'I don't remember giving permission for a party, Joel'

The Tampa Gator Club hosted its championship game viewing party at the South Tampa Cherry's restaurant. The party included food and drink specials, raffles for autographed Gators merchandise as well as gift certificates. Cherry's transformed their rear parking lot into a huge party with three big screen televisions, a DJ and of course plenty of food and drinks. Click here to see more Gator fan photos.

[Photo: Luis Santana/tbt*]

The Dating Game

Gators quarterback Chris Leak appeared Tuesday night on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Here was one exchange:

Leno: "Didn't you pledge not to date until you guys won a title? You made that pledge your freshman year. You have now graduated. Whoa! That's some willpower."

Leak: "That was just a sign to show the players that I was focused on getting them a ring and winning the national title for them."

Leno: "It must have been a hell of a date last night."

They're happy (and they know it)

Gator fanscelebrate after defeating the Ohio State in the 2007 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game at the University of Phoenix Stadium on Jan. 8 in Glendale, Arizona.

[Photo: Getty Images]
 

A kiss for good luck

University of Florida students Amie Taylor (center left) and Karen Ann Cranford (center right) kiss a 13-year-old, 6-foot alligator, during the Gator Jamboree on Sunday in Scottsdale, Ariz. The pep rally featured appearances by Florida players' parents and performances by the team marching band and cheerleaders.

It wouldn't be a game without him

Legendary Florida football fan George Edmondson -- a.k.a. Mr. Two Bits -- leads his famous cheer at a fan rally Sunday in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Read a Q&A with Mr. Two Bits from today's tampabay.com. Click here

[AP photo]

Top 5 bowl losses

The Gators have had their share of disappointments when it comes to the post season. But what was their worst bowl loss ever? Depends on your persective. Here are our 5 picks.

Five worst bowl losses in Gator history:

5. 1994 Sugar Bowl: After the 31-31 "Choke at Doak" tie that ended the regular season, Florida faces FSU again in New Orleans. No tie this time. The underdog Seminoles won 23-17.

4. 1989 Freedom Bowl: UF is handled 34-7 by the Washington Huskies in the final game before the Steve Spurrier era.

3. 2002 Outback Bowl: Not coach Ron Zook's finest moment. Florida's first appearance in Tampa's Outback Bowl is known best for the final play. With the Gators trailing 38-30 and marching down the field, Zook took the ball out of QB Rex Grossman's hands by calling for a flea-flicker. The pass by freshman cornerback Vernell Brown was picked off, sealing the win for Michigan.

2. 1991 Sugar Bowl: Fresh off winning their first official SEC title, the Gators faced Notre Dame, a team many felt had no business being in a bowl game. Irish RB Jerome Bettis proved they did, running silly over Florida in a 39-28 win for Notre Dame.

1. 1995 Fiesta Bowl: The Gators finished the season undefeated and faced the Nebraska Cornhuskers for the national title. The Gators jumped to a 10-6 lead in the first quarter. But that was the end of the fun. The Cornhuskers prevailed 62-24 to win their second consecutive title.

Top 5 bowl victories

The Gators are playing in one of their biggest bowl games in school history on Jan. 2 in Arizona. But if you look to the past, which bowl game so far has been the most important in Gator history?

Here are our top 5 picks:

Top 5 greatest Florida bowl victories:

5. 1966 Orange Bowl: Bobby Dodd's last game as Georgia Tech's head coach was an unhappy one. Led by QB Steve Spurrier, Florida won 27-12, with Larry Smith setting a Orange Bowl record when he ran 94 yards for a touchdown, nearly losing his pants on the way.

4. 2005 Outback Bowl: QB Chris Leak threw for 277 yards and two touchdowns as the Gators built a hole too big for the Iowa Hawkeyes. Coach Urban Meyer's first bowl game as a Gator is a victory -- 31-24.

3. 2001 Orange Bowl: In Steve Spurrier's final game as head coach, QB Rex Grossman leads Florida's explosive offense to a school record for points in a bowl game as they defeated Maryland 56-23.

2. 1993 Sugar Bowl: Finishing with their best record to date (11-2), Florida faced the undefeated West Virginia Mountaineers in New Orleans. The 41-7 win was UF's first New Year's Day bowl win since 1967.

1. 1996 Sugar Bowl: The Gators beat the odds to turn their bowl game into the title game. Then they beat FSU 52-20 to claim their first national championship.

Top 5 worst moments on the field

See that hole in the wall? That's where some Gator fan kicked it after seeing a moment of true terror on the football field. Everyone has their own nightmare-worth memory. Here are ours.

Worst 5 on-the-field moments in Florida football history:

5. Florida's first appearance in Tampa's Outback Bowl is known best for the final play. in 2002, with the Gators trailing 38-30, coach Ron Zook took the ball out of QB Rex Grossman's hands by calling for a flea-flicker. The pass by freshman cornerback Vernell Brown was picked off, sealing the win for Michigan. (Click here for video highlights of the game; interception at end of video)

4. In 1971, Florida led Miami 45-8 with 1:20 left when Gators defenders laid down and let the Hurricanes score on a run from the Florida 8. That allowed Florida to get the ball back and senior quarterback John Reaves to break Jim Plunkett's record for NCAA career passing yards. A victory, but a shameful moment.

3. Oct. 23, 2004: Jerrious Norwood scores on a 37-yard run with 32 seconds remaining as Mississippi State defeats No. 19 Florida 38-31. The loss ultimately ended Ron Zook's career as coach. He is fired two days later. (See video)

2. Nebraska quarterback Tommie Frazier breaks the tackle of nearly every Florida defender on his way to a 75-yard touchdown run in the 1995 Fiesta Bowl. (See video)

1. Nov. 8, 1980: Run, Lindsay, Run. undefeated No. 2 Georgia trails Florida 21-20 with 1:35 remaining in the annual rivalry when quarterback Buck Belue throws a short pass to Lindsay Scott near the 25-yard line. Scott takes the ball the distance for the winning touchdown. (See video)

Top 5 best moments on the field

These are the moments that nearly stopped the heart of every Gator fan and then caused them to explode. Those "I remember when..." plays for the Florida football team. Here are our favorites.

Top 5 on-the-field moments for Florida football:

5. In a classic play that made Florida play-by-play announcer Mick Hubert's catch-phrase "Ohhhh My" famous, freshman quarterback Danny Wuerffel, in only his second game, hit former walk-on receiver Chris Doering for a 28-yard touchdown pass (only the second of his career, the first earlier in that same game) with three seconds remaining to give the Gators a 24-20 road win over Kentucky on Sept. 11, 1993. I

4. Trailing rival FSU 29-25 with just under two minutes to go, Florida quarterback Doug Johnson connected on a 63-yard deep curl-and-go spiral pass to Jacquez Green, from the 20 to the FSU 17. That set up Fred Taylor's fourth touchdown run and sealed the 32-29 win for the Gators on Nov. 22, 1997, in front of 85,677 at Florida Field. The loss knocked then-No. 2 FSU out of the race for the national title.

3. Freshman Larry Smith breaks free en route to a 94-yard touchdown run in the Orange Bowl after the 1966 season against Georgia Tech, still a record for that bowl game. But what made the play even more noteworthy was the razor-thin running back out of Robinson High started losing his pants during the run, having to keep them hitched up as he ran.

2. During the 1966 season, QB Steve Spurrier kicks a 40-yard field goal with 2:12 remaining to defeat Auburn 30-27 and clinch the 1966 Heisman Trophy.

1. in the 1996 Sugar Bowl, QB Danny Wuerffel shredded the FSU defense for 306 yards. But his 16-yard scramble to the end zone for a touchdown late in the game secured the national title.

Good luck getting tickets

Florida will play Ohio State on Jan. 8 at Cardinals Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., but getting a ticket to see the game in person will take major dollars.

Florida and Ohio State each received an allotment of 16,000 tickets. Of those, 2,250 tickets were set aside for Florida students, players and band members and 1,500 were allotted for the official traveling party, coaches, staff, sponsors, university guests, University Athletic Board of Directors and the Intercollegiate Athletic Committee.

The remaining 12,250 tickets, at a price of $175 plus a $5 handling charge, were made available for sale to Gator boosters. The UF ticket office received orders for nearly 21,500 tickets and 9,214 were unable to be filled and the money was refunded.

“This, without question, has been the most in-demand game we’ve had in my tenure here.,” said Bill Holloway, Florida’s assistant athletic director/ticket manager. Still, UF is bound by its ticket policy.

“We only get a certain number and we have to satisfy the Gator booster party system," Holloway said. "We have followed it for many, many years and we have not deviated. It’s all tied into contribution. But this was probably the first time some of our season ticket holders have been (negatively) affected.”

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UF safety named All-America

Florida safety Reggie Nelson was named to the Associated Press first-team All-America defense, with Gator cornerback Ryan Smith making the second team and linebacker Brandon Siler making the third team. No other state teams were represented. The three selections are the most for the Gators since six in 2001. Keiwan Ratliff in 2003 was UF's last first-team selection. Heisman-winning quarterback Troy Smith was among three Ohio State first-teamers (five overall) who will face Florida in the BCS title game.

- Antonya English, Times staff