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American college football season
The 1965 Florida Gators football team represented the
University of Florida during the
1965 NCAA University Division football season . The season was
Ray Graves 's sixth year as the Florida Gators football team's head coach. The highlights of the season included an intersectional road victory over the
Northwestern Wildcats of the
Big Ten Conference ,
Southeastern Conference (SEC) wins over the
LSU (14–7),
Ole Miss Rebels (17–0),
Georgia Bulldogs (14–10) and
Tulane Green Wave (51–13), and a sound thumping of the in-state rival
Florida State Seminoles (30–17). The Gators also lost close matches against the
Mississippi State Bulldogs (13–18) and the
Miami Hurricanes (13–16). Graves' 1965 Florida Gators finished 7–4 overall and 4–2 in the SEC, placing third in the eleven-team conference.
[1]
Date Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance Source September 18 at
Northwestern * W 24–1433,918
[2]
September 25
Mississippi State No. 8 L 13–1842,612
[3]
October 2 No. 5
LSU Florida Field Gainesville, FL (
rivalry ) W 14–748,210
[4]
October 9 at
Ole Miss No. 10 W 17–027,500–30,006
[5]
October 16
NC State * No. 9 Florida Field Gainesville, FL W 28–648,010
[6]
October 30 at
Auburn No. 7
ABC L 17–2846,313
[7]
November 6 vs.
Georgia W 14–1061,211
[8]
November 13
Tulane Florida Field Gainesville, FL W 51–1339,616
[9]
November 20 at
Miami (FL) * No. 10 L 13–1667,762
[10]
November 27
Florida State * Florida Field Gainesville, FL (
rivalry ) W 30–1748,626–49,513
[11]
January 1, 1966 vs. No. 6
Missouri *
NBC L 18–2067,421
[12]
*Non-conference game HomecomingRankings from
AP Poll released prior to the game
[1]
[13]
1965 Florida Gators football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Pos.
#
Name
Class
Charles Casey
QB
11
Steve Spurrier
Jr
Defense
Special teams
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
At the end of the season, the Gators played the
Missouri Tigers in the Gators' first-ever major bowl game, the
Sugar Bowl , on January 1, 1966. Despite a three-
touchdown second-half effort from the Gators, they lost to the Tigers 18–20 after they failed to score on three consecutive
two-point conversion attempts after each of their touchdowns. Following the game, Gators quarterback
Steve Spurrier was recognized as the game's Most Valuable Player—the only MVP selected from the losing team in the history of the Sugar Bowl.
^
a
b
2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
Archived 2015-12-08 at the
Wayback Machine , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 110–111 (2015). Retrieved August 14, 2015.
^
"Wildcats lose, 24–14" . Chicago Tribune . September 19, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Miss. Staters stun Gators; Saget stars" . The Shreveport Times . September 26, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Gators upset LSU" . Pensacola News Journal . October 3, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Gators blank Ole Miss" . Pensacola News Journal . October 10, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"9th ranked Gators bop N.C. State" . The Bradenton Herald . October 17, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Fired-up Auburn scores 28–17 win over fifth-ranked Florida" . Johnson City Press-Chronicle . October 31, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Florida shocks Georgia" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . November 7, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Gators bowl over Greenies, 51–13" . The Tampa Tribune . November 14, 1965. Retrieved October 1, 2021 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Gators sink 16–13" . Tallahassee Democrat . November 21, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Spurrier rallies Florida Gartors for 30–17 victory" . The Selma Times-Journal . November 28, 1965. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Mizzou withstands 4th period assault to post Sugar victory" . The Shreveport Times . January 2, 1966. Retrieved October 20, 2023 – via
Newspapers.com .
^ Department of Sports Publicity.
"Meet the Gators: 1966 University of Florida Football Brochure" (PDF) . floridagators.com . University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved March 15, 2018 .
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