The Gators can finish with a winning home record if they beat Florida State on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. (Photo: Haley Deatherage/UAA Communications)
Gators Want Nothing More Than Win Over Noles In Finale
Wednesday, November 26, 2025 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — In a lost season, the Florida veterans have found a renewed sense of purpose.
The mission is the same every season, but given what has transpired over the past three months, it fuels the fire even more this time around. Three words: Beat Florida State.
"It would mean everything,'' fifth-year senior offensive lineman Austin Barber said. "I mean, seriously, it would mean everything."
Fellow offensive lineman Jake Slaughter has the same mindset heading into Florida's regular-season finale on Saturday against the Seminoles. It's been a sour season for the Gators (3-8), who have lost four consecutive games and seven of nine since they were ranked No. 13 in the AP Top 25 after a season-opening victory over Long Island.
A victory over FSU (5-6) would provide a hint of a sweet aftertaste.
"It's all that matters to us right now,'' Slaughter said.
Starting left tackle Austin Barber wants nothing more on Saturday than a victory over rival Florida State. (Photo: Nicole Scharff/UAA Communications)
Florida's season began to spiral downward following a home loss to USF in the second game of the season. That defeat, coupled with one of the most challenging stretches in program history — road games at No. 3 LSU, No. 4 Miami, and following a bye week, a home game against No. 9 Texas and a road trip to No. 5 Texas A&M — knocked the Gators to the ground.
They have been unable to get up, with the season highlight to date the upset victory over the Longhorns on Oct. 4. Two weeks later, following a home win over Mississippi State that put the Gators at 3-4, the school parted ways with head coach Billy Napier and named veteran assistant Billy Gonzales as interim coach.
Since then, Florida flirted with upsets against No. 5 Georgia and No. 6 Ole Miss, but lost both games. Paired with blowout losses at Kentucky and last week at home to Tennessee, the Gators are staggering to the finish line under Gonzales.
"I mean, it's not great because everybody wants to win,'' Gonzales said after the 31-11 loss to the Vols. "It's not fun. It's not good. It sucks for me to be up here in front of you guys, obviously."
If the Gators need any extra motivation other than seeing the Seminoles in town, they can finish with a winning record at home with a victory Saturday. In addition, they can avoid the program's first nine-loss season since the 0-10-1 sinkhole of 1979.
The message over the past month has been that the team remains committed and not checked out. Barber said the execution has not been there, but that the desire to win remains strong during the turbulent stretch.
"I think this program has a really good culture. We have guys that stuck together through a coaching change," Barber said. "It's been rough, but we've got guys that go out there and want to play and want to stick together. We put our bodies on the line, we go to practice, and there's still energy. There's still joy to be out there. This team is different, I think. The record's not shown it, but in the building, this team's different and it's very important."
With Senior Day festivities scheduled at The Swamp, fifth-year senior Caleb Banks will have family and friends watching from the stands. He transferred from Louisville after the 2022 season. And while he faced FSU with the Cardinals, the Seminoles started to represent something much different after he joined the Gators.
"It started slowly building up and building up and building up,'' said Banks, who grew up in Detroit, far from the rivalry. "I'm just like, 'I don't know why I hate them, I just hate them.' "
Banks recalls watching FSU players dig up turf from Florida Field after their win over the Gators two years ago to place in their Sod Cemetery. Meanwhile, last year in Tallahassee, after Florida's 31-11 win, George Gumbs Jr. planted a flag on the Seminole head at midfield that started a postgame scuffle.
"We don't need them planting no flags on our field, so we're gonna go out there and handle business for sure,'' Banks said. "We've been looking for a win, we've been doing everything we can to go out and get a win. I feel like we're gonna get it this weekend."
FSU has experienced its own troubles. The heat is on head coach Mike Norvell so much that the administration announced last week that Norvell will return next season. The Seminoles opened the season with a victory over No. 8 Alabama, raising expectations. However, after wins over East Texas A&M and Kent State, FSU lost four consecutive games and has dropped six of eight entering their annual showdown with the Gators.
Don't expect any sympathy from their in-state rivals.
The Gators celebrate after last year's win at Florida State. (Photo: Lorenzo Vasquez/UAA Communications)
"It's my least favorite team in all of college football,'' Barber said. They don't like me; I don't like them. There's a lot of stuff that goes into that game."
This is the second consecutive season that the Gators and Seminoles enter their annual matchup with a combined eight victories. That is far removed from the Steve Spurrier and Bobby Bowden days when both were usually ranked in the top five and in the national championship picture.
Gonzales, who was part of Urban Meyer's staff when the Gators won national championships in 2006 and 2008, understands the big picture."
"The season success rate that we wanted, obviously, is nowhere near where we need to be,'' Gonzales said.
He also understands how much a victory on Saturday would mean. Not only for himself in his first opportunity as a head coach, but also for a program in transition.
"We're going to keep pushing,'' Gonzales said.
That's all the Gators can do.
Slaughter is ready for a final shot at the Seminoles and one last chance to walk off the field a winner.
"I think everybody had really high expectations for this year, and the reality is the football hadn't been nearly good enough,'' Slaughter said. "It's one of those things that you do what you can as a leader on the team, to inspire and bring your guys along. But the football hasn't been good enough, and we're still working."
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