GATORS AT 100

Where Do Mid-'90s Gators Rank All-Time?

By ANDY STAPLES

Published: Jul 17, 2006

GAINESVILLE - The University of Florida played its most dominant stretch of football between 1993 and 1996, going 45-6-1 and winning four Southeastern Conference titles and a national championship. So how do the mid-' 90s Gators stack up against some of the great college football dynasties?

It would be foolish to compare Florida to the Oklahoma teams that racked up 47 consecutive wins for Coach Bud Wilkinson between 1953 and 1957. Those Sooners won three consecutive Associated Press national titles, and no program since can claim that kind of sustained dominance.

But those Sooners played in an era of unlimited scholarships. The NCAA imposed a 105-scholarship limit in 1973, while Alabama was in the middle of winning five consecutive Southeastern Conference titles (1971-75).

The NCAA reduced scholarships to the current limit of 85 before the 1992 season, bringing more parity to football and virtually eliminating the possibility of a program matching Oklahoma's streak.

Since 1992, the SEC hasn't seen a more dominant team than the mid-' 90s Gators. From 1993 to 1996, the Gators went 34-2 in conference play, losing only to Auburn in 1993 and 1994.

While Florida did rule the SEC in the mid-' 90s, some would argue that those Gators aren't even the top dynasty in the history of the state. Miami and Florida State fans can claim periods of equal or greater dominance by their programs in recent years.

Seminoles fans probably would point to the period between 1998 and 2000, when FSU played for the Bowl Championship Series national title three consecutive seasons. The Noles won it all with an undefeated campaign in 1999, holding the No.1 ranking for the entire season. Gators fans might complain that FSU played in a weak Atlantic Coast Conference, but the Seminoles beat Florida head-to-head all three seasons.

Miami fans would select the period between 2000 and 2002, when the Hurricanes went 35-2, won the 2001 national title and were a questionable pass-interference call away from winning a 35th consecutive game and a second consecutive national title.

Of course, no one knows what might have happened had the 1996 Gators met with the 2001 Hurricanes. Would Florida receiver Ike Hilliard have scorched Miami safety Ed Reed for the game-winning score? Or, if the 1996 Gators played the 1999 Noles, would a grown-up Peter Warrick have wreaked even more havoc on Florida's defensive backs than he did as a freshman when the teams met in Tallahassee?

We'll never know the answers to those questions, but that's what makes arguing about them so much fun.

Reporter Andy Staples can be contacted at (352) 262-3719 or astaples@tampatrib.com.