coach pat dye's 1990 auburn tigers were the defending three-time sec champions, had built an undefeated 6−0−1 record, and were ranked fourth in the nation in the ap poll. notwithstanding the fact that first-year coach steve spurrier's fifteenth-ranked florida gators were three-point favorites, dye had been publicly dismissive of spurrier's pass-oriented offense before the game. the gators and tigers were tied 7–7 after the first quarter, but spurrier's gators exploded for twenty-seven points in the second quarter, resulting in a 34–7 halftime lead and a 48–7 victory for the gators, which was the gators' biggest margin of victory in the series, and the worst loss of dye's career.