Today in Sports History: November 27th

11/27/1971 - The Gator Flop

With only 80 seconds left in the final game of the season, the Florida Gators were destroying the Miami Hurricanes, 45-8. Florida quarterback John Reaves needed only 14 passing yards to surpass Jim Plunkett of Stanford for the most in history. But the Hurricanes had the ball in the red zone, and it didn’t appear that Reeves would get the opportunity to break the record.

That was when the Gators pulled the infamous “Florida Flop.” On Miami’s next play, every single Gators defender fell flat on the ground as though they had been hit with a tranquilizer dart. With not a single defender impeding his path, Miami quarterback John Hornibrook waltzed into the end zone for a touchdown. The Hurricanes would add a two-point conversion to make the score 45-16. After recovering an onside kick, Reaves was able to complete a 15-yard pass to move him just ahead of Plunkett on the all-time list.

When the game was over, Reaves and the other Florida players dove into the pool near one of the end zones at the Orange Bowl, where the game was being played.

Miami coach Fran Curci was positively livid. Intentionally forfeiting points was bad enough, but to do it in an already decided game just to orchestrate a scoring record? It was hardly the model of good sportsmanship. “It was a disgrace,” Curci said furiously, “the worst thing I’ve ever seen in college football. A pure lack of class. ... I lost all respect for (Florida coach Doug Dickey) as a coach and as a man.”

Dickey defended “Operation Laydown,” even though he had not instructed his players to flop on the play. “I would rather not have had to do it that way,” he said. “But certain records are worth going after. I did not mean to embarrass the Miami football team in any way.”

Sean Taylor, a Pro Bowl safety and the most identifiable member of the Washington Redskins, is shot and killed in his own house. He was 24. Four young men, ages 17, 18, 19 and 20, were arrested the next day for breaking in and shooting the four-year veteran -- a fifth suspect, a 16 year-old, was later arrested for his connection in the homicide. Believing that Taylor, though sidelined with an injury, was still traveling with the team, the men had broken into the house believing that it was empty.
Taylor was lying in bed with his wife when he heard the intruders burglarizing his house. Taylor grabbed a machete that he kept at his bedside while his wife and 18 month-old daughter hid for safety. One of the burglars pulled out a gun and shot Taylor in a major artery. He died the following morning.
Taylor’s death sent shock waves throughout the NFL. A former star player at the University of Miami, Taylor was known for delivering some of the hardest hits and tackles in the NFL. He had even earned the nickname “Meast” from his teammates, who thought he played the game as though he were half-man, half beast. Part of Taylor’s notoriety came from various incidents occurring on and off the field, such as in 2006, when he was ejected from a playoff game for spitting in the helmet of another player, or in 2005, when he was arrested for pointing a gun at someone.
But those who knew him said he was a changed man, that the birth of his daughter had reformed him and that he no longer associated himself with a bad crowd. “He was kind of like a wild child, like myself,” said Jeremy Shockey, describing how he was at Miami, “but life changed for Sean after he had his baby girl. Fatherhood really changed him. He grew up and matured. That baby had transformed his life. Working out with him during the offseason, I witnessed a change. You could see it like night and day. I feel so bad for the family.”
Every NFL player wore a No. 21 decal on their helmet that week, honoring Taylor’s uniform number. The Redskins began their next game with only ten defenders on the field, leaving the safety position vacant for a single play. They lost that game on a heartbreaking field goal, but finished the season with five consecutive wins in an emotional run that got them to the playoffs. The Redskins then lost to the Seattle Seahawks in the first round.
Taylor was posthumously named to the 2008 Pro Bowl as well.