Ten things you might not know about Kentucky’s losing streak to Florida

It’s been a long road filled with heartbreak and disappointment in the 30 ye ars since Kentucky last defeated Florida in football.

Here’s a look at some interesting facts and key differences between the Cats and Gators since 1986.

1. The heartbreakers

1988, Florida 24, Kentucky 19: Trailing 6-0 midway through the third quarter, the Gators outscored the Cats 24-3 to take control of the game. The Cats scored a touchdown with 54 seconds left, but couldn’t recover an onside kick. The loss knocked UK out of the bowl picture.

1993, Florida 24, Kentucky 20: Bill Curry’s best Kentucky team grabbed seven interceptions, four against starter Terry Dean and three against a backup named Danny Wuerffel. And it was the eventual 1996 Heisman Trophy winner Wuerffel who got the ball with 1:26 left in the game down 20-17. His pass to Chris Doering in the center of the end zone gave the Gators the win and the Cats an enduring symbol in their futility against Florida.

2003, Florida 24, Kentucky 21: Rich Brooks’ first Kentucky team had a 21-3 lead going into the fourth quarter. With 4:40 left, the Cats had the ball at their own 32, clinging to a 21-17 lead. A Jared Lorenzen interception set up the Gators’ go-ahead score.

2014, Florida 36, Kentucky 30 (3OT): Quarterback Patrick Towles was 24-of-45 for 369 yards and three touchdowns to go with three interceptions, and redshirt freshman kicker Austin MacGinnis tied the game at 20 with a 51-yard field goal to force overtime. But MacGinnis could not convert a 41-yard field goal in the third OT and Florida subsequently scored a Matt Jones touchdown to end it.

2. The margins

Biggest blowout of the streak: 73-7 in 1994.

Total margin: Florida 1,220, Kentucky 488

Times UK shut out: 2 (1996, 2012)

Times Florida scored more than 40: 16 (high of 73 in 1994)

3. First-round NFL Draft picks since 1987

Florida, 34: Notables include, Emmitt Smith (1990), Fred Taylor (1998), Jevon Kearse (1999), Travis Taylor (2000), Rex Grossman (2003), Percy Harvin (2009) and Tim Tebow (2010).

Kentucky, 3: Tim Couch (1999), Dewayne Robertson (2003) and Bud Dupree (2015).

4. Overall NFL Draft picks since 1987

Florida, 169: Notables include Jesse Palmer (fourth round, 2001), Jacquez Green (second, 1998), Danny Wuerffel (fourth, 1997) and Chris Doering (sixth, 1996).

Kentucky 56: Notables include Za’Darius Smith (fourth round, 2015), Avery Williamson (fifth, 2014), Larry Warford (third, 2013), Danny Trevathan (sixth, 2012), Randall Cobb (second, 2011), Jacob Tamme (fourth, 2008), Doug Pelfrey (eighth, 1993), and Dermontti Dawson (second, 1988).

5. How the streak ranks

▪ It is the longest active streak in the FBS at 30 games

▪ It is the fifth longest streak to one opponent all-time behind Notre Dame over Navy (43, ended in 2007), Nebraska over Kansas (36, ended in 2005), Oklahoma over Kansas State (32, ended in 1969), and Penn State over Temple (31, ended in 2015. These teams do not play every year.)

▪ The next longest active losing streak to one opponent is Texas A&M over TCU at 24, but the teams have not played each other since 2001.

▪ The next longest streak in the SEC was Tennessee over Kentucky at 26 games which Kentucky ended in 2011.

6. Coaches during the streak

Florida, 9: Galen Hall, 1984–1989, 40-18-1; Gary Darnell, 1989, 3-4; Steve Spurrier, 1990–2001, 122-27-1 (1990, 1995, 1996 SEC Coach of the Year) (1996 national champions); Ron Zook, 2002–2004, 23-14; Charlie Strong, 2004, 0-1; Urban Meyer, 2005–2010, 65-15 (2006, 2008 national champions); Will Muschamp, 2011–2014, 28-21; D. J. Durkin, 2014, 1-0; Jim McElwain, 2015-present, 19-8.

Kentucky, 7: Jerry Claiborne, 1982–1989, 41-46-3 (1983 SEC Coach of the Year); Bill Curry, 1990–1996, 26-52; Hal Mumme, 1997–2000, 20-26; Guy Morriss, 2001–2002, 9-14; Rich Brooks, 2003–2009, 39-47; Joker Phillips, 2010–2012, 13-24; Mark Stoops, 2013-present, 18-29.

7. Coaches who left, but weren’t fired or forced out.

Florida 2: Steve Spurrier (left for NFL), Urban Meyer (announced short-lived retirement)

Kentucky 3: Jerry Claiborne (retired), Guy Morriss (left for Baylor), Rich Brooks (retired)

8. Bowl games during the streak

Florida 28: Three national titles. 15-13 record in those bowls with last win in 2016 Outback Bowl over Iowa.

Kentucky 9: 3-6 in those bowls with last win coming in 2008 Liberty Bowl over East Carolina.

9. Time capsule: When Kentucky last beat Florida in 1986:

▪ Gasoline cost 89 cents per gallon

▪ The Dow Jones Industrial Index finished the year at 1,895

▪ Mike Tyson became the youngest ever heavyweight boxing champ

▪ “Amanda” by Boston was the week’s No. 1 hit

▪ “Crocodile Dundee” was No. 1 at the box office

▪ UK Coach Mark Stoops began his playing career at Iowa

▪ Florida Coach Jim McElwain was a graduate assistant at Eastern Washington

▪ UK basketball coach John Calipari was an assistant at Pittsburgh

▪ Rupp Arena had orange and red seating sections (and they looked awful)

▪ Kentucky’s series record against Florida was 17-20 (now 17-50).

10. About that 1986 game

▪ Kentucky won 10-3, its first win over the Gators since 1979.

▪ Kentucky dominated time of possession 41:02 to 18:58.

▪ UK QB Bill Ransdell competed 20 of 23 passes.

▪ UK running back Mark Higgs ran 27 times for 95 yards

▪ As Florida drove to tie the game in the waning seconds, UK defensive back Tony Mayes forced a fumble at the Kentucky 21 and recovered it to seal the victory.

▪ The win propelled UK to 5-4-1, but a loss to Tennessee the next week ended its bowl hopes.

This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 1:04 PM with the headline "Ten things you might not know about Kentucky’s losing streak to Florida."