Florida's first bowl trip came after the 1952 season as the Gators headed to the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville to face Tulsa on January 1,1953. Powered by the running of Rick Casares and J. (Papa) Hall the Gators edged the Golden Hurricanes, 14-13, as Tulsa senior Tom Minor missed the first PAT attempt of his career. Gator All-America tackle Charlie LaPradd was the game's defensive hero. Quarterback Jimmy Dunn and All-SEC end Dave Hudson led Florida back to the Gator Bowl in 1958 where they lost to Mississippi, 7-3. Ray Graves' first Florida team returned to the Jacksonville classic after the 1960 season and knocked off Baylor, 13-12, behind the running of Don Goodman and quarterback Larry Libertore. One of the biggest upsets in Gator Bowl history took place in 1962 when the Gators, 17-7, led by quarterback Tom Shannon soundly beat heavily favored Penn State and a stout defense.

In 1966 Florida fell behind Missouri, 20-0, in the Sugar Bowl and rallied for 18 points in the final quarter behind quarterback Steve Spurrier. Each Gator touch down was followed by a two-point conversion attempt and all of them failed. Spurrier became the first player from the losing team to be named the game's most outstanding player in the history of the Sugar Bowl. He broke six bowl records in the contest. The Gators got back on the winning track the following year in the Orange Bowl, beating Georgia Tech, 27-12, behind Heisman Trophy winner Spurrier. It was Bobby Dodd's final game as Tech's head coach and Florida made it an unhappy night for him. Larry Smith set a bowl record for running 94 yards for a touchdown for the Gators, almost losing his pants on the way.

In Ray Graves' final game as Florida's coach he watched his young team beat SEC champion Tennessee, 14-13, in the 1969 Gator Bowl. Florida's defense was superb with a blocked punt by Steve Tannen resulting in one TD and an interception setting up the other. In 1973, the Tangerine Bowl was played in Gainesville due to construction at the Orlando stadium site. It was 27 degrees when the game started and Miami of Ohio loved every minute of it en route to a 16-7 upset. Florida nearly pulled a major upset next season, leading Nebraska 10-0 and scoring an apparent TD on a 26-yard run by Tony Green, only to have it ruled out of bounds. The Huskers came back in the Sugar Bowl to win 13-10. Florida's stars were All-America linebackers Ralph Ortega and Glenn Cameron, defensive end Preston Kendrick, the game's most outstanding defensive player, and running back Green.

The Gators returned to the Gator Bowl in 1975 and were soundly beaten in the rain by Maryland, 13-0. In 1977 powerful Texas A&M routed Florida, 37-14, in the Sun Bowl. Charley Pell's first bowl team at Florida came in 1980 and the Gators played outstanding football in the Tangerine Bowl to whip Maryland, 35-20, behind All-America wide receiver Cris Collinsworth, the game's most valuable player. All-America David Galloway was the most outstanding defensive player of the contest. In the cold of Atlanta, Ga. in the 1981 Peach Bowl the

favored Gators were stunned by West Virginia, 26-6. On New Year's Eve of 1982, the Gators took a 17-7 halftime lead against Arkansas in the Bluebonnet Bowl before losing 28-24. Wide receiver Dwayne Dixon was named Florida's MVP while catching three TD passes. The 1983 squad, making its fourth consecutive bowl appearance under Pell, defeated Iowa 14-6. The win earned the Gators a No. 6 final ranking (then the best finish in UF history). The 1984 and 1985 teams, after posting 9-1-1 seasons, were unable to participate in bowl games due to NCAA sanctions.

Florida reentered the bowl scene on Christmas Day 1987 as they faced UCLA in the Aloha Bowl in Honolulu, Hawaii (I went to this game). The Gators, a big underdog, suffered a tough 20-16 setback in a game that literally went down to the final play when a Kerwin Bell pass fell incomplete in the endzone. Emmitt Smith, named Florida's MVP in the bowl, completed his banner freshman season with 128 rushing yards on just 17 carries (7.5 ypc) against a UCLA squad that ranked fourth in the nation in defense against the rush in 1987.

Galen Hall captured his first bowl victory as a head coach in the 1988 All-American Bowl. Sophomore Emmitt Smith, the game's MVP, scored late in the fourth quarter to give Florida a 14-10 victory over Illinois. Smith rushed for 159 yards on the night, the second top rushing total in a bowl game in UF history. OLB Huey Richardson led a fierce Gator defense that held the Illinois to just 55 rushing yards and harassed QB Jeff George all night.

The Gators completed the decade of the 1980's with a 34-7 loss to Washington in the 1989 Freedom Bowl at Anaheim, Calif. The Freedom Bowl appearance marked the seventh bowl appearance for Florida during the decade of the 1980's, making it the most successful decade for postseason play in school history.

The 1991 team capped a banner season with an appearance in the 1992 Sugar Bowl vs. Notre Dame. Despite registering 511 yards in total offense including a record 370 yards passing by Shane Matthews, the Gators suffered a 39-28 setback to the Irish in Steve Spurrier's first bowl game as UF coach. Notre Dame scored three TDs in the last five minutes of the game after Florida had moved ahead 22-17 early in the fourth quarter. A record 34 combined points were scored in the wild fourth period. Errict Rhett rushed for 182 yards, the third top total in Gator Bowl history and the second best total for a Florida player in a bowl game, to highlight an impressive 27-10 win over ACC runner-up North Carolina State in the 1992 Gator Bowl. UF's defense had a fine night as it held the Wolfpack to just 13 first downs and 267 yards in total offense while Shane Matthews closed out his brilliant career leading a Gator offense that registered 26 first downs, ran 88 plays, and totaled 445 yards in total offense. Rhett was named MVP of the game.

The 1993 team closed out a record season (11-2 record) in school history with an impressive 41-7 win over undefeated West Virginia in the Sugar Bowl. Errict Rhett, who rushed for 105 yards and three TDs, was named the game's MVP. Willie Jackson had nine catches (second best bowl game total in UF history) for 131 yards and a TD while Terry Dean completed 22 of 37 passes for 255 yards and a TD to highlight an offense that generated 30 first downs and 482 total yards. The defense held a Mountaineer team that averaged 36.5 points and 464 yards a game in total offense to just seven points and 265 total net yards. The 41-7 win was UF's first Sugar Bowl victory in four appearances and represented the school's first New Year's Day bowl win since a 2712 win over Georgia Tech on Jan.1, 1967 in the Orange Bowl.

Florida returned to the Sugar Bowl after the 1994 season where it met state rival Florida State just a month after the two teams had battled to a 31-31 tie. Danny Wuerffel threw for a Sugar Bowl record 394 yards (28 of 39 with 1 TD and 1 interception), but the Gators fell 23-17. UF registered 454 yards in offense (449 passing and 5 rushing) while FSU posted 401 yards (325 passing and 76 rushing) in a game that was played January 2, 1995 before a crowd of over 76,000 at the Louisiana Superdome.

The 1995 Gator squad, coming off the first perfect regular season in school history, appeared in the National Championship Game versus Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl. The Gators started strong, holding a 10-6 lead at the end of the first quarter, thanks to a Bart Edmiston field goal and a 1-yard run by Danny Wuerffel. But the Cornhuskers were too much as they posted a 62-24 victory and captured their second consecutive national title before 79,864 fans and a national television audience. Reidel Anthony returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, the first return for a TD in Fiesta bowl history.

The 1996 season produced the Gators' second straight appearance in the National Championship Game and Florida came out on the winning end this time as it knocked off top-ranked fsu, 52-20, in the 1997 Sugar Bowl, to claim its first-ever national title. Both teams opened the contest throwing the football, combining for 238 yards passing and a 10-3 Gator lead at the end of the first quarter. Florida, which worked out of the shotgun for much of the game, twice extended its lead to 14 points, but the Seminoles responded each time, cutting the UF lead to 24-17 with under a minute to play in the half. Scott Bentley trimmed the Gator lead to 24-20 on a 45 yard field goal less than five minutes into the second half, but the Seminoles would not score again.

Florida sealed the victory by scoring the final 28 points of the game, a run that began with Ike Hilliard's third touchdown reception of the game on an eight-yard strike from Danny Wuerffel. Wuerffel scrambles 16 yards for a score to put UF up 38-20 with 13 seconds left in the third quarter, and Terry Jackson adds two fourth quarter scoring runs, including a 42-yarder, for the final margin. The Gator defense was strong from start to finish, stopping the Seminoles on downs at the UF 23 on the game's opening possession and holding FSU to just 42 total net yards rushing, just two yards shy of the UF bowl record set against Baylor in the 1960 Gator Bowl.

On New Years Day 1998 in Orlando the Gators defeated Penn State and legendary Nittani Lion coach Joe Paterno at the Florida Citrus Bowl. Fred Taylor rushed for 234 yards, the most ever by a Gator in a bowl game and he most ever in the Citrus Bowl, to lead the Gators to a 21-6 victory. The Gator defense was also a top story of the days as it held Penn State to just 139 total yards, the lowest ever for a Penn squad under Paterno, and twice stopped the Nittany Lions from scoring on fourth and goal situations inside the one-yard line in the second quarter.

On January 2, 1999, the Spurrier-led Gators made their first appearance in the Orange Bowl game since his final game as a Gator player in that contest in 1967. UF posted a 31-10 win over Syracuse that gave the Gators three straight bowls win for the first time in school history and it also enabled UF to win at least 10 games for sixth straight season, something never achieved in SEC history.

On January 1^st, 2000 the Gators played their first game of the new century at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando and suffered a 37-34 loss to Michigan State on a 39-yard field goal on the game’s last play.

Florida set a SEC record when it appeared in its eighth consecutive January bowl game when it met Miami in New Orleans at the Sugar Bowl on January 2^nd, 2001. The Hurricanes defeated the Gators 37-20, in the first meeting between the two sunshine state schools since the 1987 season.

On January 2^nd, 2004 in Miami, the Gators closed out the 2001 season with a win 56-23 victory over ACC champion Maryland. The Gators set Orange Bowl records for total yards (659) and passing yards (456). The contest was the final game in coachs Steve Spurrier’s legendary carrier as he resigned on January 4^th and became the head couch of the Washington Redskins. Spurrier’s final game as a Gator player also came in the Orange Bowl, the 1967 affair vs. Georgia Tech.

Continuing the remarkable tradition under first-year head coach Ron Zook, Florida was only one of two schools to appear in its 10^th consecutive January bowl game when it faced No. 11 Michigan in the 2003 Outback Bowl. The first meeting of the two schools included seven lead changes and a tie as the Wolverines edged Florida 38-30 as the Gators racked up over 500 yards of total offense.

The Gators returned to the Outback Bowl January 1^st, 2004 to take the No. 12 Iowa Hawkeyes. The No. 17 Gators jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but Iowa came away with a 37-17 victory. Florida’s first score of the game came on its second possession when QB Chris Leak hit WR Kelvin Kight down the middle of the field for a carreer-long 70-yard touchdown. The strike marked the longest touchdown pass in Outback Bowl history and the longest of Leak’s carreer. Leak set the school record for most passing yards by a freshman (true or redshirt) in a season, surpassing Danny Wuerffel’s record of 2,230 yards set in 1993.