My guys played UF a few times over the years. I have bittersweet memories of three games. In 1963 I was a 7th grade kid and worked a game as an usher in Tuscaloosa, maybe made $5 in tips showing old biddies to their splintery wooden seats. The Gators rolled in a beat us 10-6, one of only two games Bear Bryant lost in 28 years in Tuscaloosa.
In 1986 they played us in Birmingham the week after we had pantsed defending NC Penn State. Our players, including Derrick Thomas and Bobby Humphrey, were all miming the Gator chomp to the UF players as they finished warmups. Then the game kicked off. Those fuckers came out and took it to us for all 60 minutes. They introduced the world to a freshman rb whom we couldn’t tackle or stop. He ran for over 200 yards that day - Emmit Smith.
In 1991 a buddy and I drove to Gainesville for a night game in Gene Stallings’ second year. The state newspapers harped on the fact that the Gators had never defeated Bama there but in fact only a handful of Bama games were ever played there and those were in the in old days when the stadium was open ended and somewhat dinky. This was Spurrier’s first or second year. It was a hard hitting first half. We were down only 6-0 at the half. We had a QB named Vince Sutton who could run like a deer and throw the ball a mile although its destination was always uncertain. After he threw a couple of picks in the 3rd quarter, Stallings pulled him and subbed Jay Barker, who went on to do good things in later games that night he was smashed and sacked every other play. The Gators humiliated us 35-0, one the worst beat downs I’ve ever seen a Bama football team receive. This was The Real Swamp and it was steamy, hot and very LOUD. A UF student greeted the UA president and his wife, “FUCK YOU!”
After the game, we visited the strip and joints called the Purple Porpoise and Balls. Man, I never saw so much nubile, tan, taut, smiling, bouncing, supple young female flesh as I saw that night. Thry were most gracious in victory. All during the game, the sweet aroma of weed smoke wafted forth across the field from the student section, where no cops could go because it was SRO all game. You do want to get behind the sticks in the Swamp. But those were Spurrier days. That fucker took no prisoners. Their fans are worse than Aggies but not as bad as Aubies.