The scene on Saturday afternoon in Austin was a grim one for the Gator Nation as their beloved Florida football team took a pounding at the hands of the Texas Longhorns in the latter’s first year in the Southeastern Conference.
It was also the first meeting in 84 years between the two schools on the collegiate gridiron, with Texas now holding a 3-0-1 record all-time against Florida.
The devastating defeat resulted in the Orange and Blue dropping 15 spots in CBS Sports writer Chip Patterson’s weekly re-rank update, falling from No. 50 to No. 65.
“Competitiveness against Tennessee and Georgia, as well as a thrashing of Kentucky, had kept the floor high for the Gators as the losses were piling up in recent weeks,” Patterson notes. “But after a 49-17 thumping at Texas, the CBS Sports 134 voters have pulled the rug out and now stack Florida up against other middling power conference teams facing challenging roads to bowl eligibility.”
The Gators are now wedged between the No. 64 UConn Huskies and No. 66 Southern Georgia Eagles.
CBS Sports re-rank top 10
The Oregon Ducks once again remain perched at No. 1 this week while the Ohio State Buckeyes also held onto the second spot in the re-rank. The Texas Longhorns moved up three places to No. 3 followed by the Indiana Hoosiers and Penn State Nittany Lions, who advanced one and two spots, respectively.
The BYU Cougars log in at No. 6 while the Tennessee Volunteers, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Alabama Crimson Tide and SMU Mustangs wrap up the top 10 in that order.
What’s next for Florida?
The Gators return to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to host the LSU Tigers in college football’s Week 12. The Southeastern Conference matchup will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ABC.
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