GAINESVILLE, Fla. — All the ingredients that make the Florida-Florida State rivalry special will be present Saturday afternoon at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
The Gators announced an 18th consecutive sellout earlier this week. The forecast calls for temperatures in the 70s and clear skies at kickoff. And fans of both schools — some of them members of the same family — are sure to be charged up for the annual rivalry game between the Sunshine State's most storied college football programs.
The only thing missing is a pair of powerhouse football teams that made the rivalry one of the nation's best. The Gators (3-8, 2-6 in the Southeastern Conference) and Seminoles (5-6, 2-6 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) limp in Saturday's showdown seeking a feel-good finish to the regular season.
Florida has lost four consecutive games under interim head coach Billy Gonzales as athletic director Scott Stricklin searches for a new coach to lead the program. FSU has lost six of eight and announced last week that head coach Mike Norvell will return in 2026.
While this year's matchup lacks marquee billing, anytime the Gators and Seminoles get together, something memorable usually happens. Remember Florida's victory in Tallahassee a season ago that featured a flag planting and postgame pushes? What about FSU's win two years ago at 'The Swamp' that featured players digging up turf to the chagrin of the Gators?
Back in the day, these two programs were often separated before the game. That's how deep the animosity runs.
What will happen on Saturday? Will the Gators rise up and dump Gatorade on Gonzales for his first career victory? Will they send the seniors out with a much-needed win? Can the Seminoles win a sixth game and become bowl-eligible to take some heat off Norvell? What about the quarterback matchup between Florida's DJ Lagway and FSU's Tommy Castellanos? Will one of them shine to etch their name into the rivalry's lore?
As they say, that's why they play the games. Stay tuned. All that is for certain is that one team and their fans will have a much better Saturday afternoon than the other. And they will brag about it until next year.
In our latest edition of The Opening Kickoff, here is a closer look at the Florida-Florida State game: THREE STORYLINES
A rarity for a Florida-Florida State game, the main topic of interest for Florida fans is who will be the program's next head coach. Now that Lane Kiffin is reportedly not headed to Gainesville after Friday's Egg Bowl, who is? Is Jedd Fisch returning to Florida? Is Tulane's Jon Sumrall the top target? What about Nick Saban or Urban Meyer leaving TV? It's been an exhaustive stretch of speculation, and fortunately, the finish line is in sight.
Florida can snap a four-game losing streak and deliver interim head coach Billy Gonzales his first victory by beating the Seminoles. FSU can become bowl-eligible with a victory and keep its bid alive for a winning season. Beyond the extra incentives, this is the rivalry game that means the most to many of the Florida-born players on both rosters.
The Gators and Seminoles have both experienced turbulent seasons and enter their annual matchup unranked for the second consecutive season. The last time UF and FSU were both unranked in back-to-back seasons was 1964-65, the days of Ray Graves and Bill Peterson on the sidelines.
THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
There is so much uncertainty around the Gators, and as a result, the future of sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway. Considered a long shot Heisman candidate when the season opened, Lagway's status as the season closes is in a different stratosphere. Lagway has completed 63.3% of his passes (198 of 313), but the significant strikes downfield have not been as consistent as late last season when he led UF to a four-game win streak to end the season. Lagway has thrown for 2,096 yards, 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions during an injury-plagued and rocky season.
FSU quarterback Tommy Castellanos has done what Lagway has been unable to do regularly: make big plays in the passing game. Castellanos leads the country in yards per completion (15.46) and ranks third nationally with 27 completions of 30 or more yards. A transfer from Boston College, Castellanos has thrown for 2,520 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions to lead a unit that ranks second in the ACC in total offense (478.0).
Freshman receiver Vernell Brown III has played in two of the past four games after returning from a shoulder injury, but he has not been as effective as he was early in the season. Brown managed only three receptions for 14 yards in last week's loss to Tennessee. He needs to be a bigger part of the Gators' offense on Saturday if healthy.
FIVE QUESTIONS WITH … GATORS ALL-AMERICAN CENTER JAKE SLAUGHTER
A native of Sparr, Fla., Slaughter originally committed to FSU before signing with the Gators. He is set to make his 33rd career start on Saturday ...
Veteran center Jake Slaughter developed into a team leader and one of the top offensive linemen in the country during his college career. (Photo: Maddie Washburn/UAA Communications)
Q: What do you take from five years at Florida?
A: It was one of the things that I don't know if I could have grown up any more than what I did over the past five years here. Seeing coaching changes. I think about all the guys I came in with and how special it was getting to be around the guys that stuck around, stuck with each other. So it's been a lot. I feel like I grew up a lot. We're doing what we can to come away with a win.
Q: You stayed through a coaching change, so what is your message to younger guys now in the same situation?
A: For me, it was always about the people and then the place. The University of Florida has always been special to me, and I felt like I still had great teammates, great buddies and great support systems. So Coach Napier came in and gave everybody the same opportunity. It's different for everybody, but I would urge guys to give it a shot.
Q: What did the Florida-Florida State rivalry mean to you growing up?
A: It's always a big game. Usually, there's a lot that goes into it. We know each other. You play against these guys year in and year out, and a lot of times these guys that you might have gone against in high school, played with in high school. So it's a big game, and it's a year's worth of bragging rights.
Q: How emotional do you expect Saturday to be?
A: It's gonna be super emotional. I always thought about it. You see guys on Senior Night, and you always wonder how it's gonna be. So I'm sure I'll be emotional. The important thing is the football. So we're gonna play clean football, that's our plan.
Q: How do you stay present in the moment when a season goes the wrong way?
A: I think it's unique in the fact that if you're living in the world, if the sky is falling and we were terrible, you're not going to get very far. I think the worst thing you can do as a team is start to point the finger, like, the quarterback did this, the offensive line did this, the receivers didn't do this, and well, that's the worst thing you could possibly do, so, I think it was one of those things where you focus on, 'how can I take care of my guys, how can I do my job better, how can I communicate better.' I feel like it's all encompassing. Football is the ultimate team sport, so you need 11 guys doing their job every play.
THREE DIGITS
50 — Years since Jimmy DuBose became the first UF player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season (see chart below). 204 — Most single-game rushing yards for a Gator against FSU (DuBose in 1975). 8 — Career-high tackles for freshman edge rusher Jayden Woodslast week against Tennessee.
AVAILABILITY REPORT
FLORIDA — OUT: DL George Gumbs Jr. (knee), WR Eugene Wilson III (ankle, out for season), WR Dallas Wilson (foot, out for season), DB Aaron Gates (shoulder, out for season), CB Dijon Johnson (knee, out for season), DL LJ McCray (foot), WR Tank Hawkins (opted out). QUESTIONABLE: CB Cormani McClain (knee), DB Javion Toombs (undisclosed), DB Micheal Caraway Jr. (undisclosed), RB Ja'Kobi Jackson (upper body), DL Michai Boireau (undisclosed), OL Roderick Kearney (undisclosed), ILB Ty Jackson (undisclosed), S Bryce Thornton (undisclosed). DOUBTFUL: WR Kahleil Jackson (knee, has not played), OL Fletcher Westphal (wrist, has not played), LB Grayson Howard (undisclosed, has not played since Miami). FLORIDA STATE— OUT: CB Quindarrius Jones (undisclosed), LB Ethan Pritchard (shooting victim). QUESTIONABLE: DL Deomontae Diggs (undisclosed), CB Ja'Bril Rawls (undisclosed), DB Ricky Knight III (undisclosed), LB Caleb Lavallee (undisclosed), CB Donny Hiebert (undisclosed), TE Chase Loftin (undisclosed), RB Samuel Singleton Jr. (undisclosed), OL Richie Leonard IV (undisclosed). NEWS, NOTES, NUGGETS
Florida and Florida State are meeting for the 69th time, and the 37th time at Florida Field. The Gators own a 22-13-1 advantage at home.
The Gators lead the all-time series 38-28-2, snapping a two-game losing streak to the Seminoles with a 31-11 victory last season at Doak Campbell Stadium.
Florida surrendered a season-high 248 yards rushing in last week's loss to Tennessee. The Gators, after limiting opponents to 962 yards rushing in the first eight games, have allowed 718 yards the past three games. The Seminoles average 223.6 yards on the ground, ranking 11th among FBS programs and posing a challenge for UF's defense.
UF cornerback Cormani McClain suffered a knee injury against the Vols that forced him to leave the game. His status against the Seminoles remains uncertain. McClain has played in 10 games, started six, and has recorded 18 tackles, one tackle-for-loss and an interception.
Sophomore linebacker Myles Graham leads the Gators with 68 tackles and six quarterback hurries.
Florida ranks 85th among FBS teams in turnover margin (minus-2), and FSU ranks 101st (minus-4).
This is the third time in five seasons that both programs enter their rivalry matchup unranked. Before 2021, that had happened only twice (2011, 2017) since 1986.
Seminoles receiver Duce Robinson, a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist, leads the ACC with 1,021 receiving yards and has five games with 120 or more yards receiving.
Gators running back Jadan Baugh is the only player in the SEC with at least 30 receptions, 900 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns. Baugh's 33 catches lead all SEC running backs.
Gators running back Jadan Baugh enters the FSU game 96 yards shy of the program's 12th 1,000-yard rushing season. Here is a look at Florida's list of all-time single-season 1,000-yard rushers:
Run The Baugh: Running back Jadan Baugh last week against Tennessee. (Photo: Hannah White/UAA Communications)
"You are here for a reason. You're for a program, not a coach. This program has so much history. It's a top-five university. One of the best degrees, and there's so much history here in football. You come here for the program history of all the guys that played behind us, not for a coach. That's what I looked at being a Florida fan. I'm here for the program, that's what I try to instill in the other guys." — Gators offensive line Austin Barber on his message to younger players in the middle of the program's transition
"Back in the heyday of Florida football, the state didn't have UCF, USF, FAU and FIU siphoning off the under-the-radar recruits who used to fill out the rosters of the Big Three. The state wasn't oversaturated. The talent pool was deep — and the top programs drank from it freely." — Orlando Sentinel columnist Mike Bianchi on the current weak state of college football in the Sunshine State
"Senior kicker Trey Smack will boot a game-winning field goal in the closing seconds to help Florida avoid its worst season since going 0-10-1 in 1979. Sophomore running back Jadan Baugh will rush for more than 100 yards and score two TDs to become UF's first 1,000-yard rusher since Kelvin Taylor in 2015." — Gainesville Sun UF beat writer Kevin Brockway on Saturday's outcome
The speculation about Lane Kiffin perhaps taking over the Gators died on Friday, reports Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel.
It's been an exhausting ride for FSU fans, and Tallahassee Democrat columnist Jim Henryoffers a pulse on the program.
WHY GATORS WILL WIN
They come out inspired after last week's no-show at home against Tennessee. They get the running game in motion to open up the passing game for DJ Lagway. They play like the team that beat Texas and not the one that got crushed by the Vols. They walk the walk instead of just talking about sending out the seniors with a victory. They play hard one final time for interim coach Billy Gonzales, and it shows up on the scoreboard for a change.
WHY FLORIDA STATE WILL WIN Tommy Castellanos exploits UF's defense in the first half and puts the Seminoles in control. If FSU takes control early, the Gators have proven they are not a comeback team. Meanwhile, the Seminoles must prove they are not already checked out and that a potential bowl berth and winning season still matter to them.
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