The fifth-ranked Florida baseball team is back in action this weekend after a five-day layoff. The Gators swept the Texas A&M Aggies at home last weekend to open their Southeastern Conference schedule and now hit the road to take on the No. 25 South Carolina Gamecocks looking to continue their winning ways.
The Gamecocks started the season off on fire, winning their first 11 games before the No. 19 Texas Longhorns swept them in a three-game series which started a six-game skid. USC snapped that losing streak with a win over the No. 2 Vanderbilt Commodores — handing Vandy just their third loss this season — to prevent another series sweep. They also won a midweek matchup with The Citadel on Tuesday to give them two victories in a row coming into the weekend.
Historically, the teams are almost dead-even with Florida holding the narrowest of edges with a record of 48-47 since the teams first played way back in 1919. South Carolina won seven of the first nine meetings and 11 of the first 15 before the Gators went on a seven-game run from 1994 to 1998; UF would also have another seven-game winning streak from 2014 to 2016. USC, however, has never won more than four in a row in the series.
The Gators won the last meeting in 2019 and have been the victors in six of the last nine tangles between the two schools. They appear to be the superior team entering the series, but you never can tell when it comes to intra-conference competition.
Here is a look below at the starting pitchers lined up for this weekend’s series along with the projected starting lineup. Scroll down further for interesting excerpts from the media guide.