12/05/1992. Legion Field (Birmingham, AL). The inaugural SEC Championship Game. The #2 Alabama Crimson Tide (11-0) vs. the #12 Florida Gators (8-3). Broadcast on ABC.
Im a Gator Fan. And, this was a bit of a heart breaker at the time. But, when BAMA spanked MIAMI in the Sugar Bowl a month later. It didnt hurt so much after that. Realizing that Florida a Legit, Top 5 Team, after only 3 years with the Ole Ball Coach. Also, Gator fans in general, had a great deal of respect for Gene Stallings. Of all the various rivalries UF and Spurrier's mouth created during that 4 year run winning SEC Championships, playing and winning in Nat'l Championship Games. Things always stayed 'cool' with Bama and Stallings. Stallings was a class Act, all the way. Loved some of his comments leading up to games with UF over the next 5 or so years.
Lee, you are right. It was always an intense matchup, but class between Bama and Florida. But Spurrier was lightyears ahead of his time with his passing game. Y'all already had a tradition of defense from the 1980's and now Spurrier brought the points with him. Just a great time to be a college football fan.
@@tmarsh0307 All Spurrier did was put more Scholarship WR;s on the field than other teams could put scholarship DB's on the field. I remember a number of SEC coaches, including Stallings mention they did not have enough scholarship DB's on the roster to match up with UF at the time. The SEC was a very, very, RUN Hvy conference at the time. Teams ran the ball over 70% of the time. Typically out of 1 and 2 WR sets. Then UF comes along and starts passing 50% of the time, and running out of 3 and 4 WR sets as well. Other SEC teams tended to only put 3 or more WR's on the field on 3rd down, or when trailing late. Spurrier also was great at drawing up the passing routes, and teaching his QB's how to check down... IN a sense, Spurrier was running an offense that had its basis in the Veer Option. Running the ball out of Passing Formations...But with a legit passing QB instead of a running QB.
Bama was nicccce back then🤦🏻♂️ I remember. I always liked the orange but bama was one team I rooted for since they were so good lol I was young, like a typical kid would.
Thanks so much for posting this fabulous game on You Tube! Just like recent years, the SEC Championship Game was better than the Natty. Love all these Bama games, so please keep 'em coming. Roll Tide!
I was so nervous. I was on my knees in front of the TV. When, Alabama would do something good. I remember hearing people screaming in their home and outside their home. When, Alabama won, People were running outside crying up and down the street. Cars riding up and down the streets waving the Alabama flag. The day white people forgot we were black.
@Glenn Weeks I'm embarrassed to say this, but I wore a Florida State windbreaker to the game. My only other jacket was my letter jacket, and it had been sent off to get my letter sown on. I did wear an Alabama sweatshirt underneath. But if you remember an idiot wearing an FSU jacket to the game, it was me. Could be why I only sold one box of them.
You know...with the SEC that year breaking into two divisions and creating a conference title game and being the only conference to do so, Bama was forced to play an extra game at the end of the regular season when in times past they would've been declared conference champs without such a game. They should've EASILY jumped Miami in the poles who didn't have to play that sort of contest and competed in the pushover Big East. Bama should've walked into the Sugar Bowl #1 and the Canes #2 instead of the other way around. Everyone was just so IN LOVE with Miami back then that just wasn't going to happen. But we all know how it ended out!!
Good point! But I liked the way it played out. Alabama as the slighted underdog and the recipients of a lot of verbal abuse, not only from Miami players themselves, but from all the experts that thought that there was no way Alabama would win the game.
Miami was number #1because they had won 34 in a row before the Sugar Bowl. Alabama was a great team but, Miami had proved up to that point they deserved to be rank #1
Well, rankings are supposed to be based on the current season...not the previous. The only time previous comes into play is preseason rankings...they look at where they finished the previous year and how many players they had returning, etc etc. After game 1, in season performance is supposed to dictate rankings. I like the way it played out though...Bama handing them that ass whooping only proves my point!!
This was actually one of Spurrier's weakest teams at Florida - they had 3 blowout losses during the season on the road (UT, Miss St and FSU) and weren't given much of a chance here but they gave the eventual national champs all they could handle.
Florida played their best game against Bama. They would have come into the game undefeated if they had played like that against the 3 teams that they lost to.
@@joelcoley2606 Dont think 'game plan' was Spurrier's strength as much as an observation, that Stallings made about UF leading up to the 93 SEC Championship Game. UF's early success under Spurrier was largely due to the Matchup problems Spurriers, 'pass balanced' offense created. Spurrier ran the ball about 51% from 90, to 94. He always had an NFL caliber RB during those years. Yet He constantly put 3 and 4 WR's on the field just about every play. The rest of the SEC was running at least 60%, mostly out of 1 and 2 WR formations, with TE, FB. Stallings mentioned going into the 94 game, that he did not have enough scholarship DB's to put on the field vs UF. I heard similar comments from Bowden, and other coaches during those early Spurrier years.
