The 1927 Florida Gators football team represented the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

in the sport of

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

during the 1927 Southern Conference football season. The season was

Harold Sebring Harold Leon Sebring (March 9, 1898 – July 26, 1968), nicknamed Tom Sebring, was a Florida Supreme Court justice, and an American judge at one of the Subsequent Nuremberg Trials of German war criminals after World War II. Sebring was a native ...

's third and last season as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. After suffering a 0–12 upset loss at the hands of the Davidson College Wildcats, the Gators rallied to defeat the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year coeducational university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

33–6, defeating the Tigers for the first time and ending a six-game losing streak, and to upset coach

Wallace Wade William Wallace Wade (June 15, 1892 – October 7, 1986) was an American football player and coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at the University of Alabama fro ...

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I as a me ...

13–6. Sebring's 1927 Florida Gators finished 7–3 overall, and 5–2 in the

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly k ...

, placing sixth of twenty-two teams in the conference standings.
2015 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 107–108 (2015). Retrieved August 15, 2015.''2009 Southern Conference Football Media Guide''
Year-by-Year Standings
Southern Conference, Spartanburg, South Carolina, p. 74 (2009). Retrieved August 30, 2010. The loss to Davidson featured captain Frank Oosterhoudt, who was later declared ineligible, and replaced at captain by Bill Middlekauff. With Middlekauff at captain, the Gators suffered just two further losses: to conference co-champions

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

; and to Georgia's " Dream and Wonder team". NC State was led by Hall of Famer and Gainesville native

Jack McDowall John Witherspoon McDowall (June 26, 1905 – May 25, 1969), known as "Spindle Legs", was an American football, baseball, basketball player and track athlete at North Carolina State University. McDowall was recognized as an All-Southern footb ...

Before the season

The 1926 season was the worst since the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

. "The wolves began to clamor for Sebring's scalp as the 1926 season ended" wrote Pete Norton. With several newcomers, Sebring organized an Orange and Blue game.

Schedule

Season summary

Week 1: Florida Southern

The first game of the season occurred on September 24 at Fleming Field in Gainesville. The Gators defeated

Florida Southern Florida Southern College (Florida Southern, Southern or FSC) is a private college in Lakeland, Florida. In 2019, the student population at FSC consisted of 3,073 students along with 130 full-time faculty members. The college offers 50 undergradu ...

26–7.

Week 2: Davidson

The second week brought the low point of the season–an upset by the

Davidson Wildcats The Davidson Wildcats are the NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletics teams representing Davidson College of Davidson, North Carolina, United States. A member of the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10), Davidson College sponsors teams in ten men ...

. Favored to win by two touchdowns and of superior weight, the Gators lost 12–0. They came within scoring just once, held at the 1-yard line. Despite a limp,

Clyde Crabtree Clyde Crabtree (November 3, 1905 – April 21, 1994), nicknamed "Cannonball Crabtree," was an American college and professional football player who was a halfback and quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for a single season in 1930 ...

was twice sent into the game at crucial moments in hopes of a score. In his first year on the varsity and with a broken wrist,

Rainey Cawthon Rainey Blackwell Cawthon (October 30, 1907 – April 11, 1991) was an American football player and coach for the Florida Gators of the University of Florida. Cawthon was a member of Florida's "Phantom Four" backfield with Clyde Crabtree, Carl Br ...

played against Davidson. On October 4, captain Frank Oosterhoudt was declared ineligible; his replacement by unanimous vote was Bill Middlekauff.

Week 3: at Auburn

Spurred on by a new captain, the Gators traveled to Auburn and beat the

rival A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...

for the first time 33–6. Bill Middlekauff and

were both cited as players of the game.

Everett Strupper George Everett Strupper Jr. (July 26, 1896 – February 4, 1950), known variously as "Ev" or "Strup" or "Stroop" was an American football player. He played halfback for Georgia Tech from 1915 to 1917. Strupper overcame deafness resulting from ...

was referee. Crabtree scored two touchdowns and Middlekauff one Goof Bowyer made the first touchdown, a 44-yard run. Tommy Owens also had a touchdown. Auburn coach Dave Morey resigned. The Gators' freshmen team also beat Auburn's freshmen team that week. The starting lineup was: Hodges (left end), Bryan (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirschner (center), Reeves (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Brumbaugh (quarterback), Bowyer (left halfback), Bishop (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Week 4: Kentucky

The Gators avenged last year's loss to the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30,473 ...

with a 27–6 victory in

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

, outplaying the Wildcats in all but the second quarter.

Carl Brumbaugh Carl Lowry Brumbaugh (September 22, 1906 – October 24, 1969) was an American college and professional football player who was a quarterback and halfback in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons in the 1930s. Brumbaugh played c ...

was sidelined with an injury. Florida's first touchdown came after some six minutes of play when Bill Middlekauff went over. Florida's final touchdown was on a triple-pass play of Middlekauff to

Dale Van Sickel Dale Harris Van Sickel (November 29, 1907 – January 25, 1977) was an American college football, basketball and baseball player during the 1920s, who later became a Hollywood motion picture actor and stunt performer for over forty years. ...

. In the last half, the Gators made 17 first downs to Kentucky's 11. Goof Bowyer scored a touchdown and drop kicked two extra points to seal the first victory over the Wildcats. The starting lineup was: DeHoff (left end), Bryan (left tackle), Reeves (left guard), Kirschner (center), Allen (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Beck (left halfback), Bishop (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Week 5: North Carolina State

In the fifth week of play, the Gators faced coach

Gus Tebell Gustave Kenneth Tebell (September 6, 1897 – May 28, 1969) was an American football, basketball, and baseball player, coach, and college athletics administrator. From 1925 to 1929, he coached football at North Carolina State University, where h ...

's North Carolina State Wolfpack on

Plant Field Plant Field was the first major athletic venue in Tampa, Florida. It was built in 1899 by Henry B. Plant on the grounds of his Tampa Bay Hotel to host various events and activities for guests, and it consisted of a large field ringed by an oval r ...

in Tampa, losing 12–6. Neither team scored until the final period. A drive brought the Wolfpack to the 3-yard line, the feature play of which was a 30-yard pass from their Hall of Fame captain, Gainesville native

to Childress. A pass from McDowall to Frank Goodwin got the score. The Gators then began passing desperately in an attempt to win. A pass bounced off the hands of a Florida back and into McDowall's, who returned the ball 75 yards for the deciding score. On the ensuing kickoff, Gator back Tommy Owens ran it back for an 88-yard touchdown. Since McDowall had been turned down by his native University of Florida, legend has it just afterwards he mailed Sebring the game ball. The starting lineup was: Van Sickel (left end), Bryan (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirschner (center), Reeves (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Beck (left halfback), Yancey (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Week 6: Mercer

For homecoming, some 9,000 watched Florida beat the

Mercer Bears The Mercer Bears are the college athletics, athletic teams of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia with an NCAA Division I athletic program and fields teams in eight men's and nine wo ...

32–6.

once completed a 53-yard pass during the game. Florida's five touchdowns were scored by: Bill Middlekauff, Willie DeHoff, Cecil Beck, Spic Stanley, and Goof Bowyer. Mercer's Phoney Smith had a 65-yard touchdown run. Middlekauff made the first score of the contest.

Week 7: Georgia

The " Dream and wonder team" beat the Gators 28–0 after leading just 7 to 0 at the half. "It was made by Georgia's famous touchdown pass that later wrecked Alabama and had wrecked Yale. This pass started out like a cross buck but finished with Johnson having tossed the ball to McCrary over the goal line." Quarterback Goof Bowyer broke his leg in the game. Middlekauff entered the game with an injury, and aggravated it further. The starting lineup was: Dehoff (left end), Bryan (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirchner (center), Reeves (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Bowyer (quarterback), Brumbaugh (left halfback), Bishop (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Week 8: at Alabama

The Gators upset coach

13–6 in Montgomery. Florida's yearbook remarked: "The South rocked under the great Orange and Blue victory."

returned a punt 95 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter. Alabama's Molton Smith intercepted Crabtree's pass in the fourth quarter and ran for a 45-yard touchdown. After an Alabama penalty,

ran across for the second and decisive touchdown. Crabtree also had two 55-yard kickoff returns, and gained more from scrimmage that afternoon than did the Tide. Crabtree accounted for 271 yards. The starting lineup was: Stanley (left end), Bryan (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirschner (center), Reeves (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Dehoff (right end), Van Sickle (quarterback), Crabtree (left halfback), Brumbaugh (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Week 9: Washington & Lee

Before a crowd of some 12,000 in

, Florida beat coach Pat Herron's Washington & Lee Generals 20–7.

scored Florida's three touchdowns. The Gators 75-piece band made the trip. The starting lineup was: VanSickel (left end), Dehoff (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirschner (center), Reeves (right guard), Clemons (right tackle), Stanley (right end), Crabtree (quarterback), Owens (left halfback), Brumbaugh (right halfback), Cawthon (fullback).

Week 10: Maryland

In a cold and driving rain, a placekick for extra point by

Dutch Stanley Dennis Keith Stanley Sr. (April 14, 1906 – May 29, 1983), nicknamed Dutch Stanley, was an American education professor, university administrator and intercollegiate sports coach. Stanley was a native of England, but graduated from high school i ...

proved the difference in a 7–6 win over coach

Curley Byrd Harry Clifton "Curley" Byrd (February 12, 1889 – October 2, 1970) was an American university administrator, educator, athlete, coach, and politician. Byrd began a long association with the University of Maryland as an undergraduate in 1905, and ...

Maryland Terrapins The Maryland Terrapins, commonly referred to as the Terps, consist of 19 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Maryland, College Park in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Divis ...

. Six Gators played their final game. "Playing on a sodden field, unfamiliar to both teams," Florida scored after

returned a punt to Maryland's 38-yard line. He and

worked the ball further towards the goal, and Bill Middlekauff carried it over the goal line in the captain's final game. Roberts of Maryland had a 38-yard touchdown run through tackle. The pass for extra point failed, however. The starting lineup was: Stanley (left end), Clemons (left tackle), Allen (left guard), Kirschner (center), Reeves (right guard), Bryan (right tackle), Van Sickel (right end), Crabtree (quarterback), Brumbaugh (left halfback), Bishop (right halfback), Middlekauff (fullback).

Postseason

Goof Bowyer was elected captain for next year. In no two seasons had Florida won as many conference contests as in 1927. Sebring resigned to get married and practice law. He graduated from the university's

College of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

in 1928, and later became a circuit court judge and chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court. Many sports commentators believe that the team that Sebring recruited for

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhan ...

would become the greatest Gators football squad until at least the 1960s.

Players

Depth chart

The following chart provides a visual depiction of Florida's lineup during the 1927 season with games started at the position reflected in parenthesis. The chart mimics a

Notre Dame Box The Notre Dame Box is a variation of the single-wing formation used in American football, with great success by Notre Dame in college football and the Green Bay Packers of the 1920s and 1930s in the NFL. Green Bay's coach, Curly Lambeau, learne ...

on offense.

Line

Backfield

Coaching staff

*Head coach: Tom Sebring *Assistants:

Joe Bedenk Fred Joseph Bedenk (July 14, 1897 – May 2, 1978) was an American football and baseball player and coach. He served as the head baseball coach at Rice University from 1925 to 1926 and at Pennsylvania State University from 1931 to 1962. Bedenk wa ...

(assistant),

Brady Cowell Warren C. "Brady" Cowell (December 12, 1899 – April 15, 1989) was an American college football, basketball, and baseball coach and college athletic director. Cowell played football, basketball and baseball at Kansas State Agricultural College, ...

(freshmen),

Nash Higgins Alfred Nash Higgins (February 29, 1896 – October 29, 1984) was an American football and track and field coach as well as athletic director, the first in the history of the University of Tampa. He later worked as superintendent of recreation for t ...

(chief scout),

Alvin Pierson Alvin Peter "Pix" Pierson (1898 – 1974) was an American college football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Fresno State College—now known as California State University, Fresno—in 1945 and again in 1949, compiling a ...

, George Weber

References

Additional sources

* * {{Florida Gators football navbox

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Florida Gators football seasons

Florida Gators football The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division o ...