Prior to fall camp getting underway in August, take a look back at the rich tradition that is Florida football.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Gator Standard.
Relentless Effort.
Those two phrases have become synonymous with Florida football since
Dan Mullen came home to Gainesville on Nov. 26, 2017. Embedded within those words is the tradition and foundation for success that has created the brand for this special program.
Before the next chapter of Gator football is written this fall, let's take a look back at the rich tradition that has been built in Gainesville position-by-position.
Week 1: Quarterbacks
- Facts:
- Three Gators quarterbacks have won the Heisman Trophy:
- One of two schools in the SEC to have three Heisman winners.
- One of 10 schools nationally to have three or more winners of the prestigious award.
- One of only four schools in the nation with three Heisman-winning quarterbacks.
- One of five schools to have multiple Heisman winners since 1996.
- Steve Spurrier became the first Heisman winner (1966) to coach a Heisman recipient (Danny Wuerffel in 1996).
- Danny Wuerffel is just one of 13 Heisman winners to lead his team to a national championship, pulling off the feat in 1996.
- Tim Tebow became the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman Trophy, claiming the award in 2007.
- Tebow is also one of two Heisman winning quarterbacks to win multiple national championships during his career. Gino Torretta (Miami) accomplished this feat in 1989 & 1991.
- Five QBs have been recognized as First-Team All-Americans:
- Spurrier (1966)
- John Reaves (1971)
- Wuerffel (1995, '96)
- Rex Grossman (2000)
- Tebow (2007)
- Two former Florida quarterbacks have returned to lead the Gators as their head coach:
Despite the accolades listed above for those five individuals, UF has had many other great quarterbacks such as Kerwin Bell, Terry Dean, Doug Johnson, Chris Leak, Shane Matthews and Jesse Palmer to name a few.
Each of those men, and others not mentioned, had excellent careers and memorable moments during their time at the University of Florida.
However, for the brevity of this article we're going to focus on three individuals.
Spurrier:
Wuerffel:
Tebow:
As you can see above, each of them had a laundry list of accolades throughout their playing careers.
But it's never about the awards and individual honors. It's about the camradery and brotherhood built with their teammates and the memories that last a lifetime.
Check out some highlights of these three Gator Greats.
Spurrier:
Wuerffel:
Tebow:
Starting Sunday our series will move onto the defensive line.
