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Florida near sure bet for national title as Danny Wuerffel leads way past Florida State
Web posted January 3, 1997
By Richard Rosenblatt
Throwing out of the shotgun, Danny Wuerffel delivered more hits than he took Thursday night, leading No. 3 Florida to a 52-20 victory over No. 1 Florida State in the Sugar Bowl and an almost certain first national championship.
The Heisman Trophy winner shook off brutal shots all night and came through with three touchdown passes to Ike Hilliard and a 16-yard scoring run that helped the Gators avenge two defeats with one win.
Just 33 days ago, the Seminoles (11-1) knocked the Gators out of the No. 1 ranking with a 24-21 win in Tallahassee. In the rematch, just the 11th time two teams have met in the same season, the Gators not only avenged that loss, but wiped out last year's 62-24 whipping by Nebraska in the title game at the Fiesta Bowl.
The Associated Press Top 25 will be released this morning, but with the top two teams having lost in bowls, the Gators (12-1) are likely to win the title with their record-breaking performance.
Wuerffel withstood everything the Seminoles threw at him, including All-American ends Peter Boulware and Reinard Wilson, as Spurrier devised a shotgun offense that allowed running backs to remain in the backfield for pass protection.
Since the loss to Florida State, Spurrier has accused the Seminoles of late hits and dirty play against Wuerffel, who was sacked six times and intercepted three times.
In the game that counted most, though, Wuerffel was 18-of-34 for 306 yards as the Gators scored more points than any other team in Sugar Bowl history.
He was sacked three times and hit on several other occasions. In the second quarter, Florida State's Vernon Crawford was called for a late hit after Wuerffel completed a 47-yard pass to Hilliard in the second quarter.
Just a year ago, the Gators could barely compete against Nebraska's Cornhuskers but, playing their rival for the fifth time in 25 months, Florida was clearly superior. Florida State entered the game with the nation's third-best scoring defense, having allowed just 122 points all season.
Florida State isn't used to losing in the postseason, either. The loss ended an NCAA-record, 11-game bowl winning streak for Bowden. The Seminoles also joined Michigan State and Ohio State as No. 1 teams who lost in a bowl after beating the same team in the regular season.
The Seminoles' offense suffered a major blow in the second half when star running back Warrick Dunn left the game with cramps. He was taken to the locker room and given fluids, came back for one third-quarter carry and didn't return. In the first game, Dunn had 185 yards.
The Gators ran away from the Seminoles in the third quarter with Wuerffel hitting Hilliard on a 7-yard score and then running 16 yards for a score to make it 38-20. With 8:54 left in the game, Terry Jackson ran 42 yards for a score and the blue-and-orange clad Gator fans began celebrating in the Louisiana Superdome. Jackson added a 1-yard TD run with 2:12 left to complete the rout.
Florida led at halftime 24-17 and Wuerrfel had two TD passes, but was sacked three times and clobbered on a block after throwing an interception as time ran out.
Wuerffel's back-handed shovel pass was picked off by linebacker Vernon Crawford near midfield. On the return, Wuerffel was flattened by a block and lay on the ground for a few seconds before getting to his feet. Crawford lateraled to Sean Key, who was tackled at the Gators 36 as the half ended.
Like the first time the teams played, Wuerffel was also hit several times after throwing, once walking off the field holding his right shoulder. The Seminoles were also called for roughing-the-passer when Crawford slammed into Wuerffel after a 47-yard completion to Hilliard that set up Fred Taylor's 2-yard TD for a 17-3 Florida lead.
Wuerffel was sturdy when he had to be, throwing TD passes of 9 and 31 yards to Hilliard. In between, Bart Edmiston kicked a 32-yard field goal and Taylor added his scoring run.
The Gators seemed in control, but penalties slowed their offense and the Seminoles were able to stay close. Wuerffel finished the half 13-of-26 for 246 yards, but Florida was penalized 11 times for 76 yards.
It was bombs away for Busby, too. With Florida State trailing 17-3 five minutes into the second quarter, Busby threw a 29-yard TD pass to E.G. Green, who was all alone in the end zone after Florida cornerback Shea Showers and safety Lawrence Wright ran into each other inside the 5.
The Gators moved to a 24-10 lead on their next possession. Wuerffel hit Jacquez Green for 40 yards while being leveled by ends Wilson and Boulware.
On the next play, Wuerffel hit Hilliard at the 20. The receiver stopped and changed direction and, after cornerback James Colzie and linebacker Hank Grant hurtled past, reversed direction and sprinted into the end zone with 5:18 left in the half.
The Seminoles weren't finished, either. With just under two minutes to go, Busby moved Florida State 66 yards in 40 seconds. He rolled right and hit E.G. Green for 23 yards, then found Andre Cooper for 12 yards to the 12 on third-and-6.
On the next play, Dunn ran right, got a couple of blocks and ran 12 yards for a TD with 40 seconds left. Busby finished the half 12-of-23 for 216 yards.
There was no feeling-out process with these teams. On the first play of the game, Busby dropped back and connected with Cooper for 55 yards to the Gators 32. On fourth-and-1, though, Florida stopped Pooh Bear Williams for no gain and took over at its 23.
Wuerffel went to work exclusively out of the shotgun, and nine plays later the Gators led 7-0 on his 9-yard TD pass to Hilliard. Four plays earlier Jacquez Green caught a 29-yard pass in the end zone but Florida was penalized for illegal procedure and the TD was nullified.
Bentley kicked a 43-yard field goal that cut the lead to 7-3. Edmiston made it 10-3 with 2:44 left in the first quarter.
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