Auburn and Florida are renewing their rivalry this week as the No. 7 Tigers travel to Gainesville, Florida, to face the Gators. Auburn will be facing one of the most intimidating atmospheres in college football in The Swamp — and it’s a stadium that has stifled the Tigers before.
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was built in 1930 and has since been renovated to hold over 90,000 fans, making it one of the loudest stadiums in the country. Florida has an impressive record against the Tigers at home, boasting a 22-9 advantage at The Swamp. Auburn and Florida played an annual rivalry game from 1945-2002, where, usually, the home team came out on top.
The rivalry was disrupted in 2002 because of the division between the SEC East and West. Auburn and Florida don’t compete against each other as often as they did in the past, but there is still animosity shared between the two squads who always seem to give fans an exciting game.
The last time the Tigers played in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was in 2007 where Auburn upset the No. 4 Gators led by Tim Tebow. Wes Byrum made the game-winning field goal for Auburn as time expired, giving the Tigers a 20-17 win.
One of the more popular stories in Florida’s history came in 1966 when the Tigers traveled to Gainesville. Eventual Heisman Trophy winner Steve Spurrier convinced Florida’s head coach Ray Graves to let him attempt the game-winning field goal instead of the Gators’ starting kicker. Spurrier made the field goal to defeat the Tigers, and it became the highlight of his career as a Florida quarterback. Spurrier was also the first person to call Ben Hill Griffin Stadium "The Swamp," once telling a reporter, “The Swamp is a place where only Gators get out alive.”
Whenever a team goes into an atmosphere like Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, one of the keys to victory is making sure the quarterback maintains control of the offense in such a loud environment. If Bo Nix needs advice on how to handle The Swamp, he should reach out to his dad Patrick Nix, who led Auburn to a win in Gainesville in 1994. The Tigers entered the matchup as 17-point underdogs before winning a shootout that ended 36-33.
Auburn and Florida have been competing on the field for years, but they also compete for the talented high school recruits they hope to fill their rosters with. Auburn has 17 players on the team who played high school football in Florida. Jeremiah Dinson, who is from Miami, knows this game will be personal for him and many of his teammates.
“We’re from Florida, so it means a little bit more, just going back to our home state,” he said.
The Gators were one of the teams that recruited Dinson heavily before he decided to enroll at Auburn.
Florida is an elite program, which is exciting for Auburn’s players, but many of the players are fired up because Florida scheduled Auburn as its homecoming opponent.
“Words can’t even explain it,” said senior defensive end Marlon Davidson when asked about how he felt about being the Gators’ homecoming opponent.
Davidson felt disrespected, but it just adds to the excitement he already feels about getting to suit up in his home state: “I wanted to go down and play in The Swamp. Growing up as a kid, just the history down there, and playing Florida, period."
It will be approximately 90 degrees at kickoff on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CST. The heat will add to the difficulty for the Tigers, as they will try to stay undefeated on the road and write their own chapter in a renewed rivalry.
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