James Forsythe was later replaced by G.E. Pyle for the coaching duties in 1909. Gators first played against South Carolina in 1911, Auburn in 1912 and Georgia in 1915. The Gators joined the Southeastern Conference in 1932. The team set a record of wins at Florida at 70 wins, a record which stood for thirty years. The Gators finished first in the SEC for the third time ever but were ineligible for the SEC title in 1990. The first official SEC championship won by Gators was in 1991. The team played for the championship in their first ever championship game in 1992 but lost to the eventual national champions, the University of Alabama.

The football team, as is the case for all other SEC schools, competes in the higher of two classifications, which is that of Division I-A. Florida plays an eight-game conference schedule, headlined by annual SEC Eastern division showdowns against Tennessee and Georgia, the latter being held in Jacksonville, Florida every year. The team has been one of the best in Division I-A since 1990, which was when Steve Spurrier returned to his alma mater as coach. The team went on to win the Sugar Bowl 1996. The team has played in the most championship games of any team in either division, winning six times, (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000 and 2006) in eight appearances. The team had their first and only undefeated season regular season in 1995. The team won the SEC Championship game against Arkansas, following their first title win since 2000. The Gators were then invited to play in the BCS Championship, which was a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes and defeated the Buckeyes for their second national title.

Florida researchers developed the popular sports drink, Gatorade, and tested it on the Gators football team due to the humid conditions under which the team played.