September 19, 1987
Florida at Alabama
The 11th ranked, 2-0 Crimson Tide of coach Bill Curry hosted the 1-1 Florida Gators of coach Galen Hall. Florida’s All-SEC RB Emmitt Smith, a freshman making his first start, rushed for 2 touchdowns & set a Florida school-record with 224 yards rushing. Gators’ PK Robert McGinty kicked 3 field goals as Florida defeated Alabama for the first time since 1963, an 8-game streak, & claimed The Belt with a 23-14 win. Both defense held firm in the 1st half with Alabama getting only a 36-yard field goal from PK Phil Doyle while Florida got field goals of 26 & 21 yards from McGinty making the score Florida 6 Alabama 3 at the half. The Crimson Tide knotted the game at 6-6 in the 3rd quarter when Doyle connected on a 25-yard field goal. Smith put the Gators ahead with a 30-yard touchdown run giving Florida a 13-6 lead with 5:39 left in the 3rd quarter. McGinty put the Gators up 16-6 early in the 4th quarter when he kicked a 37-yard field goal. Midway through the final quarter, Smith’s 1-yard touchdown run put Florida ahead 23-6. Alabama got a touchdown on a 13-yard pass from back-up QB Vince Sutton to TE Angelo Stafford. Florida’s QB Kerwin Bell threw for 130 yards with 2 interceptions while Alabama starting QB David Smith was held to 20 yards passing completing just 2 of 10 pass attempts while being sacked 5 times. The Crimson Tide finished the season 7-5 while the Gators finished 6-6. Alabama would play for The Belt again in 7 weeks.
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