College football is filled with plenty of great rivalries between schools of bordering states. But few of those rivalries measure up to the Florida Gators and Georgia Bulldogs. This rivalry is a huge deal for fans on both sides, which is why the game is played on neutral ground in Jacksonville and known unofficially as the “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.” The rivalry has provided fans on both sides with many memorable moments over the years, including these five that stand out from the pack.
Gonna Need a Timeout (1993)
With a 33-26 lead in the closing seconds, the Gators got a critical timeout from freshman cornerback Anthone Lott. Georgia appeared to score a touchdown that brought them within a point of tying the game.
But the officials granted a timeout that Lott called just before the play. Oddly enough, Lott was called for pass interference right after the timeout, giving the Bulldogs one last chance. However, Eric Zeier’s pass fell incomplete, allowing Florida to hang on for the win.
The Great Upset (1985)
Florida entered the 1985 rivalry game with Georgia undefeated and ranked no. 1 in the country. But the Gators didn’t play like it. Both Keith Henderson and Tim Worley rushed for over 100 yards for the Bulldogs, who pushed the Gators around all day.
Georgia went on to win 24-3, spoiling Florida’s perfect season and preventing them from having a chance to win the national championship.
Spurrier Runs It Up (1995)
This was one of two games that Florida and Georgia played on campus in the 90s when a new stadium in Jacksonville was under construction. The Gators won at home 52-14 the previous year and beat Georgia by a similar margin on their home field in 1995. This game is memorable because Florida coach Steve Spurrier made a point to run up the score.
After Danny Wuerffel threw five touchdown passes, the Gators kept throwing the ball with backup Eric Kresser, who threw two more. One last touchdown with less than 90 seconds left gave Florida a 52-17 win. After the game, Spurrier bragged about wanting to score “half a hundred” against the Bulldogs. Those 52 points remain the most a visiting team has ever scored at Georgia’s Sanford Stadium.
Dawgs Know How to Celebrate (2007)
Georgia was so confident heading into this game that the entire team ran to the end zone to celebrate the team’s first touchdown. Of course, head coach Mark Richt had given them permission to do so and take the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that followed.
That celebration set the tone for a 42-30 Georgia win. However, the Gators struck back a year later with a 49-10 blowout of the Bulldogs.
Run, Lindsay, Run (1980)
It’ll be hard for a moment in the Florida-Georgia rivalry to ever top what the Bulldogs pulled off in 1980. Undefeated Georgia was trailing 21-20 with time running out. Facing a third and long from their own seven-yard line, Georgia quarterback Buck Belue managed to buy some time by scrambling around his own end zone before spotting Lindsay Scott open in the middle of the field.
Scott caught the ball at the 25-yard line and proceeded to outrun the entire Florida defense all the way to the end zone. The Bulldogs won 26-21 to remain undefeated and eventually ended up winning the national championship, a feat that would not have been possible without Scott’s catch and run.