorWorld.com
ESPN.com: College Football

Gators rout Marshall in opener; Tigers survive

Rex Grossman set a career high in passing yards...by halftime and finished 20-30 with 375 yards and 3 TD passes as the #1 Gators rolled over Marshall in their season opener. In front of over 85,000 fans at the Swamp, the Gators stormed out to a 35-0 halftime lead. Grossman, who barely beat out fellow sophomore Brock Berlin for the starting QB job, showed he was worthy of the position with over 300 yards passing in the fisrt half. Tailbacks Earnest Graham and Robert Gillespie combined for 113 yards on the ground and star WR Jabbar Gaffney had over 100 yards receiving. Alex Brown and Andra Davis keyed the defensive attack for the gators with two sacks each. The Gators host lowly Louisiana Monroe next week, before a visit by their perennial punching bag, Tennessee, in two weeks.

It was a good day all-around for Florida schools as #2 Miami went into Happy Valley and demolished Penn St. 33-7, denying Joe Paterno his record-tying 323rd career victory. FSU blew out Duke in their season opener 55-13, as the Duke defense, unlike FSU's defense during fall practice, was unable to knock any FSU players out of the game with injuries. Clemson survived a strong performance by Central Florida to win 21-13 in their season opener in Death Valley. Heisman trophy candidate Woodrow Dantzler passed for 152 yards and ran for 46, but the rest of Clemson's offense was dismal. The Tigers host I-AA Wofford next week.
MyGatorWorld.com
ESPN.com: College Football

Gators ranked preseason #1

The AP Poll, ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, and Athlon's preseason college football rakings all have UF #1 for the 2001-2002 season. The Gators return 18 starters from last year's 10-3 team and face their two toughest opponents, FSU and Tennessee at home in the Swamp. They also face a tough road test at LSU in October. Steve Spurrier has not announced who the starting QB will be yet, and it is dead even between sophomores Rex Grossman and Brock Berlin heading into fall practice.
MyGatorWorld.com
AP Poll
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
ESPN.com: College Football
Athlon's preseason rankings

My Top 10

Clemson Report

Clemson improved to 6-3 and moved into 3rd place in the ACC with a 24-16 upset at Virginia on Saturday. Raymond Priester, Nealon Greene, and Kelton Dunnican each ran for a TD. Priester had 20 carries for 122 yards and put Clemson up 7-0 with a 15-yard TD run with 9:33 left in the 1st quarter. The Tigers recovered a Tiki Barber fumble on a punt return at the Virginia 2 and Nealon Greene puched it in for a TD to give Clemson a 14-3 lead. The teams then traded FG and the Tigers were up 17-6 at the half. After an INT in the 3rd quarter, the Cavaliers' NCAA record 38th straight game with an INT, Virginia added another FG to make it 17-9. Clemson then came back and Kelton Dunnican, filling in for the injured Emory Smith, broke a 54-yard TD run to seal the win. Virginia later scored a TD to pull within 8, but never got the ball back after that. Dunnican rushed 13 times for a career high 123 yards, as Clemson rushed for 263 yards as a team. Nealon Greene was 8-16 for 43 yards, and junior WR Kenya Crooks caught 3 passes for 30 yards. It was Clemson's first win over Virginia since 1993, although they lead the all-time series 32-3-1. This was Clemson's 2nd victory over a top 25 team this year, and if they win out and UNC goes to an alliance bowl, the Tigers are headed back down to the Gator Bowl! Clemson is ranked 27th in both polls and 25th in my computer rankings.

Clemson Football Home Page

Florida Report

Danny Wuerffel threw for 401 yards and six touchdowns as
fourth-ranked Florida earned a likely shot at the national title
with a 45-30 victory over Alabama in the Southeastern Conference
title game. 

Guaranteed a spot in the bowl alliance with the victory, the
Gators (11-1) probably secured a spot in the Sugar Bowl and a
rematch with top-ranked Florida State.  The Seminoles handed
Florida its only loss of the season, 24-21, at Tallahassee on
November 30th. 

"If we play them, then we'll be ready to play them," Florida
coach Steve Spurrier said.  "I'm not up to date on all the
alliance stuff, to tell you the truth.  We were up to date on
how to beat Alabama tonight and I can assure you we are a happy
bunch of Gators, regardless of who we play next." 

Alabama (9-3) likely will end up in a New Year's Day bowl game,
its final contest under coach Gene Stallings, who announced his
resignation effective at the end of the season. 

"They just did a better jon than us today," Stallings said.
"This is a game that is going to get harder to take than some of
the other ones.  I know we were an underdog, but I felt like if
we could score in the 28-35 point range, we could win it." 

Lost in the national title implications is the fact that the win
gave Florida four straight SEC titles, a feat accomplished only
one other time in conference history.  Alabama, which wasn't
forced to play a conference championship game, won five
consecutive titles from 1971-75. 

Wuerffel, who completed 20-of-35 passes, set an SEC
single-season passing mark with 3,624 yards, eclipsing the
previous record of 3,525 set by Georgia's Eric Zeier in 1993. He
set championship game records for touchdown passes and passing
yards and trails only Ty Detmer for NCAA career TD passes. 

"I'm just very thankful to be a part of this team," Wuerffel
said.  "This is phenomenal, to come here tonight and win our
fourth straight championship.  I remember looking at the seniors
and you can just see a gleam in their eyes and how special that
is." 

He also boosted his Heisman Trophy chances.  Wuerffel was the
favorite until a rough outing against Florida State.  The
Heisman Trophy is awarded next Saturday and as of mid-week, less
than 33 percent of the ballots had been cast. 

Reidel Anthony set championship game records with 11 catches,
including three touchdown receptions, and set an NCAA record
with a touchdown catch in his 12th straight game, bettering the
mark of former Michigan receiver Desmond Howard. 

"I have to give credit to Danny," Anthony said. "For taking all
the punishment he does and (still) getting the ball off, that's
all we ask him to do." 

Wuerffel broke open a 31-28 game late in the third quarter with
an 85-yard scoring pass to Jacquez Green and a 21-yard touchdown
toss to Anthony in a 3:15 span. 

Alabama took a 7-0 midway through the first quarter when Freddie
Kitchens found Dennis Riddle for a 36-yard touchdown pass.  But
Florida answered with three long touchdown passes and a field
goal in the next 17 minutes. 

Wuerffel found Anthony with a 46-yard scoring strike and hit Ike
Hilliard with a 21-yard touchdown pass less than four minutes
later.  He completed a 45-yard catch-and-run with tailback
Elijah Williams for a 21-7 lead.  When Chris Cooper hit a
35-yard field goal midway through the second quarter, the Gators
had a commanding 24-7 advantage. 

But the Crimson Tide answered with a nine-yard touchdown pass
from Kitchens to Michael Vaughn with 29 seconds left in the
half.  Alabama opened the second half with a six-yard touchdown
run by Riddle to close within 24-21.  Kitchens was 19-for-45 for
264 yards and three touchdowns, but was sacked five times. 

Florida came right back, however, as Wuerffel hooked up with
Anthony on a 13-yard touchdown pass that extended the advantage
to 10 points with 5:14 remaining in the third quarter.  Anthony
had 171 yards, while Green caught three passes for 106 yards. 

Undeterred, Alabama needed just 68 seconds to draw within 31-28.
Kitchens completed a 94-yard scoring strike to Vaughn as the
Tide continued to make big plays offensively against a Florida
defense that had allowed more than 21 points just twice this
season. 

Vaughn finished with five receptions for 142 yards. 

The Gators have won 22 straight SEC games dating to October 1994
and are 28-1-1 in their last 30, overall. 

These teams have opposed each other in four of the five SEC
championship games since divisional play was introduced in 1992.
Alabama won that year and Florida beat Arkansas last year.

College Football

Click here to go back to the Sports page.

Click here to go back to the home page.