1982 Gator Bowl Explained

Game Name:Gator Bowl
Subheader:38th Gator Bowl
Date Game Played:December 30
Year Game Played:1982
Football Season:1982
Visitor Name Short:West Virginia
Visitor Nickname:Mountaineers
Visitor Record:9–2
Visitor Rank Ap:10
Visitor Rank Coaches:9
Visitor 1Q:0
Visitor 2Q:6
Visitor 3Q:0
Visitor 4Q:6
Home Name Short:Florida State
Home Nickname:Seminoles
Home Record:8–3
Home Rank Ap:NR
Home Rank Coaches:20
Home 1Q:3
Home 2Q:14
Home 3Q:14
Home 4Q:0
Mvp:TB Greg Allen (Florida State)
K Paul Woodside (West Virginia)
Us Network:ABC
Us Announcers:Al Michaels
Lee Grosscup
Anne Simon
Type:bg
Referee:Robert Aillet (SEC)
Attendance:80,913

The 1982 Gator Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 30, 1982, at Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The game pitted the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Florida State Seminoles.

Background

West Virginia won their first three games (including a win against #9 Oklahoma) to be ranked at #14 heading into their rivalry game against #2 Pittsburgh. A close 16–13 loss made them fall to #16, but they rebounded with two straight victories to get to #13 heading into a home game versus #9 Penn State. A 24–0 loss to the eventual champion was their last loss of the regular season as they won the next four straight games to be invited to their second straight bowl game.

Florida State won seven straight games after starting the season 1–1 (with a loss to #2 Pittsburgh), rising to #7 heading into a non-conference matchup with #12 Louisiana State University. A 55–21 loss made them fall out of the polls, and they finished the season with a 13–10 loss to Florida. However, they were invited to the Gator Bowl, their first invite since 1967.

Game summary

Greg Allen rushed for 138 yards on 15 carries while Paul Woodside kicked two field goals.[1] [2]

Aftermath

The Mountaineers went to five more bowl games in the decade, including another Gator Bowl in 1989. They have returned five more times, though they have won only once, in 2007. Florida State has gone to a bowl game in every season since 1982, including four Gator Bowls, the latter being Bowden's last game.

Notes and References

  1. News: Seminoles rout Mountaineers in Gator Bowl. The Palm Beach Post. December 31, 1982. January 28, 2024. Newspapers.com.
  2. Web site: '82 Gator Bowl Recap - WVU Athletics . December 17, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161220204633/http://www.wvusports.com/page.cfm?section=5785 . December 20, 2016 . dead .