50 years ago today, Don Gaffney became Florida's first Black starting QB

Florida was 2-4 and had lost four straight. During that stretch, the Gators scored a grand total of 39 points. Simply put, they needed a spark.

Then-coach Doug Dickey turned to Don Gaffney.

On a mild autumn day in Auburn, Ala., Gaffney replaced David Bowden and made history by becoming Florida’s first-ever Black starting quarterback.

His first-half touchdown pass of 22 yards to Joel Parker gave Florida a lead it never surrendered. Behind tailback Vince Kendrick’s 119 rushing yards, the Gators outgained the Tigers 308-119 and didn’t allow a point until the game’s final play.

Final score: Florida 12, Auburn 8.

Remarkably, it was Florida’s first-ever win at what then was known as Cliff Hare Stadium.

The year was 1973. The date was Nov. 3.

“There was no big statement that was made by me or any real reflection or anything like that,” Gaffney, now 69, told Scott Carter of FloridaGators.com. “I knew that my job was to go out and do the best that I could to help us win.”

Today, Gators Online remembers the significance of that event and recalls some of Gaffney’s achievements at Florida. Here are some things to know about Don Gaffney …

*Dickey didn’t announce Gaffney as the starter for the Auburn game until shortly before kickoff. The Jacksonville, Fla., native was a sophomore at the time. “No idea I would be the starting quarterback when we left the plane from Gainesville,” Gaffney once told Pat Dooley of The Gainesville Sun.

*Florida had a bye week heading into Gaffney’s first start. With the Gators slumping, Tom Duffy of the St. Petersburg Times noted, “the two weeks preceding the game had been sparked by speculation that Dickey would be fired.” So in essence, the move to Gaffney, which led to the win, may have saved his coach’s job.

*Gaffney’s history-making start came one year after Condredge Holloway of Tennessee became the first Black starting quarterback in the SEC.

*Florida’s win at Auburn kick-started a month in which the Gators went 4-0; they also beat Georgia (11-10), Kentucky (20-18) and Miami (14-7). To this day, it’s still simply known in Gators lore as the “November to Remember.” On Dec. 1, Florida then crushed Florida State in Gainesville 49-0 to cap a 7-4 regular season.

*In the 1973 win over Georgia, Gaffney threw a touchdown pass to receiver Lee McGriff in the final minutes, then completed a clutch 2-point conversion pass to tight end Hank Foldberg to win the game.

*In Florida’s run-heavy offense, Gaffney completed 42 of 98 passes for 609 yards, 4 touchdowns and 5 interceptions in 1973. The Gators’ top running backs from that team — Kendrick, Nat Moore and Jimmy DuBose all played in the NFL. DuBose was a Heisman contender in 1975.

*In 1974, Dickey and the Gators went to the wishbone offense. Gaffney passed for 621 yards, 7 touchdowns and 4 interceptions while adding 188 rushing yards. Florida averaged a stout 271 yards per game on the ground. Another future NFL running back, Tony Green, led the team in rushing. Florida went 8-4.

*The 1975 Gators went 9-3 and lost their two regular-season games by a total of only four points. Gaffney threw for 755 yards, 8 touchdowns and 2 interceptions that season.

*Gaffney’s younger brother, Derrick Gaffney, played receiver for the Gators in the 1970s, once catching an NCAA-record 99-yard touchdown pass from … Cris Collinsworth, who arrived at Florida as a wishbone quarterback before moving to receiver as a sophomore in 1978. Derrick Gaffney played several NFL seasons. His son, Jabar Gaffney, was an All-American receiver for the Gators when Steve Spurrier was coach.

*In three seasons as a starter at Florida, Gaffney led the Gators to three bowl games.

-You can read the entire FloridaGators.com story on Don Gaffney HERE.