September 21, 1996, Neyland Stadium Knoxville, Tenn.
Attendance: 107,608
With another opportunistic defense and timely offensive execution the fourth-ranked Gators defeat No. 2 Tennessee 35-29 in front of the an NCAA-record on-campus crowd of 107,608 and a nationally televised CBS audience. The victory, coupled with an upset loss by top-ranked Nebraska to Arizona State, vaults the Gators to the nation's top ranking.
The blitzing, attacking UF defense forces six turnovers (four interceptions and two fumbles) leading to 21 points, while Danny Wuerffel's four TD tosses in the first half highlight the win.
The Gator offense silences the record crowd early with an 80-yard touchdown drive the first time they touch the ball. The scoring play comes on a fourth-and-11 play from the Tennessee 35 as Danny Wuerffel connects with a streaking Reidel Anthony. The UF defense then sets the tone for the day, with Teako Brown picking off a Peyton Manning pass on the Vols' first series to set up Florida's next score. Another UF interception by Tennessee native James Bates leads to a score and a 27-yard fumble recovery return for a touchdown by Anthone Lott has the Gators up 35-0 in the first 20 minutes of the game. Lott's touchdown is the sixth for the Gator defense just three games into the early season.
Tennessee gets on the board for the first time on a 72-yard pass play from Manning to Peerless Price and has two more chances to get momentum and the crowd back on their side before intermission. The UF defense responds, however, and forces Manning to go 0-for-8 with two interceptions in the final two drives of the first half.
UF's four interceptions of Manning in the first half is as many as the Vol quarterback threw during the entire 1995 season. Meanwhile, the Tennessee ground game manages just three rushing yards in the first half. Overall, the UF defense is credited with 38 "Big Plays (four interceptions, eight pass deflections, two forced fumbles and recoveries with five TTFL and 17 QB hurries) on the day.
Tennessee closes the gap to 35-22 on a fourth-quarter touchdown. With just over eight minutes left in the contest and the Vols within two touchdowns of taking the lead, the UF offense answers with a 13-play drive that eats up 6:11 of the game clock to all but end Tennessee's comeback bid. The drive features another fourth-down conversion, the Gators fourth straight of the game, before another fails at the Vol 24-yard line. Tennessee manages a score with just 10 seconds left in the game to provide the 35-29 final.
Other Game Notes
- The win is the first ever for UF vs. a No. 1 or No. 2 ranked team.
- The win is the 14th consecutive SEC victory for UF and the Gators improve to 26-2 in its last 28 league contests. Spurrier is now 45-6 in conference play.
- UF is now 20-1 vs. SEC Eastern Divisional foes since divisional play began in 1992, including a current streak of 19 straight versus the East.
- Florida has now defeated Tennessee four straight times and nine of the last 11 meetings between the two schools.
- The UF defense allows just nine net yards rushing, the eighth best single-game effort in UF history.
- Sophomore Robby Stevenson has seven punts for 306 yards (43.7 avg.) with a long of 58 yards and earns a game ball for his efforts.
- UF's 304 yards in total offense (155 passing, 149 rushing) is the third lowest output in the Spurrier era.
- Manning's 497 yards passing is the most ever by an opponent QB vs. UF.
Scoring Summary & Statistics
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final
Florida 14 21 0 0 35
Tennessee 0 6 10 13 29
1st Quarter
UF: 12:00 - Anthony 35-yard pass from Wuerffel (Edmiston PAT) - 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:00
UF: 10:34 - T. Jackson 10-yard pass from Wuerffel (Edmiston PAT) - 1 play, 10 yards, :05
