The team had a high-powered offense.

The sophomore at quarterback was a legit Heisman contender.

The coach was a success, if not somewhat controversial.

Caldwell was one of the top receivers on the team.

Sound familiar? It should. Only this time, these words do not describe the Florida Gators of 2007.

Instead, they describe the Florida Gators of six seasons prior, in 2001. The signal-caller was Rex Grossman, a kid from Indiana who picked UF over IU, the school of his forefathers. It was Steve Spurrier’s last season behind our sidelines; the visor on his head had Gator insignia. And Reche Caldwell was a top option on the receiving corps - kid brother Andre would sign in ‘03.

How powerful was this edition of the Fun-n-Gun? It scored 538 points in one season, a school record that stood until last year’s team notched 552. Grossman, a pocket passer, threw for 3,896 yards, which remains the school record. His 3,904 yards in combined yardage was a school record that stood until Tebow had 4,181 last year. He had 34 passing touchdowns, third in school history behind Danny Wuerffel’s 1995 and 1996 seasons. And his 39 passing and rushing touchdowns that year trail only Tebow’s and Wuerffel’s Heisman-winning seasons in 1996 and 2007.

But, as with USC, they were plagued by teams that scored enough points on them to make life uncomfortable. Only this time, the magic number was 20.

In a scene eerily reminiscent of last season, the Tigers were tied with the Gators, with the ball in their hands on the last touchdown drive. Then, as Wes Byrum would do six years later, Damon Duval kicked the game-winning field goal.

Incidentially, Byrum split the uprights from 43 yards, just 1 yard shy of Duval’s mark.

Then, in a game that was postponed due to the 9/11 attacks, Tennessee won a wild shootout 34-32 after Grossman failed to convert a two-pointer on the final play of the game. The win snapped the Vols’ seven-game losing streak at the Swamp, gave Tennessee the SEC East title, and effectively killed Grossman’s Heisman campaign.

That he lost by 62 points to Nebraska’s Eric Crouch in the Heisman race underscores just how close he came to a stiff-arm, and possibly more.

By the time it was all said and done, another Sunshine State team stole the show. Miami won their fifth national title with the most dominant team in school history.