The last few weeks have gone about as poorly as possible for the Gators. Less than a month ago, they were talking about possibly earning a rematch with Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Now, they’re fighting to make the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
Their recruiting class seems to be falling apart with a pair of high-profile decommitments over the last week. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham is public enemy No. 1 again, and the heat is starting to turn up on head coach Dan Mullen.
This program and fan base desperately need something to feel good about right now. Finding a way to pull off one of the biggest upsets of the season against No. 1 Georgia in Jacksonville on Saturday would definitely do the trick.
This game also has historical significance to Florida. They’ve only faced the Associated Press’ top-ranked team 16 times in program history. This will be the first time that they’ve ever played the No. 1 team twice in the same season, with the Alabama game being the first. UF has only defeated the AP’s top-ranked team three times, with the latest occurrence coming in 2008.
Though they are heavy underdogs, the Gators are using the possibility of accomplishing something rare and special against a hated rival as extra motivation this week.
“You don’t get many opportunities like this very often,” defensive tackle Antonio Valentino said. “Coach Mullen brought up the fact that this is our second time in one season playing the No. 1-ranked team. Coach [Paul Pasqualoni] was the coach at Syracuse way back in the day when it was booming, and [Mullen] asked Coach P, he was like, ‘In all your years of coaching, how many times [did] you play the No. 1 team?’ And Coach P was like, ‘In 50 years, never, never played the No. 1 team.’
“So, the fact that we get the opportunity to play two different No. 1 teams within our own conference that was just on our schedule, it’s a big opportunity, and we look forward to it.”
This is also a chance to put a major roadblock in Georgia’s path to their first national championship since 1980. The Bulldogs haven’t lost since the meeting in Jacksonville last year and have outscored opponents by an average score of 38-11 since then.
They’ve been the only consistently dominant team in college football this year, which makes them the runaway favorite to win it all as of now.
But, if the Gators somehow beat them, they’re just a loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game away from not even making the playoff.
Defensive end Zachary Carter said that the idea of playing spoiler to Georgia’s perfect season is a bigger deal to fans than it is to the team. They want to win this game because of what it would mean to the UF program, not because it would hurt Georgia.
“We all know what’s at stake,” he said. “Right now, we’re playing to finish strong and end the year on a good note. So, getting this win would mean a lot, especially potentially knocking off the No. 1 team.”
One of the coolest parts of this rivalry is that it means something different to everyone involved. In Carter’s case, he’s just 1-3 against the Bulldogs, and finishing his career with back-to-back wins in the rivalry would be a special accomplishment.
“It would mean everything,” he said. “It’s just one of those games as a Gator you want to win every year, and I just want to get that win real bad. I ain’t going to lie; I’ve been talking about this game for about two weeks now through the bye week. So, I’m really pumped up for this game.”
For edge rusher Brenton Cox, a Georgia transfer, it’s a chance for him to earn the right to talk trash with his former teammates and show his former coaches how much he’s improved.
“Just playing against somebody that you know, that you’ve been knowing for years, it’s just always fun just to go out there and prove to them,” Cox said. “Just a little competition. That’s all. No more, nothing less.”
Of course, while there are extra motivators in play for several Gators, they shouldn’t need to tap into them. This is the Florida-Georgia game, one of the most hostile and unique rivalries in all of college football. The two sides have a longstanding history of hating each other.
The fans don’t like each other, the coaches aren’t fond of each other, and the players are extremely familiar with each other from playing with and against each other since high school and sometimes even further back than that. The winning fan base figures to take full advantage of their year of bragging rights.
If you aren’t fired up to play in this game, you need to see a psychiatrist.
“Our guys are excited,” Mullen said. “They want to play in big games. They want to play in rivalry games. They get excited for this type of game.
“If they were ranked No. 2, I don’t think we’d be any less motivated. To me, I think just playing in the big rivalry game makes it what it is. That’s why our guys, they’ll get juiced for this. I don’t need to motivate our guys a ton this week. We haven’t even practiced yet [as of Monday], but I know last week, getting a little breather and seeing some of the guys this morning walking around, it’s not like we need a rah-rah speech this week. It’ll be a big game.”
Running back Malik Davis said that this rivalry is truly something special.
“I just love the competitiveness and the atmosphere,” Davis said. “Going against these guys, we know they’re going to play their best game, and we know we’re going to bring our best game. This is why you come to schools like Florida and Georgia. The intensity levels are going to be high, and the emotions are going to be high. I love it, and I’m ready to get out there.”