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| Miami quarterback Brock Berlin would the Hurricanes to an memorable comeback win over the Florida Gators in 2003. |
Before the rise of the Florida State Seminoles and their rivalries with the Miami Hurricanes and Florida Gators,
the match-up of the Canes and Gators was the premier and bitterest rivalry in the state of Florida.
the match-up of the Canes and Gators was the premier and bitterest rivalry in the state of Florida.
The two teams meet every year from 1938 through 1987 and included such heated moments such as the
“Florida Flop” where the Gators defense flopped in unison so Miami could score a touchdown and not run out
the clock, giving the Florida offense the ball back and a chance for Florida quarterback John Reaves to break
the NCAA all-time passing yardage record in the 1971 game.
Then in 1980, head coach Howard Schnellberger had Miami kick a 25-yard field goal even though they were
ahead 31-7 in the final seconds of the 1980 meeting. But after the 1987 meeting, the rivalry was discontinued
with Florida citing their conference, the Southeastern Conference, expanding to eight conference games per
season.
Miami fans believed it was because of the Canes’ rise to national dominance during the 1980s.
But on September 7, 2003, the rivalry was renewed as the #3 Miami Hurricanes hosted the #21 Florida Gators
in the Orange Bowl in Miami.
The Gators were coached by second-year head coach Ron Zook, who was still looking for a quarterback
to replace Rex Grossman, who had left Florida after his junior season in 2002.
In Florida’s season opener, Zook played three quarterbacks: freshmen Gavin Dickey and Chris Leak,
as well as junior Ingle Martin in a 65-3 win over San Jose State.
For the Miami game, Martin would get the nod at starting quarterback.
Zook probably would have Brock Berlin as his starting quarterback if Berlin had not transferred from Florida
to the University of Miami in January 2002.
Berlin sat out the 2002 season and became the starting quarterback for the 2003 season, replacing
quarterback Ken Dorsey who had gone 38-2 during his time at Miami, including winning the 2001 national
championship and playing in the 2002 national championship game.
Berlin and the Canes got one game under their belt as they handily beat Louisiana Tech 48-9 in their
season opener before their anticipated showdown with the Berlin’s former team.
The game opened with a bang as Hurricanes kick returner extraordinaire Devin Hester returned the opening
kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown to put Miami ahead 7-0 just 13 seconds into the game.
Hester took off his helmet in the end zone following his touchdown, drawing a 15-yard excessive celebration penalty which forced the Canes to kick off from their 20 instead of the 35.
“Florida Flop” where the Gators defense flopped in unison so Miami could score a touchdown and not run out
the clock, giving the Florida offense the ball back and a chance for Florida quarterback John Reaves to break
the NCAA all-time passing yardage record in the 1971 game.
Then in 1980, head coach Howard Schnellberger had Miami kick a 25-yard field goal even though they were
ahead 31-7 in the final seconds of the 1980 meeting. But after the 1987 meeting, the rivalry was discontinued
with Florida citing their conference, the Southeastern Conference, expanding to eight conference games per
season.
Miami fans believed it was because of the Canes’ rise to national dominance during the 1980s.
But on September 7, 2003, the rivalry was renewed as the #3 Miami Hurricanes hosted the #21 Florida Gators
in the Orange Bowl in Miami.
The Gators were coached by second-year head coach Ron Zook, who was still looking for a quarterback
to replace Rex Grossman, who had left Florida after his junior season in 2002.
In Florida’s season opener, Zook played three quarterbacks: freshmen Gavin Dickey and Chris Leak,
as well as junior Ingle Martin in a 65-3 win over San Jose State.
For the Miami game, Martin would get the nod at starting quarterback.
Zook probably would have Brock Berlin as his starting quarterback if Berlin had not transferred from Florida
to the University of Miami in January 2002.
Berlin sat out the 2002 season and became the starting quarterback for the 2003 season, replacing
quarterback Ken Dorsey who had gone 38-2 during his time at Miami, including winning the 2001 national
championship and playing in the 2002 national championship game.
Berlin and the Canes got one game under their belt as they handily beat Louisiana Tech 48-9 in their
season opener before their anticipated showdown with the Berlin’s former team.
The game opened with a bang as Hurricanes kick returner extraordinaire Devin Hester returned the opening
kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown to put Miami ahead 7-0 just 13 seconds into the game.
Hester took off his helmet in the end zone following his touchdown, drawing a 15-yard excessive celebration penalty which forced the Canes to kick off from their 20 instead of the 35.
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| Devin Hester(4) ran back the opening kickoff for the first of his six career kick return touchdowns during his three years at the University of Miami. |
The penalty plus a 44-yard return by Andre Caldwell gave the Gators great field position at the Miami 38-yard-line
with Martin at the helm at quarterback.
with Martin at the helm at quarterback.
Martin would led the Gators down to the Miami 3-yard-line when Miami linebacker D.J. Williams sacked Martin
on a 3rd & 1, forcing Florida to settle for a 26-yard field goal to cut the Canes’ lead 7-3.
After being burned on the opening kickoff, Florida tried a pooch kick in hopes of avoiding a long runback by
Hester.
The Gators avoided Hester but not a long runback as defensive back Sean Taylor ran the kickoff back 67 yards
to the Gators’ 15-yard-line.
Despite another great return, the Canes could not get in the end zone despite having a 1st-and-goal from the
3-yard-line, and had to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Matt Peattie to increase their lead to 10-3.
The run of long kickoff returns ended on the ensuing kickoff when Caldwell only returned it 13 yards to the
Gators’ 20-yard-line.
However four plays later, Martin found Carlos Perez in the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown that tied the game at
10 midway the first quarter.
The score remained 10-10 going into the second quarter when Berlin committed the game’s first turnover as
he overthrew Gore on a backwards lateral that was picked up by Keiwan Ratliff and returned 34 yards for the
touchdown to give Florida the lead for the first time in the game.
The Gators tried to surprise the Canes on the extra point by going for two but the pass was overthrown by
holder Sean Morton and the score remained 16-10.
Miami seemed to respond well after the touchdown as Gore rambled for 30 yards to midfield on the first play
of the Canes’ ensuing possession.
But after an incomplete pass, Gore fumbled the ball as he stripped of the ball by free safety Darryl Dixon who
returned it 33 yards to the Miami 22-yard-line, giving the Gators an opportunity to increase the lead.
However, an illegal block penalty and a false start penalty pushed the Gators of field goal range and were
forced to punt back to Miami.
With 2:50 to go before halftime, the Gators got another great opportunity to put points on the board after a 5-yard-punt
by Brian Monroe gave Florida the ball at the Miami 39-yard-line.
Now with Leak at quarterback, who replaced Martin because of a concussion, the Gators drove to the Canes’
14-yard-line where Leach came on to kick a 30-yard field goal to increase the Florida lead 19-10 as the first
half came to a close.
on a 3rd & 1, forcing Florida to settle for a 26-yard field goal to cut the Canes’ lead 7-3.
After being burned on the opening kickoff, Florida tried a pooch kick in hopes of avoiding a long runback by
Hester.
The Gators avoided Hester but not a long runback as defensive back Sean Taylor ran the kickoff back 67 yards
to the Gators’ 15-yard-line.
Despite another great return, the Canes could not get in the end zone despite having a 1st-and-goal from the
3-yard-line, and had to settle for a 27-yard field goal by Matt Peattie to increase their lead to 10-3.
The run of long kickoff returns ended on the ensuing kickoff when Caldwell only returned it 13 yards to the
Gators’ 20-yard-line.
However four plays later, Martin found Carlos Perez in the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown that tied the game at
10 midway the first quarter.
The score remained 10-10 going into the second quarter when Berlin committed the game’s first turnover as
he overthrew Gore on a backwards lateral that was picked up by Keiwan Ratliff and returned 34 yards for the
touchdown to give Florida the lead for the first time in the game.
The Gators tried to surprise the Canes on the extra point by going for two but the pass was overthrown by
holder Sean Morton and the score remained 16-10.
Miami seemed to respond well after the touchdown as Gore rambled for 30 yards to midfield on the first play
of the Canes’ ensuing possession.
But after an incomplete pass, Gore fumbled the ball as he stripped of the ball by free safety Darryl Dixon who
returned it 33 yards to the Miami 22-yard-line, giving the Gators an opportunity to increase the lead.
However, an illegal block penalty and a false start penalty pushed the Gators of field goal range and were
forced to punt back to Miami.
With 2:50 to go before halftime, the Gators got another great opportunity to put points on the board after a 5-yard-punt
by Brian Monroe gave Florida the ball at the Miami 39-yard-line.
Now with Leak at quarterback, who replaced Martin because of a concussion, the Gators drove to the Canes’
14-yard-line where Leach came on to kick a 30-yard field goal to increase the Florida lead 19-10 as the first
half came to a close.
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| Ingle Martin(10) would be one of three men to play quarterback for the Gators during their 2003 meeting with Miami. |
Much like the first half, it did not take long for the fireworks to begin as Deshawn Wynn took the first play of the
second half 65 yards for a touchdown which made it 26-10 in favor of the Gators just 11 seconds into the third
quarter.
Following the Wynn touchdown, it seemed that the wheels were starting to come off for the Canes as Berlin
threw two interceptions on Miami’s 1st two drives of the 2nd half, the second one leading to a 4-yard touchdown run
by Rae Carthon to put Florida ahead by the seemingly insurmountable lead of 33-10 with 6:10 left in the 3rd quarter.
When Berlin came back on to the field for Miami’s next drive, he was greeted to a chorus of boos from the
Orange Bowl faithful which only grew louder after an incomplete pass on 1st down.
Just when it looked like the game was going to get out of hand, Berlin got hot and he completed his next six
passes on the drive, the last completion being a 26-yard touchdown to Kevin Beard.
The Canes went for two and after Ryan Moore caught Berlin’s two-point pass, the Canes were down 33-18 with
3:35 left in the third quarter.
The Miami defense forced a three-and-out from the Gators to get the ball back at their own 31-yard-line where
after a 6-yard run by Gore, Berlin connected with Beard for a 62-yard gain that put the Canes at the Florida’
1-yard-line.
On the very next play, Gore punched it in for the touchdown and suddenly the Canes were only down by eight
points, 33-25 with 33 seconds left in the third quarter.
Florida went three-and-out again on their next drive, punting the ball back to Miami who took over at their own
30-yard-line.
Berlin continued his hot streak as he completed seven of eight passes for 65 yards on a 9-play, 70-yard drive
that culminated with a 6-yard touchdown pass from Berlin to Moore to pull the Canes to within two points.
Moore bowed to the home crowd after his touchdown drawing another excessive celebration penalty and allowing Zook to
take the penalty and push the Canes back to the 18-yard-line and attempt an extra point instead of a possible
game-tying two point conversion.
Peattie nailed the extra point to bring Miami within a single point at 33-32 with 11:08 to play in the 4th quarter.
second half 65 yards for a touchdown which made it 26-10 in favor of the Gators just 11 seconds into the third
quarter.
Following the Wynn touchdown, it seemed that the wheels were starting to come off for the Canes as Berlin
threw two interceptions on Miami’s 1st two drives of the 2nd half, the second one leading to a 4-yard touchdown run
by Rae Carthon to put Florida ahead by the seemingly insurmountable lead of 33-10 with 6:10 left in the 3rd quarter.
When Berlin came back on to the field for Miami’s next drive, he was greeted to a chorus of boos from the
Orange Bowl faithful which only grew louder after an incomplete pass on 1st down.
Just when it looked like the game was going to get out of hand, Berlin got hot and he completed his next six
passes on the drive, the last completion being a 26-yard touchdown to Kevin Beard.
The Canes went for two and after Ryan Moore caught Berlin’s two-point pass, the Canes were down 33-18 with
3:35 left in the third quarter.
The Miami defense forced a three-and-out from the Gators to get the ball back at their own 31-yard-line where
after a 6-yard run by Gore, Berlin connected with Beard for a 62-yard gain that put the Canes at the Florida’
1-yard-line.
On the very next play, Gore punched it in for the touchdown and suddenly the Canes were only down by eight
points, 33-25 with 33 seconds left in the third quarter.
Florida went three-and-out again on their next drive, punting the ball back to Miami who took over at their own
30-yard-line.
Berlin continued his hot streak as he completed seven of eight passes for 65 yards on a 9-play, 70-yard drive
that culminated with a 6-yard touchdown pass from Berlin to Moore to pull the Canes to within two points.
Moore bowed to the home crowd after his touchdown drawing another excessive celebration penalty and allowing Zook to
take the penalty and push the Canes back to the 18-yard-line and attempt an extra point instead of a possible
game-tying two point conversion.
Peattie nailed the extra point to bring Miami within a single point at 33-32 with 11:08 to play in the 4th quarter.
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| Kevin Beard would catch seven passes for 164 yards and a touchdown for the Hurricanes. |
Having gone three-and-out on the Gators’ last two drives, Zook inserted Dickey into the game to spark the
Florida offense.
The move appeared to pay off as Dickey and the Florida offense got three 1st downs to drive to the Miami
34-yard-line only to have Dickey be sacked on 3rd & 6 by linebacker Johnathon Vilma, killing the drive and
forcing another Gator punt where the Canes would take over at their own 11-yard-line with 5:43 to go and all
three timeouts remaining.
It appeared the Canes were going to score quickly as Berlin completed back-to-back passes to Beard and
Sinorice Moss for 52 yards to get Miami at the Gators’43-yard-line.
However, the Florida defense rose up and were able to force a 4th-and-1 at 34-yard-line when Miami called
their first timeout.
Excepting a run from Gore up the middle, the Canes crossed up the Gators with a quarterback bootleg as
Berlin ran around the right side for a six-yard gain and a 1st down.
But after the run, Berlin fell to the ground with a leg cramp, forcing the Canes to burn their second timeout in
hopes that it would give Berlin the extra time to regain his stamina and remain in the game.
Berlin would not come out of the game as he threw to Kyle Cobia for 11 yards and another 1st down at the
Florida’ 17-yard-line.
Two plays later, the Canes would take the lead as Gore ran it in from 12 yards out to give Miami a 38-33 lead
with 1:44 to play (Miami would go for two points but fail).
Florida offense.
The move appeared to pay off as Dickey and the Florida offense got three 1st downs to drive to the Miami
34-yard-line only to have Dickey be sacked on 3rd & 6 by linebacker Johnathon Vilma, killing the drive and
forcing another Gator punt where the Canes would take over at their own 11-yard-line with 5:43 to go and all
three timeouts remaining.
It appeared the Canes were going to score quickly as Berlin completed back-to-back passes to Beard and
Sinorice Moss for 52 yards to get Miami at the Gators’43-yard-line.
However, the Florida defense rose up and were able to force a 4th-and-1 at 34-yard-line when Miami called
their first timeout.
Excepting a run from Gore up the middle, the Canes crossed up the Gators with a quarterback bootleg as
Berlin ran around the right side for a six-yard gain and a 1st down.
But after the run, Berlin fell to the ground with a leg cramp, forcing the Canes to burn their second timeout in
hopes that it would give Berlin the extra time to regain his stamina and remain in the game.
Berlin would not come out of the game as he threw to Kyle Cobia for 11 yards and another 1st down at the
Florida’ 17-yard-line.
Two plays later, the Canes would take the lead as Gore ran it in from 12 yards out to give Miami a 38-33 lead
with 1:44 to play (Miami would go for two points but fail).
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| Frank Gore would carry the ball 24 times for 127 yards and score two touchdowns. |
The Gators took over at their own 31-yard-line needing a touchdown to win and avoid an epic collapse.
Leak came back into the game and led the Gators to the 20-yard-line where he was intercepted by Al Marshall
ending the game and preserving a 38-33 win for the Hurricanes.
After committing three turnovers and getting booed by his own crowd, Berlin completed 18 of 21 passes for
262 yards and threw two touchdowns on the Canes’ last four drives to direct the second greatest comeback
in school history.
The Miami game would be a foreshadowing of the Gators’ 2003 season: up and down as the Gators would drop
two of their next four games, then went on a five-game winning streak, before losing their last two games to
finish the season with a 8-5 record.
Leak would win the starting quarterback job and would remain the Gators’ starter through the 2006 national
championship season.
As for Berlin and the Canes, they would go on to a 11-2 season and #5 final ranking in both polls, the fourth
straight season where Miami would finish in the top 5.
Berlin would come back to Miami for one more season and led the Canes to a 9-3 record and #11 ranking,
which ended another win over the Gators, 27-10 in the Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl.
Leak came back into the game and led the Gators to the 20-yard-line where he was intercepted by Al Marshall
ending the game and preserving a 38-33 win for the Hurricanes.
After committing three turnovers and getting booed by his own crowd, Berlin completed 18 of 21 passes for
262 yards and threw two touchdowns on the Canes’ last four drives to direct the second greatest comeback
in school history.
The Miami game would be a foreshadowing of the Gators’ 2003 season: up and down as the Gators would drop
two of their next four games, then went on a five-game winning streak, before losing their last two games to
finish the season with a 8-5 record.
Leak would win the starting quarterback job and would remain the Gators’ starter through the 2006 national
championship season.
As for Berlin and the Canes, they would go on to a 11-2 season and #5 final ranking in both polls, the fourth
straight season where Miami would finish in the top 5.
Berlin would come back to Miami for one more season and led the Canes to a 9-3 record and #11 ranking,
which ended another win over the Gators, 27-10 in the Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl.
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