1977 Florida Gators football team

1977 Southeastern Conference football standings
	$ – Conference champion; Kentucky ineligible for SEC championship due to NCAA probation. Mississippi State later forfeited all 1977 wins due to NCAA violations.; Rankings from AP Poll

1977 Florida Gators football
1977 Florida Gators football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
1977 record	6–4–1 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach	Doug Dickey (8th season);
Offensive coordinator	Jimmy Dunn (8th season)
Offensive scheme	Wishbone
Defensive coordinator	Doug Knotts (8th season)
Captain	Wes Chandler; Scott Hutchinson; Charlie Williams
Home stadium	Florida Field; (Capacity: 62,800)
	Seasons ← 1976 1978 →

The 1977 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1977 NCAA Division I football season. The season was Doug Dickey's eighth as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Dickey's 1977 Florida Gators finished with a 6–4–1 overall record and a 3–3 Southeastern Conference (SEC) record, placing fifth among ten SEC teams.^[2]

Before the season[]

Florida had several quarterbacks, with Terry LeCount starting.^[3]

Schedule[]

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 17	at Rice*	No. 19	Rice Stadium Houston, TX		W 48–3	24,000
September 24	at No. 12 Mississippi State	No. 13	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	ABC	W 24–22	36,000
October 1	at LSU	No. 9	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)		L 14–36	68,029
October 8	No. 15 Pittsburgh*	No. 20	Florida Field Gainesville, FL		T 17–17	62,724
October 22	Tennessee	No. 19	Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)		W 27–17	62,711
October 29	at Auburn	No. 18	Jordan–Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (rivalry)		L 14–29	57,000
November 5	vs. Georgia		Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville, FL (rivalry)	ABC	W 22–17	68,538
November 12	No. 7 Kentucky		Florida Field Gainesville, FL		L 7–14	58,125
November 19	Utah*		Florida Field Gainesville, FL		W 38–29	56,055
November 26	at Miami (FL)*		Orange Bowl Stadium Miami, FL (rivalry)		W 31–14
December 3	No. 19 Florida State*		Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	ABC	L 9–37	63,563
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Primary source: 2016 Florida Gators Football Media Guide^[2]

Attendance figures: 1978 University of Florida Press Guide.^[4]

Roster[]

1977 Florida Gators football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB		John Brantley
RB	`30`	Earl Carr	Sr
WR	`89`	Wes Chandler	Sr
TE		Juan Collins
QB	`21`	Cris Collinsworth	Fr
TE	`40`	Lewis Gilbert	Sr
RB	`33`	Tony Green	Sr
WR	`23`	Derrick Gaffney	Sr
OT	`67`	Ed Jacobsen	Sr
QB	`7`	Terry LeCount	Sr
RB		Willie Wilder

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
LB		Scot Brantley
DE		Richard Brewton
DE		Mike DuPree
DB	`25`	Chuck Hatch	Jr
DT	`66`	Scott Hutchinson	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
PK		Berj Yepremian	Jr

Head coach

Doug Dickey

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Other: Tim Aydp

Game summaries[]

Rice[]

Florida opened the season in Houston with a non-conference game against Rice. Former all-conference safety Terry LeCount started at quarterback in the Gators' wishbone offense, but the most notable play at the position came in the 4th quarter, when third-string freshman Cris Collinsworth tossed an NCAA record 99-yard touchdown pass to Derrick Gaffney on his first collegiate attempt.^[2]^[5]

Mississippi State[]

In the second week of play, Florida edged Mississippi State 24–22.yepremian junior kicker comes through again keeping Florids hopes alive

LSU[]

Louisiana State beat Florida 36–14. Wes Chandler had 146 yards receiving, including an 85-yard reception from Terry LeCount.^[2]

Pittsburgh[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Pittsburgh	0	7	7	3	17
Florida	0	7	0	10	17

Date: October 8
Location: Florida Field

^[6]

Florida and Pitt tied 17–17.

Tennessee[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tennessee	0	3	14	0	17
• Florida	7	10	0	10	27

Date: October 22
Location: Florida Field
Game attendance: 62,711

^[7]

The Gators called a timeout in the final seconds of a 27–17 win over the Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee coach Johnny Majors was furious, and the post-game handshake ritual became a shoving match between coaching staffs.^[8]

Auburn[]

The Auburn Tigers upset Florida 29–14.^[9]

Georgia[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Georgia	7	10	0	0	17
• Florida	0	10	6	6	22

Date: November 5
Location: Gator Bowl, Jacksonville, Florida
Game attendance: 68,538
Television network: ABC

The Gators beat rival Georgia 22–17.^[10]

Kentucky[]

The seventh-ranked Kentucky Wildcats defeated Florida 14–7.

Utah[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Utah	3	14	3	9	29
• Florida	7	3	0	28	38

Date: November 19
Location: Florida Field, Gainesville, Florida
Game attendance: 56,055

The Gators ran over the Utah Utes for 531 yards and won 38–29.^[11]

Miami (FL)[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Florida	3	7	7	14	31
Miami (FL)	0	7	0	7	14

Date: November 26
Location: Orange Bowl, Miami

Florida defeated the Miami Hurricanes 31–14.^[12]

Florida State[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
• FSU	10	7	7	13	37
Florida	3	6	0	0	9

Date: December 3
Location: Florida Field, Gainesville, Florida
Game attendance: 63,563

Bobby Bowden got his first win over the Gators, as Florida State beat Florida 37–9.^[13]

Postseason[]

Four Gators made All-SEC.^[14]

References[]

^ Sports Publicity Department. "1977 University of Florida Press Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d 2016 Florida Gators Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 110–111 (2015). Retrieved August 5, 2016.
^ Jim Smith (September 16, 1977). "John: Ready to go". Ocala Star-Banner – via Google News Archive Search.
^ Sports Publicity Department. "1978 University of Florida Press Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
^ "Gators Blitzkrieg Swamps Rice". Ocala Star-Banner. AP. September 18, 1977. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
^ Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Oct 9. Retrieved 2018-Nov-03.
^ Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Oct 23. Retrieved 2018-Nov-03.
^ "The Weekly List: Florida-Tennessee Boils Blood Before and After Game".
^ "Auburn's Miamian gives boot to Florida (October 30, 1977)".
^ "What Furor? Gators Get It Together." Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Nov 6.
^ Palm Beach Post. 1977 Nov 20.
^ Palm Beach Post. 1977 Nov 27.
^ Sentinel, Orlando. "1977 FSU team ended losing streak to Florida".
^ "Four Gators selected for all-SEC squad". Boca Raton News. November 29, 1977 – via Google News Archive Search.

External links[]

Florida State game

[1] Sports Publicity Department. "1977 University of Florida Press Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved 15 March 2018.

[ufmediaguide-2] 2016 Florida Gators Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 110–111 (2015). Retrieved August 5, 2016.

[3] Jim Smith (September 16, 1977). "John: Ready to go". Ocala Star-Banner – via Google News Archive Search.

[4] Sports Publicity Department. "1978 University of Florida Press Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved 15 March 2018.

[5] "Gators Blitzkrieg Swamps Rice". Ocala Star-Banner. AP. September 18, 1977. Retrieved October 19, 2021.

[6] Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Oct 9. Retrieved 2018-Nov-03.

[7] Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Oct 23. Retrieved 2018-Nov-03.

[8] "The Weekly List: Florida-Tennessee Boils Blood Before and After Game".

[9] "Auburn's Miamian gives boot to Florida (October 30, 1977)".

[10] "What Furor? Gators Get It Together." Ocala Star-Banner. 1977 Nov 6.

[11] Palm Beach Post. 1977 Nov 20.

[12] Palm Beach Post. 1977 Nov 27.

[13] Sentinel, Orlando. "1977 FSU team ended losing streak to Florida".

[14] "Four Gators selected for all-SEC squad". Boca Raton News. November 29, 1977 – via Google News Archive Search.

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National championship seasons in bold

1977 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Alabama $	7	–	0	–	0	11	–	1	–	0
No. 6 Kentucky	6	–	0	–	0	10	–	1	–	0
Auburn	5	–	1	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
LSU	4	–	2	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Florida	3	–	3	–	0	6	–	4	–	1
Georgia	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Mississippi State	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	2	–	5	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Tennessee	1	–	5	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion Kentucky ineligible for SEC championship due to NCAA probation. Mississippi State later forfeited all 1977 wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll