[gatortalk] Re: [gatornews] [SUN]: TaxSlayer Gator Bowl: Dickey’s 1969 loss to Florida changed fortunes of two programs
I went to that game with my dad, but never was a fan of Doug Dickey. I'll be cheering for the Vos tomorrow.
Helen
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On Jan 1, 2020, at 2:42 PM, Shane Ford <goufgators01@gmail.com> wrote:
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl: Dickey's 1969 loss to Florida changed fortunes of two programs
Doug Dickey.
By Knoxville News Sentinel
JACKSONVILLE — The 25th TaxSlayer Gator Bowl was significant in several ways.
Mainly, it was the precursor to a changing of the guard that impacted the fortunes of the University of Florida and University of Tennessee for years.
When Tennessee (7-5) and Indiana (8-4) kick off on Thursday in the 75th Gator Bowl at TIAA Bank Field, it will be 50 years and five days since the 1969 game in which the Volunteers and coach Doug Dickey lost to his alma mater, the Florida Gators, 14-13.
Two days later, Dickey bolted from Knoxville and accepted the coaching job with the Gators, replacing Ray Graves.
The lure of coaching where you played is strong. Steve Spurrier jumped at the chance and Florida went to heights never before attained. Kirby Smart has turned Georgia fortunes around, though not yet to that success level.
Scott Frost (Nebraska), Jim Harbaugh (Michigan) and Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State) are other current examples.
It didn't work out for Mark Richt (Miami), Matt Luke (Ole Miss) or Barry Odom (Missouri).
But there's no doubting the powerful pull. After coaching at Maryland, Kentucky and Texas A&M, Bear Bryant took the Alabama job because "Mama called."
Dickey knows the feeling.
"You always have that in the back of your mind when you're coaching somewhere else," Dickey said earlier this week before watching Tennessee practice at UNF's Hodges Stadium. "I think a lot of guys who go into coaching want to eventually return to where they played."
Dickey also has a long history with the Gator Bowl, in his adopted hometown of Jacksonville.
"Played in this game, coached with three teams in this game and was an athletic director in this game," he says with considerable pride. "This has always been a big game for the teams who play here and I'm very fortunate to have been involved as much as I have."
Dickey was a Gator quarterback in 1953 and completed 4 of 5 passes for 65 yards in a 14-13 victory over Tulsa, the Gators first-ever bowl victory.
After serving in the Army, Dickey joined the Arkansas staff under Frank Broyles, and coached in the 1960 Gator Bowl, a 14-7 victory for the Razorbacks over Georgia Tech.
Dickey coached at Tennessee from 1964-69 and won two SEC titles. The second, the year the Volunteers were invited to the Gator Bowl, was the last time the SEC champion played in Jacksonville.
He went on to coach the Gators in the 1975 Gator Bowl, a 13-0 loss to Maryland, and was the Tennessee AD in 1994 when the Vols beat Virginia Tech 45-23, when the game was played in Gainesville due to the stadium renovation in Jacksonville.
But it's the 1969 Gator Bowl that carries the most significance for Dickey. In addition to being his third Gator Bowl, it marked a key change in his career.
After the Vols wrapped up the SEC title that year, Dickey began wondering about his next move.
"I had done pretty much everything you could do there," he said. "Won two SEC titles, was recognized for winning a national championship [in 1967, by Litkenhous] … I was looking forward to another challenge."
Dickey heard that Graves was planning to retire, and contacted UF president Stephen C. O'Connell a few weeks before the Gator Bowl — which had invited two SEC teams because Florida and Tennessee had not played that season.
Contrary to public belief — and the rumors that swirled throughout game week — Dickey said he was not offered the job on an official basis until two days after the game.
"Nothing was done before the game," he said.
However, UT athletic director Phil Fulmer, who played for the Vols that season and was eventually hired to coach UT by Dickey in 1992, said the chatter was there.
"We all heard that it was possible coach Dickey would leave," Fulmer said last month during a visit to Jacksonville. "But I can tell you from personal experience, it's tough to turn down a chance to coach where you played."
Dickey said coaches didn't have agents in those days. All communication was done either on the phone or face-to-face meetings between him and O'Connell.
"We didn't need an agent to get in the middle of things," Dickey said.
Dickey went on to compile a 53-48-2 record with the Gators and went 0-4 in bowl games.
"We won a few games, lost a few we would have liked to have had," he said. "But I was glad for the opportunity."
He was replaced by Bill Battle, who never came close to Dickey's success in seven seasons with the Vols. And it wasn't until Johnny Majors took over in 1985 that UT won another SEC title.
Dickey left Florida after the 1978 season and seven years later took the athletic director job at Tennessee, coinciding with Majors' hiring.
Dickey oversaw the expansion of Neyland Stadium to more than 100,000 seats and the construction of new basketball and baseball facilities before retiring in 2002.
Since moving to Jacksonville, Dickey has spent most of his days enjoying golf at the San Jose Country Club, where he shoots his age (87) or better with frequency.
He said he's enjoying Gator Bowl week as a fan. Dickey attended a Tennessee practice wearing a hat in Tennessee's orange with the numbers "1969" on the front and will be one of the many past players and coaches who will appear on game day for an autograph session at Daily's Place Flex Field and to be honored before the game.
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl unveils Diamond Anniversary team
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Miami safety Ed Reed, pictured in the 2000 Gator Bowl, was selected Tuesday to the All-Gator Bowl Team. [Miami Athletics]
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Lawrence Taylor, who played for North Carolina in the 1979 Gator Bowl, is one of six members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to be on the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [AP File)
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Larry Csonka was part of one of the best offensive displays of rushing in Gator Bowl history when he gained 114 yards in the 1966 game. [File]
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Jack Youngblood waves to the crowd in 2006 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium when he was recognized for joining the University of Florida's football Ring of Honor. Youngblood is one of three Gator players on the Gator Bowl's 75th anniversary team. [Bob Mack/The Times-Union]
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Donovin Darius waves to people during the 2013 Gator Bowl parade. Darius is one of two former Jaguars to make the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [File]
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Wilber Marshall brings down a Vanderbilt ball carrier during a 1983 game. Marshall joined teammate Tony Lilly in making the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [File]
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Florida State wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff attempts to catch a pass during the 1965 Gator Bowl. Biletnikoff was named Tuesday to the All-Gator Bowl Team. [Florida State University Athletics]
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Ole Miss quarterback Archie Manning, pictured in the 1971 Gator Bowl against Auburn, was named to the All-Gator Bowl Team Tuesday. [Auburn Athletics]
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Miami safety Ed Reed, pictured in the 2000 Gator Bowl, was selected Tuesday to the All-Gator Bowl Team. [Miami Athletics]
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Lawrence Taylor, who played for North Carolina in the 1979 Gator Bowl, is one of six members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to be on the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [AP File)
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Larry Csonka was part of one of the best offensive displays of rushing in Gator Bowl history when he gained 114 yards in the 1966 game. [File]
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Jack Youngblood waves to the crowd in 2006 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium when he was recognized for joining the University of Florida's football Ring of Honor. Youngblood is one of three Gator players on the Gator Bowl's 75th anniversary team. [Bob Mack/The Times-Union]
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Donovin Darius waves to people during the 2013 Gator Bowl parade. Darius is one of two former Jaguars to make the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [File]
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Wilber Marshall brings down a Vanderbilt ball carrier during a 1983 game. Marshall joined teammate Tony Lilly in making the 75th anniversary Gator Bowl team. [File]
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Florida State wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff attempts to catch a pass during the 1965 Gator Bowl. Biletnikoff was named Tuesday to the All-Gator Bowl Team. [Florida State University Athletics]
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Ole Miss quarterback Archie Manning, pictured in the 1971 Gator Bowl against Auburn, was named to the All-Gator Bowl Team Tuesday. [Auburn Athletics]
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Miami safety Ed Reed, pictured in the 2000 Gator Bowl, was selected Tuesday to the All-Gator Bowl Team. [Miami Athletics]
Hall of Fame members and All-Americans dominated the 75th Anniversary TaxSlayer Gator Bowl team, released on Tuesday.
Six members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Ten members of the College Football Hall of Fame.
Eleven All-Americans.
Those are just some of the honors shared by the 22 members of the 75th Anniversary TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Hall of Fame team, which was announced on Tuesday during a news conference at the DoubleTree Hotel in Jacksonville.
The team is led by three offensive players and two on defense who received the highest honors in football by being both the Pro and College Halls of Fame and being consensus All-Americans: running backs Floyd Little and Larry Csonka of Syracuse, wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff of Florida State, defensive end Jack Youngblood of Florida and safety Ed Reed of Miami.
Little and Csonka combined for one of the most impressive displays of power running in Gator Bowl history in a losing effort to Tennessee in 1966. Little gained 216 yards and Csonka had 114 as the Orange piled up 348 yards in all.
Little's game and Syracuse's team total stood as the Gator Bowl records until last year, when Texas A&M rushed for 401 yards, 236 by Traveon Williams.
Biletnikoff caught 13 passes for 192 yards and four touchdowns in the 1965 game, a 36-19 victory over Oklahoma for the Seminoles.
Youngblood had nine tackles and forced a fumble in the 1969 Gator Bowl to help UF beat Tennessee 14-13.
Reed had seven unassisted tackles, two for losses, and one sack in Miami's 28-13 victory over Georgia Tech in the 2000 game.
None of the five Heisman Trophy winners to play in the game made the 75th anniversary team. But game chairman Rich Thompson said that was reflective of the depth of talent that has competed over the eight-decade history of the game.
"You look at the history of this game and there's a remarkable consistency in the quality of the teams and players in the game," Thompson said. "It would have been easy to just pick the Heisman winners and the All-Americans but not all of them actually played well in the games. The media panel clearly took this seriously."
Gator Bowl president Rick Catlett also said going on to NFL fame wasn't necessarily a final consideration.
"The voters made their decisions on what happened in the Gator Bowl games," he said. "They really did their homework."
The quarterback on the all-time Gator Bowl team is Archie Manning, who threw for 180 yards and one touchdown, and gained 95 yards rushing and scored once in a 35-28 loss to Auburn and Heisman Trophy winner Pat Sullivan in 1971. Joining Biletnokoff at wide receiver is Michigan's Andre Rison, who set a Gator Bowl record that still stands with 252 receiving yards on nine catches in Michigan State's 34-27 loss to Georgia in 1987.
Also on the team is one of the most feared defensive players in football history, linebacker Lawrence Taylor of North Carolina.
Two other former Gators joined Youngblood on defense, linebacker Wilber Marshall and safety Tony Lilly.
Two members of the All-time Gator Bowl team went on to play for the Jaguars, safety Donovin Darius of Syracuse and Rison.
Nine of the players were Gator Bowl MVPs. Based on the current makeup of Power 5 conferences, players were represented by 16 teams in the ACC, SEC and Big Ten, plus Notre Dame.
The 75th Anniversary team was selected by a media panel. The team will be recognized during the week of the 75th Gator Bowl on Jan. 2, 2020, at TIAA Bank Field (7 p.m., ESPN), which will match an SEC team against a Big Ten or ACC team.
75th Anniversary Gator Bowl Team
Offense
QB Archie Manning, Ole Miss (1971)
RB Floyd Little, Syracuse (1966)
FB Larry Csonka, Syracuse (1966)
WR Fred Biletnokoff, Florida State (1965)
WR Andre Rison, Michigan State (1989)
TE Ken McAfee, Notre Dame (1976)
OT Mark May, Pittsburgh (1980)
OT Greg Skrepenak, Michigan (1991)
C Maxie Baughn, Georgia Tech (1960)
OG Dean Dingman, Michigan (1991)
OG Zeke Smith, Auburn (1955)
Defense
DE Hugh Green, Pittsburgh (1980)
DE Jack Youngblood, Florida (1969)
DT Matt Millen, Penn State (1976)
DT Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska (2009)
LB Lawrence Taylor, North Carolina (1979)
LB Wilber Marshall, Florida (1983)
LB Ryan Shazier, Ohio State (2012)
DB Donovin Darius, Syracuse (1996)
DB Mark McLaurin, Mississippi State (2017)
DB Tony Lilly, Florida (1983)
DB Ed Reed, Miami (2000)
Media voters: Pat Dooley, Frank Frangie, Gene Frenette, Dan Hicken, Junior Skepple, Sam Kouvaris, David Lamm, Brent Martineau, Cole Pepper, Chris Porter, Garry Smits.
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Go Gators!
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