College Football Rewind: Most important games from 2002 season

1. Florida 20, (5) Georgia 13

The most important game of the 2002 season was the neutral site showdown between Georgia and Florida. This game had ramifications that would be felt for years because this would be the closest that the Dawgs would come to making the national championship under Mark Richt until the 2012 SEC title game a decade later.

Georgia entered the game ranked fifth in the country and looked to avoid the upset in Jacksonville and stay on the path to a possible national championship berth.

Rex Grossman and the Gators had other ideas, however. He played his best game of the season, throwing for over 300 yards and two touchdowns and the Gator defense also had a touchdown with a 47-yard interception return in the second quarter and for the 12th time in 13 years, the Gators beat the Bulldogs.

Georgia would still go on to win the SEC East and then defeat Arkansas in the SEC championship, but the question has always lingered that if the Bulldogs had beaten Florida, would that have been enough to jump over Ohio State and claim a spot against Miami in the Fiesta Bowl? I say yes and that’s why I rank this game the most important game of the 2002 season.