1997 Florida Gators football team

The 1997 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was the eighth for Steve Spurrier as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Spurrier's 1997 Florida Gators finished with a 10–2 overall record and a 6–2 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC), tying for second place among the six SEC Eastern Division teams.

Rankings
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Tennessee
The Gators seemed poised for another title, never trailing Manning-led Tennessee at home to regain the top spot in the polls.Tony George memorably returned an interception 88 yards for a score. Peyton Manning went on to be the first overall pick in the NFL Draft and break numerous NFL records, but ended his career without a win against Florida.

At LSU
They struggled midway through the schedule, however, first losing to LSU on the road. Humiliated by the previous season's 56–13 thrashing, LSU came into the 1997 game ready to play. Once again, the Gators were favored in this matchup in Baton Rouge. But it was LSU who jumped out to a big early lead, scoring two touchdowns in the first 8 minutes on runs by Herb Tyler and Tommy Banks. The Gators came right back with two TD runs by Fred Taylor, each of which capped off an 80-yard drive.

Then, Doug Johnson threw an ill-advised pass, and Cedric Donaldson picked it off and returned it for a touchdown to give LSU a 21–14 lead. The Gators' frustration mounted when another Johnson pass was picked off, this time by Mark Roman, and when Herb Tyler scored another touchdown to give LSU a 28–14 lead with 11:40 to go, the Gators appeared to be in big trouble.

Undaunted, Johnson tried to redeem himself with a 13-play, 78-yard drive that ended with Fred Taylor banging into the end zone to cut the Tigers' lead to 28–21. LSU could do nothing with their next possession, and Doug Johnson began moving the ball downfield again. He then faced a rush on a third and two and threw up a Hail Mary which was intercepted by Raion Hill. The Tigers held on for the 28–21 upset.

Vs. Georgia
First loss to Georgia since 1989.

Florida State
Florida ended the regular season with a 32–29 upset of top-ranked FSU known as the "greatest game ever played in the Swamp." The Seminoles were driving late in the fourth quarter when the Gator defense stopped them at the 5-yard line, and they settled for a Sebastian Janikowski field goal for a 29–25 lead. On first down of the next drive, quarterback Doug Johnson passed to consensus All-American receiver Jacquez Green from the Gator 20-yeard line for a 62-yard gain. Running back Fred Taylor completed the drive with a touchdown, and Florida took the lead for good 32–29. FSU's final comeback attempt was stymied when senior linebacker Dwayne Thomas intercepted a third-down pass from Thad Busby, costing the Seminoles a chance at the national championship.

Citrus Bowl (vs. Penn State)
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