CREDIT: Pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T9KpiYAQ3E]
Charley Pell had taken the Florida fanbase on a wild ride in two seasons, from winless to a bowl victory. Expectations began to take root heading into 1981 after the undeniable progress that took place in 1980. The fruits of Pell’s labor were beginning to show on the field as his recruits, talented players like James Jones, Johnell Brown, Ivory Curry, Wilber Marshall and Wayne Peace, slowly took over starting roles and were in the process of becoming household names in Gainesville.
It’s hard to get excited about another program winning a national title, but in 1981, Florida fans had to take a bit of encouragement from watching a roster built on the foundation of Charley Pell’s recruiting efforts go on to win a national title at Clemson.
Florida head coach Charley Pell helped build Clemson into a national champion. CREDIT: CLEMSON ATHLETICS
Pell and Clemson didn’t split on the most amicable of terms, so the Clemson folks of that era weren’t quick to credit Pell for the success that followed. In fact, Clemson officials claimed that Pell dealt with UF behind their backs despite his insistence that he had been up front with the athletic department before his departure to Florida. A video showing Pell issuing a Sabanesque-level of repudiation regarding his interest in coaching anywhere but Clemson captures what unfolded in the eyes of the sons of dear Old Clemson.
Quick aside: Any time I hear a clip of Pell speaking, it feels as if I’m listening to Bear Bryant. His cadence, rhythm and overall demeanor closely resemble that of his old coach and signify the impact Bryant must have had on Pell.
Time can heal some wounds, and Pell was eventually given a more favorable outlook by those who followed Clemson closely. Al Adams wrote a piece in 2001 about Pell’s visit during spring ball shortly before his death in May:
The day was Dec. 1, 1977. Everyone involved knew there was a new sheriff in town and there was no doubt who was in charge. I was Bob Bradley’s assistant in the sports information office, and we felt his impact. Things were going to be done one way and one way only—the right way! Coach Pell made sure everyone was on the same page. As he used to say, we are going to move with one heartbeat.
The Pell approach paid dividends in the second game of the season when the Tigers upset defending SEC Champion Georgia, 7-6. Clemson had not won there since 1914. Noted Atlanta Constitution columnist Lewis Grizzard described Coach Pell’s reaction to the win at Georgia in this way: “The coach sat on the floor and cried. He is 36-years-old. But he sat on the floor and cried. He didn’t sob. He cried like a man cries when he sits back down in the pew after giving his only daughter in marriage.”
We look back now and see names like Steve Fuller, Jerry Butler, Joe and Jeff Bostic, Steve Kenney, Dwight Clark, Randy Scott, and Jim Stuckey. It’s easy to see how Clemson won with that group of players. However, in 1977 the mindset was completely different. We hadn’t had a big winner in so long a berth in the Gator Bowl looked about as attainable as going to the Super Bowl. Remember that change in attitude.
Adams continued:
The 1977 football season still ranks as one of my greatest Clemson memories. You know how it is when you don’t expect much and things turn out great. There were great players, great games and a super coaching staff.
Much has happened since that year. Pell took Clemson to a 10-1 record and number-six national ranking in 1978. But, at the conclusion of the season he decided to move on to head up the Florida football program. He thought he had a better chance of winning the national championship there. Ironically, Clemson won the national championship just three years later with many of the players he had recruited leading the way.
This is not a pro-Charley-Pell puff piece trying to give the man too much credit for what a team accomplished three seasons after his departure. I’m simply trying find a way to acknowledge his contribution toward laying the foundation of the 1981 Tigers roster.
Tigers head coach Danny Ford, a fellow Bama grad who also played under Bear Bryant, grew up in Gadsden, Alabama, about a half an hour down the road from Pell’s hometown of Albertville. He was hired at Clemson when Pell took over in 1977 as the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator after the pair had coached together for Virginia Tech in 1974 and 1975.
Clemson head coach Danny Ford with the Orange Bowl Trophy in 1981. CREDIT: CLEMSON ATHLETICS
Credit Ford for handling adversity from the get- go. He took over in surprise fashion just before the infamous 1978 Gator Bowl game where Charlie Bauman, a member of Pell’s first recruiting class, took a punch that ended Woody Hayes’ tenure at Ohio State and found a way to win the game. Replacing a successful head coach is never an easy task, but Ford managed to keep the bulk of Pell’s staff intact and notched winning seasons in 1979 and 1980.
So how do we measure Pell’s impact on the 1981 roster? The Clemson incoming freshman classes from Pell’s time as head coach starting in 1977 and ending with the 1979 class—which was mostly built by a Pell-led staff—were pulled from old media guides.
Players highlighted in orange on the chart below were members of the 1981 national championship roster, and many played a key role. Pell’s 1978 recruiting class included 1981 first team All-Americans linebacker Jeff Davis (ACC Player of the Year) and defensive back Terry Kinard as well as second team All-American wide receiver Perry Tuttle and offensive tackle Lee Nanney.
Since Pell’s fingerprints were all over the 1981 Clemson roster, we’ll pause to check in with the Tigers on their road to their first national title throughout this season.
September 5, 1981
Miami Orange Bowl (Miami, FL)
“I hate Miami,” Florida nose guard Robin Fisher said leading up to the season opener against the Hurricanes. “I want to pay them back for that field goal.”
Instead of playing both in-state rivals late in the season, Florida had agreed to move the series with Miami to the season opener starting in 1981. The fiery annual rivalry, which dated back to 1938, didn’t need extra fuel, but Schnellenberger’s citrus-based decision to kick a field goal with time expiring to run up the score in the 1980 contest had only provoked the Gators.
“How are you supposed to like somebody when they’re sitting in the stands and you’re on the field and they’re chucking oranges at you?” said Miami offensive lineman Don Bailey in an August 2019 piece by Chris Harry for floridagators.com. “The crowd was beyond anything that I had ever seen.”
Most unbiased observers would agree that the Miami and Florida football programs operate on different levels of class.
Despite a 9-3 finish in 1980, Miami entered 1981 without a pre-season ranking. The Canes were still an independent program, and the Schnellenberger era was still gaining steam. Miami dropped two road games in the first month and a half (at No. 4 Texas and No. 16 Mississippi State), but won out the rest of the way, including beating No. 1 Penn State to finish the season 9-2. The team’s final No. 8 ranking was only the third top-10 finish in school history and the program’s first top-10 finish since 1966.
Miami didn’t participate in a bowl game in 1981 due to a two-year bowl ban. On November 3, 1981, the NCAA announced the penalties resulting from an investigation with infractions dating back to the Carl Selmer and Lou Saban eras. Violations had also occurred while Schnellenberger was in charge, but the investigation had been looming over the program since he had taken over in 1979.
The gruff, pipe-smoking coach felt it hampered his ability to recruit during his early run at Miami. John Feinstein laid it out in his Washington Post column on November 18, 1981:
In fact, many coaches agree that the investigation process can be more damaging than the penalties. “We’ve been laboring under a cloud for the last two years,” Miami Coach Howard Schnellenberger said. “The fact that there was an investigation affected our recruiting the last two years.
“We had kids getting anonymous phone calls just before the national signing date from people telling them that Miami was going to get two years, no bowls, no TV, things like that. It’s a tough thing to combat.”
The NCAA found Miami guilty on the following fronts in its 1981 summary of infractions:
- Free transportation for recruits
- Paid for food and drinks for prospective student athletes
- Provided free tickets to professional sporting events to recruits
- Entertaining numerous prospective student athletes at no cost aboard a yacht
- Providing spending money to players on the roster
- Arranging for prospective student athletes to workout with the team and participate in practice
- “…a representative of the university’s athletic interests gave a former student-athlete cash for his personal achievements during the football season.”
- Booster loaned a player cash for a down payment on a car
- Coaches loaned players money for personal expenses
- Coaches directed and supervised an out-of-season football practice
- Improper contact with student athletes during the recruiting process
Click here for the full list of the 1981 Miami NCAA infractions. Keep this in mind going forward.
A field goal set the tone for a heated off-season between the Gators and Hurricanes, and a field goal would once again prove critical in 1981.
Charley Pell turned down Schnellenberger’s request for game film leading up to the game, but said, “The [1980] field goal will have no bearing on the game Saturday,” Pell said. “We’re just trying to prepare our kids to play as strong a game as possible against a fine Miami team.”
I think Pell’s true feelings are better captured in this interview with Al Michaels the week after the Miami game last season:
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-HpASoCluA]
“It [the field goal] has obviously provided a summer-long topic of conversation,” said Schnellenberger. “They haven’t forgotten about it, but as far as the game, it’ll be football players against football players.
“This game is a Super Bowl. This could develop into the biggest college football game played in the state of Florida this year.”
On their first possession, Miami took an early 3-0 lead on a 42-yard field goal by kicker Danny Miller. The Canes had started the drive on their own 46-yard line before the drive stalled out at the UF 25-yard line.
Florida didn’t do much on offense for most of the first quarter, but UF defensive tackle David Galloway intercepted a pass from Miami quarterback Jim Kelly and returned it inside the Miami 10-yard line. On the next play, fullback James Jones took a handoff to the right and dove into the end zone near the pylon for a touchdown to put the Gators up 7-3 heading into the second quarter.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
Florida capped the scoring in the first half by going up 14-3 after quarterback Wayne Peace whipped a quick pass off to the left to wide receiver Spencer Jackson. The pass was caught on the run, and Jackson used a full head of steam to barrel down the left sideline, juke a Hurricanes defender, and take it in for a 37-yard touchdown.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
Kelly and Miami struggled most of the first half, turning the ball over five times, but the Canes come out of the locker room and put together a solid 11-play, 83-yard drive for a touchdown. Miami traveled 73 yards through the air, and after a successful two-point conversion attempt to wide receiver Rocky Belk, the Gators’ lead was cut to 14-11.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
With about six minutes left in the third, Kelly tried to throw a block but immediately grabbed for his leg. A bruised calf muscle would keep him out for the remainder of the game. Enter backup quarterback (and future Georgia and Miami head coach) Mark Richt.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, Richt dropped back, looked right and fired an on-target pass that bounced out of the hands of Miami’s Larry Brodsky, the team’s leading receiver for the past two seasons, and into the arms of Florida defensive back Bruce Vaughn. The Gators took over at the UM 43-yard line but only managed to move the ball 12 yards before settling for a 48-yard field goal by kicker Brian Clark.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
Richt and the offense continued to struggle, and on the Canes’ next punt, UF return man Ivory Curry took the ball a little over 30 yards behind some good blocking down to the Miami 20-yard line. Pell went conservative and handed the ball to Jones on three consecutive plays, but the Gators were short of a first down. Clark tacked on another field goal, this time a 39-yarder, and Florida was up 20-11 in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Miami finally broke through on offense with 5:44 to go when Richt found Belk on a route over the middle. Belk beat the defense around their right side and sprinted down the sideline for a critical touchdown to bring the Canes within striking distance. Florida 20, Miami 18.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
The Gators managed to gain a single first down on the next drive but were forced to punt. The Hurricanes took over at their own 36-yard line with under three minutes to go and appeared to be in trouble, facing a 3rd and 14. UF pressured Richt, but he slipped away to his left and completed a 20-yard pass to tight end Glenn Dennison for a first down.
The drive stalled after Miami picked up another first down, but facing a 4th &14 from the UF 38-yard line with 40 seconds left in the game, the Canes were forced into a 55-yard field goal attempt for senior kicker Danny Miller.
Schnellenberger gave Miller the shot out of desperation, but it didn’t stop the Miami head coach from checking in on his kicker beforehand. According to Shelby Strother of the Tampa Bay Times, Schnellenberger said, “You can’t kick it that far, can you?”
Miller nodded to confirm.
“Then go do it,” Schellenberger said.
Thus, the same kicker who booted through the last points of the 1980 contest in Gainesville trotted out to give it a shot.
Miller made contact, and the ball quickly descended to the left, striking the right upright and bouncing inward, over the crossbar, to put the Canes up 21-20. Florida made it interesting in the waning seconds by setting up Clark with a 59-yard attempt, but the kick was short, and the Gators lost in heartbreaking fashion to open the season.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CszKIwZqUU].
Pell and Florida had battled back to earn national respect in 1980, and while dropping a game on the road to a tough Miami team wasn’t shameful in and of itself, the Gators had to be kicking themselves for blowing a two-possession lead to a backup quarterback.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=radINnzV8bs].
September 12, 1981
Florida Field (Gainesville, FL)
The home opener should have been a cakewalk for the Gators, but Division I-AA Furman kept Florida on edge into the second half before turnovers undermined any thought of an upset bid by the Paladins.
“I’m just glad it’s over,” Pell said. “Furman is a good football team. They outgained us at home…I’m disappointed in our tackling. I can see why Furman was the Southern Conference champs. Give them a great deal of credit. To our team, we won. That was our objective, and everything else was secondary.”
Kicker Brian Clark put Florida up 3-0 on the first drive after his field goal attempt bounced off of the crossbar and went through from 47 yards out.
Furman immediately struck back and pieced together an 11-play, 82-yard drive to take a 7-3 lead. Paladin quarterback Tim Sorrells capped the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Bill Risher.
In the second quarter, Clark added a 39-yard field goal early in the second quarter, and on Furman’s next drive, defensive back Bruce Vaughn caught a tipped pass and ran a pick-six in from 33 yards out to give the Gators the 13-7 lead they would take into the locker room.
Two-time Southern Conference Jacobs Blocking Award winner OL Charlie Anderson blocks UF freshman defensive lineman Alton Jones. CREDIT: FURMAN ATHLETICS
On the first play of the second half, future Gator legend Wilber Marshall, a backup tight end who had converted to linebacker for his sophomore season, forced a fumble after hitting Sorrells, and Florida recovered on the Furman 13-yard line.
Eight plays later, freshman running back Lorenzo Hampton fumbled into the end zone on 4th & 1 from the 1-yard line, and the Gators walked away empty-handed.
Sorrells gifted Florida with another fumble at the Furman 42-yard line, and Peace drove the Gators down into the red zone before hitting wide receiver Spencer Jackson in the end zone from 3 yards out. UF tight end (and future NFL head coach) Mike Mularkey caught the two-point conversion attempt, and Florida had its largest lead of the day, 21-7.
Quarterback Bob Hewko saw some action in the fourth quarter and led two touchdown drives that ended with a 5-yard pass to Jackson and a 15-yard toss to wide receiver Bee Lang, who ended the day with seven receptions for 101 yards, bringing the final tally to 35-7. Furman outgained the Gators 338-329 on the day, 270 of which were on the ground.
“Miami couldn’t move the ball an inch against Florida last week, but we did today,” Sorrells said after the game. “I doubt anyone else on Florida’s schedule will run on them like we did today.”
Furman may have left feeling good about their effort, but the Gators defense kept the Paladins off of the scoreboard after their opening drive and forced six turnovers on the day. “I was proud we came back in the second half and looked sharper,” said Pell. “Both of our quarterbacks played very well. We’ll work hard again this week until we become a sharp football team in clutch situations.”
September 19, 1981
Florida Field (Gainesville, FL)
A much-anticipated showdown with upstart Georgia Tech had Florida fans excited. In fact, 63,876 fans, the seventh-largest crowd in school history, packed Florida Field to see the 1-1 Gators face the 1-0 Yellow Jackets. The two schools announced the discontinuation of their frequent but not annual regular season series in the summer of 1981, meaning this matchup would be their last for some time.
A 1-9-1 opening campaign in 1980 didn’t stop Georgia Tech head coach Bill Curry from leading the Jackets to an opening upset against No. 3 Alabama, leaving Tide legend Bear Bryant seven wins shy of tying Amos Alonzo Stagg’s all-time record of 314 victories.
Georgia Tech had held off Bama despite being outrushed by 150 yards. A sloppy Alabama turned the ball over four times on the day, and Tide kicker Peter Kim missed on a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Yellow Jackets a shocking 24-21 upset heading into their matchup with the Gators. “This is a benchmark game, without a doubt,” said Curry. “The next step, however, is consistency.”
Georgia Tech’s first attempt at consistency would be against a new starting quarterback in Gainesville. Pell named Bob Hewko as the starter for the first time since he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the fourth game of the previous season. “It was his turn,” Pell said. “We’re a two-quarterback team and proud of it.”
Peace quickly diffused the idea of any real controversy saying, “There’s no animosity. We’re roommates on the road. He’s hot now and deserves to play. He knows if I get hot later, I’ll play.”
The junior southpaw got off to a fast start, leading the Gators on an 80-yard drive in eight plays. Hewko completed 4-5 passes for 62 yards and scored on a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line to put the Gators up 7-0 less than two minutes into the game.
Georgia Tech answered back with an 80-yard drive of their own. Quarterback Mike Kelley connected with wide receiver Denny Rochester from 4 yards out for a touchdown. The extra point attempt was blocked by Florida wide receiver Broughton Lang, and the Gators led 7-6.
On the following possession, Florida drove down inside the Yellow Jackets’ red zone, but the drive stalled out at the 19-yard line. Kicker Brian Clark converted on a 36-yard field goal to extend the UF advantage to 10-6. Hewko then engineered a 53-yard drive that resulted in an 11-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tyrone Young, and Clark added a 53-yard field goal to put Florida up 20-6 at the half.
Both teams were quiet in the third quarter before Young caught his second touchdown reception of the day, this time from 16 yards out with 0:52 left. Hewko gave way to Peace in the fourth quarter and finished 17-28 passing on the day for 201 yards with two touchdowns through the air and one on the ground.
Florida’s offense finished with a balanced approach that yielded 242 yards passing and 208 yards rushing while the defense held Georgia Tech to 180 total yards en route to a 27-6 victory.
Florida QB Wayne Peace against Georgia Tech. CREDIT: UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION (UAA).
The Florida defense continued its ball-hawking ways. Free safety Tony Lilly and cornerback Sonny Gilliam each registered an interception, bringing the defense’s season total to 11 in three games. Defensive coordinator Joe Kines drew praise for installing a more aggressive approach.
“I think the difference is the coaching,” said cornerback Bruce Vaughan. “Last year, the secondary played back—way back— and other teams would eat us up by throwing short passes. Now, we play up close. We knock receivers down, or bump them, as soon as they get off the line of scrimmage. We try to hit them as often as possible. Then, even if they catch a pass, they won’t want to catch another one.”
“That’s the closest we’ve been to looking like the team we are,” Pell said after the game. “The team knew they had not performed like they wanted to. I also felt, although I didn’t say anything to anyone about it, that it was going to be awfully hard for Georgia Tech to come back down after that great upset over Alabama last week and play football. It would have been hard for any team to come back down. I didn’t think they’d be able to settle down.”
Built by Pell: A quick check-in on Clemson’s road to the 1981 national championship
Clemson freshman William “The Refrigerator” Perry makes a tackle during the Tigers’ win over UGA. CREDIT: CLEMSON ATHLETICS.
The Dawgs’ title defense lasted into their third game of the season, as No. 18 Clemson knocked off No. 4 Georgia 13-3 at home to improve to 3-0 on the season.
September 26, 1981
Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium (Jackson, MS)
“Everything a coach dreams about in a horror show or nightmare happened out there,” said Gators head coach Charley Pell after the game.
Florida turned the ball over a calamitous six times on the day while failing to gain positive yardage on 12 of 17 mistake-filled possessions. The 1981 Mississippi State team finished the year 8-4, losing those four contests by a total of 19 points. Head coach Emory Bellard’s third team in Starkville was led by a stingy defense that surrounded more than 14 points in only two games all season.
Turnovers helped State build an early 14-0 lead before quarterback Wayne Peace entered the game and led an 80-yard touchdown drive that was topped off by a 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Spencer Jackson, bringing the Gators within seven points.
A week after praising his two quarterbacks, Pell watched Hewko toss three picks and Peace throw two interceptions, and he blamed the offensive game plan: “It was poor. A good game plan has to have an alternative. We had none.”
Shanahan and the offense may have had an off day, but the Joe Kines-led defense held up its end of the bargain.
The Bulldogs’ offensive performance was almost as ugly, fumbling six times but losing the ball only twice. MSU only rushed for 135 yards on 65 attempts and managed a meager 41-yards on 3-8 passing.
The Florida defense gave up two touchdowns in the first half and both were thanks to mistakes on offense and special teams. The first MSU scoring drive started at the UF 21-yard line thanks to a fumble by the Gators offense, and the second covered only 44 yards thanks to a short punt by the Gators. State didn’t score on offense the entire second half. Instead, the Dogs relied on special teams to seal the win.
Wide receiver Glen Young returned a punt 49 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, and a blocked punt deep in UF territory was recovered for a touchdown to put MSU up by the final margin of 28-7. If not for a clipping penalty, Young would’ve added a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown as well.
“We were outplayed, outcoached, outeverythinged,” said Pell. “But give Coach Bellard credit. He did a good job. We did well on defense—only two short drives—but we got a beating.
“Losing is never good. I don’t know a dadgum good thing about losing.”
Florida may have lost the game, but it doesn’t mean we have to waste a helluva quote by Charley Pell.
October 3, 1981
Tiger Stadium (Baton Rouge, LA)
Florida linebacker Wilber Marshall and the defense carried the team across the finish line, but the offense did enough to a walk out of Tiger Stadium with a win.
The Gators appeared to put a poor offensive performance behind them as they streaked out to a 17-0 in the first half. UF defensive end Roy Harris stripped LSU quarterback Alan Risher, and Marshall recovered on the LSU 45-yard line. The drive stalled out in field goal range, and kicker Brian Clark converted on a 39-yard attempt. Clark would add a 30-yard field goal later in the first quarter after quarterback Wayne Peace hit wide receiver Broughton Lang on a 50-yard pass to put Florida in scoring possession. UF defensive back Ivory Curry returned the next LSU punt 26 yards to set the Gators up on the LSU 47-yard line on the next possession. Once again, Florida moved the ball, and once again, a Clark field goal ended the drive.
Clark’s three field goals not only put the Gators up 9-0, but pushed the senior kicker into the school record books as the all-time career leader for field goals made at Florida. Clark would finish his career with 43 field goals and is still tied with Bobby Raymond and Mike Leach for third-most field goals made.
Fullback James Jones punched in a 2-yard touchdown with just over three minutes to go in the first half, and after a two-point conversion pass from Peace to wide receiver Dwayne Dixon, Florida extend its lead to 17-0.
Louisiana State responded with a 65-yard drive capped off with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Risher to wide receiver Orlando McDaniel. The Tigers defense came up with a turnover on the next drive when LSU cornerback Alvin Thomas picked off a pass from Peace. Risher drove LSU down to the UF 23-yard line before Gators defensive end Roy Harris came up with a huge 7-yard sack that pushed the Tigers back to the 30-yard line. LSU kicker David Johnston missed to the right, and Florida went into the locker room up 17-7.
Peace and the offense only managed 60 total yards after the half, and two turnovers late in the fourth quarter decided the game. With the Gators leading 17-10 deep into the fourth quarter, UF punter Joe Borajkiewicz shanked a punt that only traveled 11 yards, but LSU defensive back Eugene Daniel fumbled the punt on the UF 35-yard line, allowing Florida linebacker Val Brown to recover. The offense stalled near midfield, and this time the Gators pinned the Tigers at the LSU 17-yard line.
Florida linebacker Wilber Marshall. CREDIT: UNIVERISTY ATHELTIC ASSOCIATION (UAA).
LSU started to put a drive together when Marshall intercepted a Risher pass near midfield and returned it to the LSU 26-yard line with 1:33 left in the game. The offense finally sealed the win as James Jones ran it in from 1 yard out with 30 seconds left in the game to give the Gators a 24-10 lead.
“I never had a win which means as much as this one over LSU,” UF head coach Charley Pell said in his postgame remarks. While Pell may have inflated the win a bit, it was another sign of progress within the program. The defense carried the day and picked up the slack when needed. The Florida win also put an end to LSU’s four-game win streak over the Gators (1977-1980), a mark that still stands as the Tigers’ longest winning streak in series history.
The Gators improved to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in SEC play.
October 10, 1981
Florida Field (Gainesville, FL)
Maryland traveled to Gainesville after a 1-2-1 start for a midseason 1980 Tangerine Bowl rematch. Following what was becoming a familiar script, the Gators leaned on their defense to do the heavy lifting while the offense did just enough to get the job done. “It was good enough,” said Pell.
Despite the low output on the scoreboard, the Gators gained nearly 400 yards on offense, but most of that damage was done between the 20s. Sophomore quarterback Wayne Peace finished the day 30-46 passing with 282 yards. Florida spread the ball around, too—nine receivers caught at least one pass, and five running backs logged at least one carry on the day.
Star Maryland running back Charlie Wysocki had to leave the game at halftime with a bruised shoulder, meaning the burden would fall on Terps sophomore quarterback Norman “Boomer” Esiason. The Terrapins struck first after the Gators fumbled in their own red zone. Maryland took over on the UF 18-yard line and jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Esiason to tight end John Tice.
Boomer raced out of the gate, going 6-7 for 41 yards, and getting a touchdown in the first quarter. The Florida defense buckled down after that, however, allowing only 179 yards total. Esiason finished the game 10-26 passing with 60 yards through the air.
Two Brian Clark field goals and Kyle Knight’s sack of Esiason in the end zone put the Gators up 8-7 in the third quarter. Later in the third, fullback James Jones took to the air and hit Peace on a throwback pass for a 9-yard touchdown. Brian Clark tacked on the extra point to put Florida up 15-7.
“We knew Maryland used man-to-man coverage near the goal line, and that meant that nobody was assigned to the quarterback,” said Peace. “I just handed the ball to James like it was a run and took off. When I looked up, the ball was there.”
Florida carried that lead into the fourth when Esiason led the Terps at what would be their best shot to tie it up. Maryland finally put it together and marched down the field with a 77-yard drive, thanks in part to two personal fouls for unsportsmanlike conduct, but the UF defense held firm, and the Terps had to settle for a field goal, putting the score at 15-10 with about 10 minutes remaining in the game.
QB Wayne Peace laces a pass past Terps defenders. CREDIT: University of Maryland.
“Peace was just tremendous,” Maryland head coach Jerry Claiborne said. “He did a terrific job with the short passing game. We defended the long pass much better than in the Tangerine Bowl, but they killed us with the short pass this year.
“We were trying to mix up the coverage to get some interceptions, but Peace was just a magician. And they’ve got a lot of very good receivers who made some great catches. We had to play them loose and give them the short game because they had the speed to run right past us.”
Peace remained humble in victory: “I probably didn’t play as good a game as my stats. We made some mistakes that we need to correct. We may have only scored one touchdown, but that’s the way things go sometimes. If we keep gaining that many yards, I guarantee you the touchdowns will come.”
October 17, 1981
Florida Field (Gainesville, FL)
1981 Homecoming shirt. Rodney Dangerfield, dressed like Coach Pell, and Albert walk over a surrendering Rebel. (CREDIT: Pulled from a t-shirt on Etsy sold by user “sidvintage” : [https://www.etsy.com/listing/607459576/1980s-football-team-game-florida?show_sold_out_detail=1&ref=nla_listing_details)]
The Rebels served as the perfect opponent after Rodney Dangerfield, a laser show, and fireworks kicked off homecoming weekend at Gator Growl on Friday night.
“It was a great homecoming victory for the Florida Gators,” said UF head coach Charley Pell. “If you have to say something about a homecoming, this is what it’s all about. Since I’ve been at Florida, this is the biggest margin of victory and it feels good.”
A slow start kept quarterback Wayne Peace’s numbers down, 13-23 passing for 127 yards and one touchdown, but the offense found a new playmaker in quarterback-turned-tight-end Mike Mularkey. The 6’4”, 240-pounder tallied six receptions for 71 yards, and five of those catches resulted in first downs.
Fullback James Jones found the end zone three times on the day, and three other Gator backs topped the 40-yard mark as UF racked up 238 yards on 57 carries.
The defense held Ole Miss to 108 total yards on the day, recorded five sacks for 74 yards and scored on a Sonny Gilliam interception return for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter to put an exclamation point on another brilliant performance. “I didn’t think they’d be nearly as tough as they were,” said Fourcade. “I’d have to put them right up there with Georgia as the toughest defense we’ve seen all year.”
UF senior defensive tackle David Galloway had four unassisted tackles and two sacks, and made a key play to jump-start the first scoring drive. According to the St. Petersburg Times’ Dave Scheiber, “With the game tied 0-0 midway through the second quarter, Galloway stalked Fourcade, plowed into him and then emerged from a pack of bodies with the football” at the Ole Miss 21-yard line.
“We were tough today,” UF linebacker Wilber Marshall said. “It didn’t really surprise us when we saw Fourcade come in the game, ’cause we know he’s tough, too. But there was nothing he could do against us. We just keep getting a little better every day.”
October 31, 1981
Jordan-Harre Stadium (Auburn, AL)
A trip to the Plains usually resulted in defeat for Florida. In 28 visits to Auburn, UF had won only two times. Reporters asked Pell if he felt the Gators were jinxed. He said, “I don’t believe in those things, but you’ve got to admit only two victories there in 59 years is a little strange. It’s a fact we’ve been playing since 1912 [at Auburn] and have only won twice. And there has got to be times when Florida went up there with the best team and couldn’t win. That’s a remarkable tradition. But it’s something we’ve got to break through.”
First year Auburn head coach Pat Dye’s Tigers entered with a 3-4 record fresh off of last-minute home loss to No. 9 Mississippi State. The Bulldogs were awarded a controversial fumble after they appeared to have jumped offsides around midfield and drove in for a late score to topple the Tigers.
CREDIT: Clip pulled from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Qi5a1r6i1E&t=158s]
Three of the Tigers’ four losses were by four points or less. Pell knew this was going to be a tough game coming off of a bye week: “Auburn is knocking on the door of an outstanding record. They could easily be 6-1. They have gotten back to the basics with their offense, and they are effective.”
Pell’s instincts were spot on as Auburn opened with an eight-play, 63-yard touchdown drive that capped off with a 3-yard run by quarterback Clayton Beauford. The Florida defense would ultimately force six turnovers on the day but allowed Auburn to gain 188 of its 254 total yards of offense in the first half. Despite the success, the defense had a key play overturned.
“Beauford had the ball taken away from him by Gator defender Tony Lilly and returned for a touchdown,” Tampa Tribune sports writer Mick Elliott wrote. “Officials, however, ruled the ball was a fumble and that it hit the ground, though Lilly staunchly disagreed. They gave the Gators possession at the Auburn 47, and the Gators followed with Clark’s first field goal. However, if the ball didn’t hit the ground, it could have been advanced.”
After the game, Lilly said, “I know the rules. I hit him, he bounced backwards. The ball went up in the air and down in my arms. I ran. It never hit the ground. If it had, I would have fallen on it. I know the rules.”
Elliott continued, “The official could not have seen it. There were two officials between him and the play.” Perhaps the officials felt that they owed Auburn a call after the Mississippi State game from the week prior.
Quarterback Wayne Peace led the offense on several drives deep into enemy territory, but each time, the offense had to settle for a Brian Clark field goal. The Tigers led 7-6 after Clark made kicks from 30 and 32 yards. In the second quarter, fullback Ron O’Neal plunged into the end zone from 1 yard out to put Auburn up 14-6 with 7:37 left. Clark added another field goal for the Gators to cut the Tigers’ lead to 14-9 at the half.
The second half was a different story. Florida held Auburn to no points, no first downs and only a few yards thanks to halftime adjustments. “We had been moving one linebacker to the strong side,” UF defensive tackle Roy Harris told reporters after the game. “We stopped stacking and went back to basic defense. It worked.”
Unfortunately, Florida’s offense wasn’t much better in the second half. Both teams pitched a scoreless third quarter, and the Gators didn’t manage to score again until Clark booted his fourth field goal with 5:13 left in the game. Auburn 14, Florida 12.
UF defensive tackle David Galloway recovered a fumble by Auburn quarterback Ken Hobby with 2:51 remaining at the Tigers’ 31-yard line, and Florida just needed a fifth field goal from Clark to steal a win. The offense stalled out after gaining 8 yards to set up a 40-yard field goal attempt into the wind with just over a minute remaining.
The kick was high, traveling almost directly above the left upright, causing Clark and holder Jim Gainey to begin to celebrate their way into a 15-14 lead, but the official standing under the goalpost signaled “no good,” and the Gators took their second SEC loss.
“It was close,” Clark said. “It wasn’t one of my great kicks, but I hit it OK. I’m really not surprised it was called no good, but when they are that close, you can sometimes persuade their opinion—if they’re not sure, and they see you celebrating. But on the road, you’re just not going to get anything. If we were at home, maybe.”
Sounds a little crazy, but it’s a strategy that could work on some people:
The 14-12 loss would certainly knock the Gators (now 5-3 for 2-2 in the SEC) out of the conference championship race, and the nightmare in Jordan-Hare continued.
Built by Pell: A quick check-in on Clemson’s road to the 1981 national championship
Charley Pell at Clemson speaking with assistant head coach Danny Ford. CREDIT: Clemson Athletics
Finally, before we move on, let’s check in once again on Clemson’s path to the 1981 championship. Clemson eviscerated the same Wake Forest team that had beaten Auburn 24-21 in Jordan-Hare Stadium earlier in the 1981 season. Clemson scored 35 points in the second quarter and racked up 12 touchdowns on the day en route to an 82-24 victory. The Demon Deacons surrendered 536 yards on the ground and 756 total yards as the No. 4 Tigers advanced to 8-0 on the season.
