1984 Florida Gators football team

1984 Florida Gators football
National Champions
SEC champion (vacated)
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 7
AP	No. 3
1984 record	9–1–1 (5–0–1 SEC)
Head coach	Charley Pell (first 3 games) Galen Hall (last 8 games)
Offensive coordinator	Galen Hall (first 3 games)
Defensive coordinator	Joe Kines
Home stadium	Florida Field

1984 SEC football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
#3 Florida $	5	–	0	–	1			9	–	1	–	1
#15 LSU	4	–	1	–	1			8	–	3	–	1
#14 Auburn	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	4	–	0
Georgia	4	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
#19 Kentucky	3	–	3	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
Tennessee	3	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
Alabama	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Vanderbilt	2	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Ole Miss	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	6	–	1
Mississippi State	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
$ – Conference champion Florida's title was later vacated by the SEC. Rankings from AP Poll

The 1984 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The season was Charley Pell's sixth and last as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Pell was fired after the third game of the season due to numerous NCAA violations committed by him and his staff over the previous few years. New offensive coordinator Galen Hall served as interim coach for the remainder of the season. After the Gators began the season as a 1–1–1 team under Pell, Hall's 1984 Florida Gators posted a 9–1–1 overall record and a Southeastern Conference (SEC) record of 5–0–1 (8–0–0 and 4–0–0, respectively, under Hall), finishing first among ten SEC teams,^[1] and were recognized as the SEC champions. The Gators finished third in the Associated Press Poll and seventh in the Coaches Poll, and were also named national champions by twenty-two publications including The New York Times and The Sporting News, though Florida does not claim this title.

Schedule and results

Date	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
9–1–1984	No. 10 Miami*	No. 17	Tampa Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN	L 20–32	72,813
9–8–1984	Louisiana State		Florida Field • Gainesville, FL	TBS	T 21–21	70,197
9–15–1984	Tulane*		Florida Field • Gainesville, FL		W 63–21	65,265
9–29–1984	Mississippi State		Florida Field • Gainesville, FL		W 27–12	68,186
10–6–1984	Syracuse*		Florida Field • Gainesville, FL		W 16–0	70,189
10–13–1984	Tennessee	No. 18	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN		W 43–30	94,016
10–20–1984	Cincinnati*	No. 17	Florida Field • Gainesville, FL (HC)		W 48–17	73,690
11–3–1984	No. 11 Auburn	No. 13	Florida Field • Gainesville, FL	ABC	W 24–3	74,397
11–10–1984	No. 8 Georgia	No. 10	Gator Bowl Stadium • Jacksonville, FL	CBS	W 27–0	82,349
11–17–1984	Kentucky	No. 5	Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, KY	TBS	W 25–17	52,823
12–1–1984	No. 12 Florida State*	No. 3	Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, FL	ABC	W 27–17	58,930
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game.

Primary source: 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide.^[1]

Postseason

On May 30, 1985, the presidents of the ten SEC-member universities voted 6–4 to vacate the Gators' 1984 SEC title and declared the team ineligible for the SEC championship during the upcoming 1985 and 1986 seasons because of the rule violations committed under Pell. The retroactive vacating of the 1984 championship, six months after the 1984 football season ended, drew an angry response from University of Florida president Marshall Criser, as well as Gators coaches, players and fans due to the retroactive nature of the decision and its perceived unfairness.^[2]

References

1. 2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, p. 107 (2015). Retrieved August 16, 2015.
2. Associated Press, "SEC Presidents swipe Florida of football title," Times Daily, p. 5B (May 31, 1985). See also "Gators Stripped of SEC Title," The Palm Beach Post, pp. A1 & A5 (May 31, 1985). Both retrieved May 5, 2011.