Top 10 Memorable Games Between Steve Spurrier and the Tennessee Vols

Nov 9, 2013; Gainesville, FL, USA; A view where the Florida Gators play, the swamp, during the first quarter against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

5. 1995: Florida Beats Tennessee 62-36

Steve Spurrier had beaten Tennessee each of the previous two years, including a 31-0 shutout in Knoxville the year before. But this was a different Tennessee team.

Phillip Fulmer was in his third full season as head coach and had managed to sign top-notch recruiting classes to put the Vols on the same level as the elite of the elite talent-wise. And he also had his prized-bull, sophomore quarterback Peyton Manning, a guy Spurrier wanted badly to go to Florida.

This was to be the game to put Tennessee on the national map, and Sports Illustrated said as much, with a plan to put Manning on the cover the next week.

And everything in The Swamp seemed to be going as planned, with the Vols jumping out to a 30-14 lead in the first half. Florida cut it to 30-21 at halftime, but the consensus was that Tennessee had complete control.

Then came the second half. Spurrier’s Gators would have no more of Tennessee pushing them around, and in the midst of a rainstorm, they forced multiple Tennessee turnovers and got red hot on offense, with Danny Wuerffel leading them to 41 points in the second half. Spurrier left his starters in late in the game to run up the score, which is where he got the bad reputation.

And Florida beat Tennessee 62-36 in a loss that was not Manning’s fault at all. SI re-shot its cover the next week with Wuerffel, not Manning on it.

Meanwhile, the game determined the SEC Champion and who would play for the national championship that year, with Florida going 12-0 and the Vols finishing 10-1 before their bowl games.

It was one of many games in the series that impacted national and conference title talk.

Next: #4: Florida Beats Tennessee 35-29 in 1996