LONGEST STREAK: TEN

The Florida Gators have won 10 straight against the Volunteers, sweeping the last decade of this historic SEC East rivalry shared by two traditional powers and two original members of the SEC.

The Gators current win streak is tied for the longest in series history. Tennessee won the first 10 meetings between these two teams between from 1916-53, and 13 of the first 15 meetings in this rivalry; Florida has won 23 of 28 meetings since that time.

BEST GAME: 2006

Urban Meyer was looking to start his career at Florida with a 2-0 record against the Vols, something even the great Steve Spurrier couldn’t do at Florida, but in order to do so he’d have to win in his first trip to Neyland Stadium. And Tennessee did not make the task any easier, jumping out to a 17-7 lead in the early third quarter to leave Florida on the ropes.

But the Gators never wavered and the Vols were never able to extend their lead to three-scores, adding some insurance to their second-half lead. Quarterback Chris Leak, who threw a pair of touchdown passes on the day, led a third-quarter scoring drive culminating with a touchdown toss to Dallas Baker to cut the lead to 17-14.

After a Tennessee field goal early in the fourth quarter extended the lead to 20-14, the Gators responded with another touchdown drive to take the lead, once again culminating with a connection from Leak to Baker.

Reggie Nelson intercepted Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge in the final minutes to clinch the victory, and the Gators fans in attendance stayed inside Neyland Stadium to celebrate behind enemy lines well after the final whistle blew.

The loss sent the Vols spiraling in the wake of a 5-6 season in 2005, and the win was the Gators first in SEC play on their way to the first of two national titles under Meyer.

Florida held Tennessee to negative 11 yards rushing and limited Ainge to a modest 53 percent completion rate. Leak completed 60 percent of his throws and then-backup Tim Tebow played a major role, running for four first downs on his seven snaps for the game.

BIGGEST TURNING POINT: 2007

Florida was already two wins into its current 10-game winning streak against UT when the two teams met in 2007, but the programs were heading in opposite directions.

The Vols had only mustered 14 wins in the previous two seasons combined, and fans were beginning to wonder if the best days of the Phillip Fulmer era were behind them. Florida, meanwhile, entered the game as the defending national champions, and Tebow had already begun showing flashes of brilliance as a first-time starter on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy.

The 2007 game epitomized the differing directions of the two programs. The Gators smacked Tennessee 59-20, and the game was even more lopsided than the score indicates. Already leading 28-13 at half and 35-20 through three quarters, the Gators ran off 24 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to turn their victory into a blowout that sent the Vols spiraling.

The 2007 season was the last season Tennessee was able to close with a bowl victory until this past season. On the other hand, the Gators would go on to win another national title just one year later.

Here are the highlights from that game:

BEST PLAYER: PERCY HARVIN

I bet you were expecting to see Tim Tebow’s name here, right? Tebow remains the greatest Gator from this era of the program’s history, but it was Harvin who shined brightest against Tennessee in particular when both players played at Florida.

The all-purpose wideout amassed 275 yards from scrimmage and three total touchdowns in two games against Tennessee in 2006 and 2007, making an impact in the running game and as a receiver for the Florida offense. Even when Harvin wasn’t touching the ball he was commanding the attention of all 11 Vols defenders on the field at the time, opening up opportunities for players like Chris Rainey, Louis Murphy and Aaron Hernandez to make plays.

Nevertheless, Harvin led the team in receiving in both games and even led the team in rushing in the 2006 showdown, asserting his dominance against one of the SEC’s most legendary programs.

SWEETEST REVENGE: 2005

To give context to the 2005 game, we must first provide a quick recap of the 2004 showdown in Knoxville. Florida led 28-27 with just under a minute to play, and was set up to punt the ball away after allowing the play clock and game clock to tick down as much as possible.

But following the third down play that forced the punt, a Florida player and Tennessee player were involved in some extracurricular activity that results in flags on the field. Although both players were at fault, only Florida was called for unsportsmanlike conduct, moving the ball back 15 yards to aid Tennessee in its quest for a game-winning field goal.

The officials also failed to restart the clock before the punt, which they should have by rule, and this preserved plenty of time for Tennessee to drive the field for the game-winning kick.

The Vols did just that to win the game 30-28, but haven’t won since.

Florida’s win streak began the next year with sweet redemption, as the Gators topped the Vols 16-7 in the Swamp. The 2005 game was Urban Meyer’s first as coach of the Gators, and Florida shut out Tennessee in the second half to secure the win and begin the streak it maintains 10 years later.

BEST TOUCHDOWN DRIVE: TREY BURTON, 2012

The Vols appeared poised to snap their losing skid to Florida in 2012 when they broke back into the top 25 for the first time since the days of Fulmer. College GameDay was on hand at Neyland Stadium for the game, and Tennessee was expected to make its rise back to national prominence after a series of underwhelming seasons leading up to the 2012 showdown.

UT was well on its way, leading 20-13 in the third quarter with Florida once again clinging to life despite trailing on the scoreboard. Florida was within striking distance but needed a spark. Burton provided that spark.

He alone led Florida’s most important touchdown drive of the last 10 years of this rivalry, running for an 80-yard touchdown as the Wildcat quarterback late in the third quarter to tie the game at 20 apiece. Florida would go on to score 17 more unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win 37-20, maintaining its dominance against the Vols.

Tennessee would not reenter the national polls that season, and would not reach another bowl game for three more seasons. The Burton run was as deflating as they come.

In case you forgot about the play, here it is:

FLORIDA VS. TENNESSEE RESULTS (LAST DECADE)

2005: Florida 16, Tennessee 7
2006: Florida 21, Tennessee 20
2007: Florida 59, Tennessee 20
2008: Florida 30, Tennessee 6
2009: Florida 23, Tennessee 13
2010: Florida 31, Tennessee 17
2011: Florida 33, Tennessee 23
2012: Florida 37, Tennessee 20
2013: Florida 31, Tennessee 17
2014: Florida 10, Tennessee 9