2002 Florida Gators football team

2002 Florida Gators football
Outback Bowl, L 30–38 vs. Michigan
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEastern Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 24
Record8–5 (6–2 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorEd Zaunbrecher (1st season)
Offensive schemeSpread
Defensive coordinatorJohn Thompson (1st season)
Base defenseMultiple
CaptainEarnest Graham
Rex Grossman
Byron Hardmon
Taylor Jacobs
Todd Johnson
Home stadiumBen Hill Griffin Stadium
(Capacity: 83,000)[1]
Seasons
← 2001
2003 →
2002 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Eastern Division
No. 3 Georgia x$   7 1     13 1  
Florida   6 2     8 5  
Tennessee   5 3     8 5  
Kentucky   3 5     7 5  
South Carolina   3 5     5 7  
Vanderbilt   0 8     2 10  
Western Division
Arkansas xy   5 3     9 5  
No. 14 Auburn x   5 3     9 4  
LSU x   5 3     8 5  
Ole Miss   3 5     7 6  
Mississippi State   0 8     3 9  
No. 11 ^Alabama   6 2     10 3  
Championship: Georgia 30, Arkansas 3
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
  • ^ – Alabama had the best division record, but did not participate in postseason play due to NCAA probation.
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2002 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 2002 college football season. The Gators competed in Division I-A of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and played their home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus. They were led by first-year head coach Ron Zook, who coached them to a second-place finish in the SEC East, an Outback Bowl berth, and an overall record of 8–5 (.615).

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 317:00 p.m.UAB*No. 6PPVW 51–385,575
September 75:15 p.m.No. 1 Miami (FL)*No. 6
CBSL 16–4185,777
September 146:00 p.m.Ohio*No. 12
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL
PPVW 34–684,002
September 213:30 p.m.at No. 4 TennesseeNo. 10CBSW 30–13108,722
September 283:30 p.m.KentuckyNo. 7
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
CBSW 41–3485,333
October 512:00 p.m.at Ole MissNo. 6CBSL 14–1761,140
October 127:45 p.m.No. 18 LSUNo. 16
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
ESPNL 7–3685,252
October 196:45 p.m.Auburn
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
ESPNW 30–23 OT85,135
November 27:45 p.m.vs. No. 5 GeorgiaESPNW 20–1384,433
November 92:00 p.m.at VanderbiltNo. 23PPVW 21–1728,881
November 166:00 p.m.South CarolinadaggerNo. 20
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL
ESPNW 28–785,222
November 308:00 p.m.at No. 23 Florida State*No. 15ABCL 14–3183,938
January 1, 200311:00 a.m.vs. No. 12 Michigan*No. 15ESPNL 30–3865,101
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

[2][3]

Roster

[edit]
2002 Florida Gators football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 2 Kelvin Kight Jr
RB 5 Earnest Graham Sr
WR 6 Taylor Jacobs Sr
QB 8 Rex Grossman Sr
QB 10 Ingle Martin Fr
WR 11 O. J. Small So
OL 54 David Jorgensen Sr
G 75 Shannon Snell Jr
TE 82 Aaron Walker Sr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
CB 1 Keiwan Ratliff Jr
LB 42 Byron Hardmon Sr
LB 59 Mike Nattiel Sr
DE 86 Darrell Lee Jr
DT 98 Tron LaFavor Sr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
K Matt Leach
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster

Game summaries

[edit]

UAB

[edit]

Miami (FL)

[edit]

Ohio

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At Tennessee

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Florida Gators (2–1) at Tennessee Volunteers (1–1)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Florida 0 24 0630
Tennessee 0 0 13013

at Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tennessee

  • Date: September 21
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
  • Game weather: Light rain, 71 °F (22 °C)
  • Game attendance: 108,722
  • Referee: Rogers Redding
  • TV: CBS
  • Box Score
Game information

Kentucky

[edit]
1 234Total
Kentucky 0 0286 34
• Florida 6 13139 41
  • Date: September 28
  • Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Game start: 3:30 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:38
  • Game attendance: 85,333
  • Game weather: Sunny; 86 °F (30 °C); wind 9 mph (14 km/h) W
  • Referee: Steve Shaw

[4]

At Ole Miss

[edit]

LSU

[edit]

Auburn

[edit]

Vs. Georgia

[edit]
1 234Total
Florida 0 1208 20
Georgia 7 600 13
  • Date: Saturday, November 2
  • Location: Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida
  • Game start: 7:45 p.m.
  • Elapsed time: 3:25
  • Game attendance: 84,433
  • Game weather: Clear, 58 °F (14 °C)
  • Referee: Penn Wagers
  • Television network: ESPN

[5]

At Vanderbilt

[edit]

South Carolina

[edit]

At Florida State

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Outback Bowl (vs. Michigan)

[edit]

Players drafted into the NFL

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Round Pick Player Position NFL club
1 22 Rex Grossman QB Chicago Bears
2 44 Taylor Jacobs WR Washington Redskins
4 100 Todd Johnson S Chicago Bears
4 116 Ian Scott DT Chicago Bears
5 161 Aaron Walker TE San Francisco 49ers
5 171 Tron LaFavor DT Chicago Bears
6 190 Mike Nattiel LB Minnesota Vikings
7 227 Clint Mitchell DE Denver Broncos

References

[edit]
  1. ^ University of Florida Sports Information Department. "Florida 2002 Media Guide" (PDF). floridagators.com. University Athletic Association, Inc. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  2. ^ 2012 Florida Football Media Guide Archived May 27, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 113 & 116 (2012). Retrieved September 16, 2012.
  3. ^ GatorZone.com, Football, History, Florida Football 20032 Archived September 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  4. ^ GatorZone.com Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2015-Sep-06.
  5. ^ "Gators Upend No. 5 Georgia, 20-13". Gatorzone.com. Retrieved 02-May-2012.

Bibliography

[edit]
  • 2009 Southeastern Conference Football Media Guide, Florida Year-by-Year Records, Southeastern Conference, Birmingham, Alabama, p. 60 (2009).
  • 2012 Florida Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 107–116 (2012).
  • Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault: The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia (2007). ISBN 0-7948-2298-3.
  • Golenbock, Peter, Go Gators! An Oral History of Florida's Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida (2002). ISBN 0-9650782-1-3.
  • Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp: A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois (2002). ISBN 1-58261-514-4.