Florida vs Florida State 1997 Sugar Bowl game rewind

Warrick Dunn gashes Gators in first matchup

Florida was riding high and entered the November matchup undefeated and ranked number one in the nation.

Their neighbors to the west, Florida State, were also enjoying an undefeated season and entered the matchup ranked number two.

Florida lost the game 24-21.

The Gators didn’t play that poorly once they got going.

The problem is that once they got going they were down 17-0 after the first quarter.

Quarterback Danny Wuerffel had three interceptions, including one in the endzone on Florida’s first drive off a miscommunication of a route.

FSU running back Warrick Dunn was the main difference maker for the Seminoles. Dunn ran for a career best 185 yards.

In this game, FSU played very close to the line of scrimmage and were determined to not give Wuerffel any time to throw. Wuerffel was sacked six times, but FSU also had multiple knockdowns of Wuerffel.

Florida mused after the game that multiple FSU hits were late but not flagged.

Florida dropped down to fourth in the rankings after game while FSU ascended to first.

The Gators moved up to third when Nebraska lost in the Big-12 title game. Arizona State, ranked second, was obligated to play in Rose Bowl against Ohio State.

This opened the door for the Florida-Florida State rematch and when Arizona State lost in the Rose Bowl, the 1997 Sugar Bowl became the de facto national title game.