Overview
Bowl selection time is almost upon the college football world as week 13 — rivalry week — will conclude what has been one of the sloppiest regular seasons in the history of Florida. The Sunshine State holds zero teams within the top 25 dating back to the week of October 18, when Dan Mullen’s Florida Gators hit a breaking point in a devastating 49-42 defeat at LSU. Among the other notable disappointments have been Miami, Florida State, and just about any other collegiate located program within the border.
(Looking at you too, FIU)
Such dubious campaigns by premier college football programs— most notably UF and FSU — will be met with a winner-take-all bowl eligibility game in this year’s version of the Sunshine Showdown Rivalry. Even with their differences on the field, the Gators and ‘Noles stand deadlocked at records of 5-6 and a chance to earn a trip to a lower-tier bowl game — perhaps the Birmingham Bowl or Gasparilla bowl, for example.
Keys to the Game
Florida’s defense has impersonated an all but atrocious look in their last few games after giving up 52 to the likes of Samford and 49 to a crumbling LSU team. Their only strong suit entering Saturday (on defense) is that statistically, the Gators are still better than FSU.
Indeed, despite the seemingly-recent turnaround, Mike Norvell’s Seminoles have failed to muster a prevent or even an offense North of 70. The quarterback situation has qualified as shaky (to say the least) and the strength of schedule hasn’t been all that impressive either.
Game Information
- Kickoff: November 27 at 12 P.M.
- Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida
- Television/Stream: ESPN
- Online/Mobile App: ESPN+
- Television Announcing Crew: Marc Jones (Play-by-Play), Robert Griffin III (analyst), and Quint Kessenich (sideline reporter)
- Florida Radio: Gator IMG Sports Network
- Florida Radio Announcing Crew: Mick Hubert (Play-by-Play), Lee McGriff (analyst), and Tate Casey (sideline reporter)
- Florida State Radio: Seminole Sports Network
- Florida State Radio Announcing Crew: Jim Gene Deckerhoff (Play-by-Play), William Floyd (analyst), and Tom Block (Sideline reporter)
- Series History: The Gators and Seminoles are set to square off for the 65th time in series history, with the former of the two programs leading 36-26-2.
Odds
Florida opens up as a narrow 2.5-point favorite after losses in four of their last five. The Gators have failed to cover in six of their last seven (includes win vs. Samford) and are allowing an average of nearly 40 PPG ever since the defeat to LSU in mid-October.
The Seminoles, on the other hand, have been trending upwards as of recent with five triumphs — Syracuse, UNC, UMass, Miami, and Boston College — in their last seven games. They are 4-3 ATS in that time span.
The over/under is set at 59 points.
(Featured image by Bronte Wittpenn/Times)