The 1983 Gator Bowl was an American college football bowl game played on December 30, 1983, at Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville, FL. The matchup featured the 10th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes of the Big Ten Conference and the 11th-ranked Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference. The Gators won, 14–6, to secure their first top 10 ranking in the season's final polls.

1983 Gator Bowl
39th Gator Bowl Game
1234 Total
Iowa 0330 6
Florida 7700 14
DateDecember 30, 1983
Season1983
StadiumGator Bowl Stadium
LocationJacksonville, FL
MVPOwen Gill (Iowa RB)[1]
Tony Lilly (Florida S)[1]
RefereeJim Garvey (Eastern Independent)
Attendance81,293
United States TV coverage
NetworkABC Sports
AnnouncersAl Michaels and Frank Broyles
Gator Bowl
 < 1982 1984

Teams

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The 1983 Gator Bowl was the first meeting between the two programs.

Iowa

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Florida

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Game summary

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Scoring summary

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Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP IOWA FLA
1 0:40 12 87 5:53 FLA Neal Anderson 1-yard touchdown run, Bobby Raymond kick good 0 7
2 5:45 12 88 6:14 IOWA 32-yard field goal by Tom Nichol 3 7
2 1:08 FLA Fumble recovery returned 0 yards for touchdown by Doug Drew, Bobby Raymond kick good 3 14
3 11:00 6 15 3:04 IOWA 31-yard field goal by Tom Nichol 6 14
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 6 14

[2]

Team statistics

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Iowa Florida
First downs 16 14
Rushing yards 40–114 44–168
Passing 13–30–4 9–23–2
Passing yards 167 92
Total offense 281 250
Fumbles lost 2–1 0–0
Punts–average 2–40.0 7–38.0
Penalties 7–44 12–105

Individual leaders

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Passing
Iowa: Long – 13-28, 167 yds, 4 INT
Florida: Peace – 9-22, 92 yds, 2 INT

Rushing
Iowa: Gill – 10 carries, 83 yds; Granger – 9 carries, 37 yds
Florida: Anderson – 17 carries, 84 yds, 1 TD; Williams – 10 carries, 68 yds

Receiving
Iowa: Harmon – 6 catches, 90 yds
Florida: Dixon – 5 catches, 55 yds

[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). "Bowl/All-Star Game Records: Most Valuable Players in Former Major Bowls" (PDF). 2012 NCAA Division I Football Records. NCAA.org. p. 90. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  2. ^ "Gator Bowl to Florida, 14-6". The New York Times. December 31, 1983. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  3. ^ Box score