Florida State Football: Ranking the 5 Best Moments in the Florida Rivalry

Florida State and Florida meet Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET for the annual revisiting of one of college football’s greatest rivalries, and much like a season ago, UF can play the role of spoiler in FSU’s quest to compete for the national championship.

The Seminoles and the Gators' rivalry is one that has featured not only some of the greatest players in college football but some of the greatest games and moments.

Let’s take a look at arguably the five greatest ‘Noles moments ever in this heated rivalry.

5. No. 2 FSU Beats No. 1 UF, 24-21

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The 1996 season may have not played out how any FSU fan would have hoped, but No. 2 Florida State upset No. 1 Florida by a score of 24-21 in perhaps the greatest game from start to finish in this historic series.

Before UF went on to beat FSU in the rematch for the national championship a little more than a month later, the Seminoles earned one of the biggest triumphs in program history with that November victory over the Gators at Doak Campbell Stadium.

4. Peter Warrick Takes over in 1998

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Florida State’s 23-12 come-from-behind victory over Florida in 1998 had a lot to do with the effort by star wide receiver Peter Warrick.

Any highlight reel of the former All-American features two specific plays from that ballgame against the Gators: one, a touchdown catch on a tipped ball and, the other, a touchdown pass on a trick play. FSU trailed 12-6 in that game before Warrick did what he did best as one of college football’s greatest playmakers.

Making Warrick’s impact even more special was the fact that starting quarterback Chris Weinke missed the game with a neck injury.

3. 'Ward to Dunn' in 1993

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Talk about a winning combination. Charlie Ward’s 79-yard catch-and-run touchdown toss to Warrick Dunn in The Swamp is easily one of the greatest plays in FSU history.

Facing third down on his own 21-yard line, Ward rolled to the left and found the freshman sensation Dunn out of the backfield. Dunn then raced down the sideline for the score, and FSU would end up beating the Gators, 33-21, before going on to win the first national championship in program history.

2. 'Rix to Sam' in 2003

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Trailing 34-31 in the fourth quarter at The Swamp, Florida State quarterback Chris Rix dropped back and heaved a 52-yard touchdown to a backpedalling P.K. Sam.

The lead-taking toss stunned the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium crowd and was arguably the best moment of the much-maligned Rix era at FSU.

1. 'Choke at Doak' in 1994

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Referred to as the “Choke at Doak” because of the rally Florida State made to overcome a 31-3 fourth-quarter deficit to Florida at Doak Campbell Stadium, this wasn’t just the best moment in the Seminoles-Gators rivalry; it’s one of the great moments overall in FSU history.

FSU scored four touchdowns in the final quarter of that game to avoid losing to its biggest rival, and the game finished 31-31.

The Choke at Doak is a moment every Seminoles fan knows all about and one every Gators fan wishes they could forget.

Brandon Mellor is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics are courtesy of Seminoles.com. All recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports.

Follow @BrandonMellor on Twitter.