GAINESVILLE, FLA- Following a tight 24-20 SEC Conference win against Missouri in Week Six, the Florida Gators (4-3, 1-3 SEC) stayed in Gainesville and welcomed LSU to The Swamp in a highly anticipated week seven matchup.
In spite of a fantastic showing by Sophomore Quarterback Anthony Richardson and the Gators’ Offense, Florida was unable to keep up with LSU’s explosive offense, and suffered a 35-45 loss to the Tigers. With just four SEC-Conference games remaining on the Gators’ schedule, it’ll be extremely tough to remain near the top of the SEC East Standings alongside No. 1 Georgia (7-0, 4-0 SEC), No. 3 Tennessee (6-0, 3-0 SEC), and No. 19 Kentucky (5-2, 2-2 SEC). In reference to this, Florida has a great shot to revitalize their 2022-2023 college football season, as the Gators will travel to TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida to face the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs in the latest edition of “The World’s Largest Cocktail Party”.
Review of Florida’s Week Seven Loss to LSU
Admittedly, Richardson played quite well against LSU, completing 15-of-25 pass attempts for 185 yards and one touchdown, including an-impressive 51-yard touchdown strike to Junior Receiver Justin Shorter. In addition to Shorter, seven other Gators caught passes from Richardson, highlighted by Sophomore Xzavier Henderson (4/42/0) and Junior Ricky Pearsall. To no surprise, Florida’s Rushing Attack remained effective against LSU’s Defense, as Richardson (9/109/1), Junior Lorenzo Lingard (3/16/0), Sophomore Montrell Johnson (13/57/2), and Freshman Trevor Etienne (8/28/1) combined for 210 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns, and 6.4 YPC on 33 carries. As a team, the Gators went 7-of-12 on third-down conversions, but 0-for-3 on fourth-down conversions. In context, the Tigers went 8-of-12 on third-down conversions and 2-of-2 on fourth-down conversions.
Even though Florida had one of its best offensive games of the season, the Gators were unable to stop LSU and Junior Quarterback Jayden Daniels. Following his subpar outing in a 13-40 loss to No. 8 Tennessee, Daniels had his best performance of the season at The Swamp, completing 23-of-32 pass attempts for 349 passing yards and three touchdowns while also taking 14 rushing attempts for 44 rushing yards and three touchdowns. In reference to Daniels’ best season of the season, it’s not surprising that Florida only recorded four QB pressures and one sack for the entire game. In combination with bruising Junior Running back Josh Willams (14/106/0), Florida could not shut down LSU’s dynamic rushing attack. Likewise, Junior Receiver Kashon Boutte (6/115/0) and Senior Receiver Jaray Jenkins (2/67/1) both played well against Florida’s secondary, as Daniels completed passes to nine different receivers.
Review of No. 1 Georgia’s Week Seven Win Against Vanderbilt
After reclaiming the No. 1 Ranking in the AP College Football Standings from Alabama, Georgia welcomed Vanderbilt to Athens for an SEC Conference matchup. As expected, the Bulldogs trounced the Commodores 55-3, and remain undefeated entering their week nine bout against Florida.
Despite a recent stretch of passing struggles, Senior Quarterback Stetson Bennett played well against Vanderbilt, completing 24-30 pass attempts for 289 passing yards and two touchdowns, equating to a 90.1 Quarterback Rating. Of the eleven receivers Bennett completed a pass too, Junior Tight End Darnell Washington lead the Bulldogs with 78 receiving yards on four catches, followed by Freshman Receiver Dillon Bell’s five catches for 54 yards and a touchdown. Likewise, Sophomore Tight End Arik Gilbert (2/16/1), Junior Receiver Dominick Blaylock (2/35/1), and Senior Running Back Kenny McIntosh (2/20/1) were the other touchdown-catch recipients. Furthermore, Georgia’s Rushing game was on point, as the Bulldogs notched 192 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 38 attempts. Junior Running Back Daijun Edwards led the Bulldogs with ten rushes for 49 yards and a touchdown, while Freshman Cash Jones (1/36/1) and McIntosh (9/43/1) also pitched in.
In spite of surrounding a season-high 22-points to Missouri in week five, Georgia’s Defense has completely locked down their most recent opponents. Between SEC-Conference Opponents Auburn and Vanderbilt, Georgia has given up just 10 points, and Saturday’s 55-0 victory marks the second shutout of the season by the Bulldog’s Defense. Vanderbilt’s Freshman Quarterback AJ Swann certainly struggled against Georgia, completing just 12-23 pass attempts for 105 yards. Although Swann failed to throw for his ninth touchdown of the season, Swann has yet to throw his first interception of the season, an impressive feat when considering Vanderbilt’s opponents through the first eight weeks. Georgia did a great job of containing Vanderbilt’s running game, as the Commodores managed just 45 rushing yards and zero touchdowns on 23 carries. Junior Receiver Will Sheppard led the Commodores with three catches for 45 yards after being matched up with first-round draft prospect Keelee Ringo.
Game and Betting Information for No. 1 Georgia vs Florida
Game Information
- Location: TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Date: Saturday, October 29th, 2022 - Kick-Off Time: 3:30 P.M. ET
- TV: CBS
- Game Spread: -22 Georiga
- Point Total Over/Under: 56
- Moneyline: Georiga -2,400, Florida +1,150
- Football Power Index (FPI): Favors Georiga at 92.8%
Betting Information
- Florida is 3-4-0 against the spread (ATS) through seven games this season.
- Florida has covered the spread once when favored at least 2.5 points.
- Florida is 4-3 straight-up as the Moneyline favorite this season.
- Georiga is 6-1-0 against the spread (ATS) through six games this season
- Georiga is 7-0 straight-up as the Moneyline favorite this season.
- In the last ten meetings between Florida and Georgia, the Favored Team has successfully covered in eight games.
- In the last ten meetings between Florida and Georgia, the Point Total has gone under in five games, including Georiga’s 34-7 last-season win against Florida.
Ten Facts to know for No. 1 Georgia vs Florida
- In the 68 games that Georiga and Florida have played each other, the Bulldogs are 52-44-2.
- Furthermore, Florida and Georgia each hold a seven-game win streak in the rivalry, the longest win streak in the series.
- Georgia has dominated the Florida-Georgia rivalry as of late, winning seven of the last ten meetings, dating back to 2012.
- The greatest margin of victory between Florida and Georgia occurred in 1942, when a young Florida team weakened by players leaving for World War II met a top-ranked Georgia team that still had many of its players through its ROTC program. The Bulldogs beat the Gators 75-0 and would go on to claim a share of the national title.
- In reference to the aforementioned fact, the next season, Florida did not field a team because so many players were fighting in World War II, and the Florida-Georgia rivalry was suspended until 1944.
- The Florida-Georgia rivalry is also called “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party”, dubbed by The Florida Times-Union sports editor Bill Kastelz after he saw a drunken fan offer booze to a cop during one rivalry weekend in the 1950s.
- Similar to other special rivalries, the Florida-Georgia game winner is given a 10-foot-long oar carved from a 1,000-year-old cypress tree in the famous swamp along the border of the two states. Unlike other trophies, this one is not presented at the game, but rather given to the student body president of the winning school.
- Both Florida and Georgia have had control over the SEC East, as the Gators or Bulldogs have won the last six SEC East titles and eight of the last ten titles.
- Through six games, Florida has seen its offenses produce modest results, averaging 31.4 PPG, 430.1 TYPG, 217.0 PYPG, and 213.1 RYPG.
- Meanwhile, Georgia is averaging 41.7 PPG, 526.6 TYPG, 329.9 PYPG, and 196.7 RYPG.