Ranking FSU Football’s Five Best Non-National Title Bowl Wins
By Jason Parker
No. 3 – 1965 Gator Bowl (FSU 36 Oklahoma 19)
A half century ago, there were only a handful of college football bowl games and the annual game in Jacksonville was (at that time) a big deal. It was the first time the Seminoles would play in a marquee bowl game and it would come against a Oklahoma team who had won two national titles in the previous 10 seasons and was one of the gold standard programs in the sport.
When the day was over on January 2, 1965, FSU football has set a record for points scored in the Gator Bowl at that point, while quarterback Steve Tenzi through for over 300 yards (192 of them to wide receiver standout and future Hall of Famer Fred Biletnikoff) to go along with five touchdowns as part of the blowout win.
The Gator Bowl win would cap of a season that saw the Seminoles defeat rival Florida for the first time (as well as the first season beating both the Gators and Miami in the same year) to go along with wins over SEC opponents Georgia and fifth ranked Kentucky (yes, the Wildcats used to be good at football).
It would also be the last time FSU football would win a bowl game until the 1977 season, when they handled Texas Tech in the Tangerine Bowl (now known as the Citrus Bowl).
Next: 1996 Orange Bowl