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Sporting News, The, Dec 19, 1994 by Tony Barnhart

In mid-November, Sugar Bowl officials did nothing to disguise their desire for Florida State: great team, quotable coach in Bobby Bowden, fans travel well, TV loves 'em.

But the Seminoles were scheduled to play Florida on November 26 and the Gators, they knew, had a good shot at beating Alabama in the SEC championship game on December 3. Rule No. 1 in the Bowl Bible: Thou shalt not covet a rematch. The Sugar Bowl folks thought they were destined to lose out on the Seminoles if Florida was their host team.

Then came Bowden's momentous decision against the Gators in Tallahassee. He had just seen his team pull one of the great fourth-quarter rallies, coming from 31-3 down to 31-30 in the final minutes. Rather than go for the victory, which he has done in the past, he kicked the extra point and took the 31-31 tie.

It gave the Sugar Bowl folks the opening they needed. The next night, they locked in Florida State, knowing the worst they could do would be a highly touted rematch. And that's exactly what they have.

Florida edged Alabama, 24-23, in the SEC championship game December 3 in Atlanta, to grab a spot in the Sugar Bowl for the third time in four years. As a result, New Orleans will be host to the championship of the state of Florida and a game that promises to be the most exciting in the entire bowl lineup.

"Looks like we're just going to have four quarters of overtimes," Bowden says.

"This football team is interested in redemption," Florida defensive tackle Ellis Johnson says. "You rarely get an opportunity like this. We certainly want to take advantage of it."

Florida is 1-1 in its previous Sugar Bowl trips under Steve Spurrier, losing to Notre Dame, 39-28, three years ago and beating previously undefeated West Virginia, 41-7, last January. Florida State has not been to the Sugar Bowl since the 1988 season, when Deion Sanders and the Seminoles beat Auburn, 13-7.

Bowden concedes that it won't be easy to get his team ready to play Florida again. "I think it would have been better for us if we'd played Alabama," he says. "They would have been undefeated, No. 3 in the nation, a new preparation. I don't especially like replays.

"One way it helps is you've already done your preparation. We've already broken down film on (the Gators), they've broken it down on us."

There hasn't been a same-season rematch in a bowl since Oklahoma met Nebraska in the 1979 Orange Bowl. "It's very difficult for me playing somebody in your own home state in a bowl," Bowden says. "You have to be very careful what you say so you don't get 'em fired up.

"It kind of keeps you on pins and needles playing Florida again. I'm sure it does for them, too.... It's easy to talk about (Fiesta-bowl bound Alabama) out in Arizona."

Bowden adds, "The tie was an advantage for us. We could have played off that all year." Now, it's just a month.