Gators Strike Early Florida Builds 35-0 Lead, Then Holds Off Tennessee In Southeastern Conference Showdown

Steve Spurrier wasn’t about to let an NCAA record crowd, a steady rain or even No. 2 Tennessee get in his team’s way of another national title run.

So the Florida coach used two words to get his fourth-ranked Gators ready for Saturday’s showdown against the Volunteers: Be prepared.

Were they ever.

Danny Wuerffel threw four touchdown passes in the first 19 minutes, the Gators intercepted four passes off Peyton Manning in the first half and the Gators had themselves a 35-29 win over the stunned Volunteers at Knoxville, Tenn.

“We came in very prepared and jumped out of the box in good shape,” said Spurrier, whose Gators (3-0) have won four straight against the Vols (2-1). “I think we had 35 with about 10 minutes left in the half, so give them credit. We still have a lot to improve on.”

But the damage was done. The Volunteers, even though Manning rebounded from his poor first half with a school-record 492 yards and four TDs, were unable to come back from a 35-0 deficit after 20 minutes.

“We got ourselves in a big hole and it was difficult to overcome,” Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. “I probably put some people in situations they weren’t quite prepared for in man-to-man situations. I take responsibility for the way the game went.”

It went Wuerffel’s way. The pinpoint passer was accurate when he had to be, throwing TDs of 35, 10, 5 and 15 yards in the first 18:57, and Anthone Lott returned Jeff Graham’s fumble 27 yards for another score less than a minute later.

“We were prepared for the game and were fortunate at the end to run some clock off,” said Wuerffel, who was 11-of-22 for 155 yards.

In a battle of Heisman Trophy contenders, Manning won the numbers battle, hitting on 37-of-65 passes - both school records. But with four first-half interceptions - he had only four all of last season - Manning now has six in three games.

The game was played in a steady rain before a Neyland Stadium crowd of 107,608. The previous mark was 106,867 at Michigan Stadium for Ohio State-Michigan on Nov. 20, 1993.

South

(11) N. Carolina 16, Georgia Tech 0: At Chapel Hill, N.C., Chris Keldorf threw two first-half TD passes as the Tar Heels stayed on a collision course with Florida State.

North Carolina (3-0, 2-0 ACC) meets the third-ranked Seminoles next Saturday. Georgia Tech (2-1, 2-1) is 0-8-1 in Kenan Stadium since joining the ACC.

(21) LSU 19, (13) Auburn 15: At Auburn, Raion Hill returned one interception for a touchdown and another for a defensive extra point as LSU (2-0, 1-0 SEC) beat Auburn (3-1, 1-1).

Two years ago, Auburn returned three interceptions for TDs in the fourth quarter to win 30-26.

(18) Va. Tech 30, Rutgers 14: At Blacksburg, Virg., freshman Shayne Graham kicked three second-half field goals as the Hokies (3-0, 2-0 Big East) extended their winning streak to 13 games.

Rutgers (1-3, 0-2) lost its third straight.

(20) Virginia 42, Wake Forest 7: At Winston-Salem, N.C., Tiki Barber rushed for 113 yards and a TD as the Cavaliers (3-0, 2-0 ACC) beat the Demon Deacons (2-2, 0-2) for the 13th straight time.

Virginia held Wake Forest to minus 45 yards rushing.

Georgia 15, Texas Tech 12: At Athens, Ga., Mike Bobo, booed much of the game, threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Juan Daniels with 1:45 remaining to give Jim Donnan his first victory as Bulldogs coach.

Georgia (1-2) got the ball at its own 3 with 3 minutes to go, trailing Texas Tech (1-2) 12-7. But the Bulldogs went 97 yards in 10 plays, getting a fourth-down, 30-yard completion from Bobo to Daniels to keep the drive alive.

Mississippi 20, Vanderbilt 9: At Nashville, Tenn., Artie Moore scored two touchdowns and the Rebels (3-1, 1-1 SEC) had nine sacks as the Commodores (0-3, 0-2 SEC) became the Rebels’ first major-college victim of the season.

Memphis 17, Tulane 10: At Memphis, Tenn., Qadry Anderson threw for 291 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Tigers (2-2, 1-0 Conference USA) over the Green Wave (1-2, 1-1).

Louisiana Tech 38, Mississippi St. 23: At Starkville, Miss., Jason Martin threw four touchdown passes to set a school career record as Louisiana Tech (3-1) defeated Mississippi State (1-1).

Kentucky 3, Indiana 0: At Lexington, Ky., Lamont Smith’s interception and Quintin McCord’s 31-yard reverse led to Brian Johnson’s 26-yard field goal with 14 seconds left, lifting the Wildcats (1-2) over the Hoosiers (2-1).

East Carolina 23, South Carolina 7: At Columbia, S.C., Scott Harley ran for 291 yards, more than he gained all last season, and lifted the Pirates (2-1) over the Gamecocks (2-1).

Southern Miss 52, SW Louisiana 27: At Hattiesburg, Miss., backup quarterback Chris Windsor ran for four touchdowns to lead the Golden Eagles (3-1) over the Ragin’ Cajuns (1-2).

Southwest

(13) Alabama 17, Arkansas 7: At Little Rock, Ark., Freddie Kitchens threw a 29-yard pass to set up Brian Cunningham’s 31-yard field goal, then completed three big passes for Alabama (4-0, 2-0 SEC) in the closing minutes.

(16) Kansas St. 34, Rice 7: At Houston, Brian Kavanagh tied his own school record with four touchdown passes, including three to Jimmy Dean, as the Wildcats (4-0) defeated the Owls (1-2).

Tulsa 27, (19) Iowa 20: At Tulsa, John Fitzgerald passed for 353 yards and a touchdown as the Golden Hurricane (1-2) upset the Hawkeyes (2-1).

Oklahoma St. 31, Utah St. 17: At Stillwater, Okla., David Thompson ran for 217 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead the Cowboys (3-1) over the Aggies (2-2).