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Florida Football: 5 most gut-wrenching Gator losses of past decade

By Briley Hughes

GAINESVILLE, FL - AUGUST 30: Head coach Will Muschamp of the Florida Gators looks on prior to the game against the Idaho Vandals on August 30, 2014 in Gainesville, Florida. The game was terminated for weather and unsafe playing conditions. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images)
GAINESVILLE, FL - AUGUST 30: Head coach Will Muschamp of the Florida Gators looks on prior to the game against the Idaho Vandals on August 30, 2014 in Gainesville, Florida. The game was terminated for weather and unsafe playing conditions. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images) /
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LEXINGTON, KY – SEPTEMBER 26: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Florida Gators watches his team play in the third quarter of the game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Commonwealth Stadium on September 26, 2009 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LEXINGTON, KY – SEPTEMBER 26: Head coach Urban Meyer of the Florida Gators watches his team play in the third quarter of the game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Commonwealth Stadium on September 26, 2009 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

2. Alabama ends Gators’ most successful stretch (2009)

Speaking of the end of eras, Florida’s loss to Alabama in the 2009 SEC Championship game abruptly ended perhaps the Gators’ most successful stretch in program history.

After a fairly anemic showing in the first half, the Tim Tebow-led Gator couldn’t muster a single point in the second half as Alabama pulled away to secure not only the SEC Championship and a trip to the national championship game, but also the undisputed title of kings of the SEC and college football – a title for which they are still currently vying.

Further compounding the pain were the rumor circling Urban Meyer and his long-term viability as the coach of the Gators. Having checked himself into the hospital following the loss, it seemed that – along with Tebow – Florida would be looking to replace it coach. Of course, Meyer didn’t retire, instead finishing out the 2010 season before briefly hanging up his whistle.

After four years atop the college football world, the loss in Tebow’s final truly significant game left a bitter taste in the mouth of Gator Nation. That taste would illustrate the situation Urban Meyer would later leave the program in. Less than a year following the crushing loss to the Crimson Tide, Meyer would retire and Florida would enter into one of its least successful eras in its history.

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