Gators' Travis Harris glad to be back in Georgia Dome

ATLANTA - Florida linebacker Travis Harris last played in the Georgia Dome as a freshman in 2000, when the Gators beat Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship game.

Harris figured it would become an annual trip.

``I really thought we'd be coming back here basically every year,'' he said. ``But it didn't turn out like that for me.''

The No. 20 Gators haven't been back since, and returning to the Georgia Dome for the Peach Bowl on Friday night is hardly the same even if the opponent is 14th-ranked Miami and the ``state championship'' is on the line.

The Hurricanes feel the same way. They played in four consecutive Bowl Championship Series games before this season, including two national title games, so the Peach Bowl merely caps a disappointing season.

``We are where we are,'' Miami coach Larry Coker said. ``Proud programs are proud programs because they win. We had an opportunity to win some more games, but we didn't win them. The Peach Bowl is not where any team wants to be.''

Florida and Miami combined to play for at least a share of the national title five times in the last nine years. The Gators played for it all following the 1995 and 1996 seasons, and the Hurricanes had a three-year run (2000-02) in which they had a shot at the national championship.

But both teams fell well short of that mark this season.

For the Gators (7-4), that was nothing new. They lost 14 games in three seasons under coach Ron Zook, who was fired Oct. 25 after a 4-3 start and a loss at lowly Mississippi State.

Zook agreed to stick around for the rest of the season, and the players rallied around their coach to win the final three games. They even beat Florida State in Tallahassee for the first time since 1987.

So the Peach Bowl might not be the SEC title game, but it gives the Gators a chance to complete their turnaround after Zook's tumultuous tenure by beating both Miami and Florida State in the same season for the first time since 1985.

``This is special for us just because of the way we ended the season and what happened to us during the season,'' said Charlie Strong, the school's first black head coach, albeit for one game. ``We can end the season on a good note, and that's what we want to do with all that we've been through.''

The winner also will be presented with the ``Florida Cup,'' a state-sponsored trophy given to whichever team (Miami, Florida State or Florida) that beats the other two in the same season.

Strong acknowledged not knowing much about the trophy.

``Charlie doesn't know about it because it's in my office,'' Coker responded.

Indeed. The Hurricanes won the trophy the last two years. They also have a six-game winning streak against Florida State and a five-game winning streak against the Gators.

``Winning it again would be huge,'' cornerback Antrel Rolle said. ``It would be really special for us seniors to end our careers by never losing to our biggest two rivals.''

The Hurricanes (8-3) wish they would have had the same dominance against the Atlantic Coast Conference this season.

They lost consecutive games to North Carolina and Clemson (both unranked) but still could have earned a BCS berth had they beaten Virginia Tech in the season finale. Miami struggled on offense, had two costly turnovers and lost 16-10.

Coker attributed his team's drop-off Miami lost three of its last five games to several factors:

The ACC is more competitive than the Big East.

Six players, including three underclassmen, were selected in the first round of the NFL draft.

Left tackle Eric Winston, the team's best lineman, suffered a season-ending knee injury.

``When your back is against the wall, you just can't miss,'' Coker said. ``You have to be a little lucky when you're in that situation.''

The Hurricanes weren't, and now they're in the Peach Bowl against the Gators a place neither team thought it would be before the season.

``It's not where we wanted to be, but we have to make the most of it,'' Florida safety Cory Bailey said. ``We have to look it as an opportunity to win the state championship and end a long losing streak against those guys. There's still plenty to play for.''

(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)