Tag: Florida State Seminoles

Friday betting odds for Gators vs. Seminoles on Saturday

We’re still a day away from kickoff but here’s an early look at the betting lines for Saturday’s game.

The final game of the 2021 regular season is nearly upon us as Florida football gets set to host the Florida State Seminoles in the Swamp on Saturday. Both teams come into the matchup with the same 5-6 record looking to earn a bowl bid as the winner will play in the postseason while the loser stays home.

Coming into the fall, this game was expected to be part of an easy final four games to close the schedule for the Gators — which has been anything but as the team has stumbled mightily, resulting in the dismissal of three coaches including head coach Dan Mullen. Down three members of staff and demoralized by a brutal second half of the season, this game is expected to be much closer than before.

According to the Tipico Sportsbook, the Gators are favored by 2.5 points over the Seminoles, with the over-under remaining at 58.5 points. Florida’s moneyline stays set at -140 while Missouri’s is at +115 as of 9:30 a.m. EST Friday.

Kickoff is set for noon EST on Saturday inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida. The game will be broadcast on ESPN, livestreamed on the ESPN app and can be heard on the Gators Radio Network.

All Betting Lines are Courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook

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An oral history of the Florida-Florida State football rivalry

A long look at Florida football’s history with interim head coaches

Scouting FSU football ahead of Saturday’s rivalry matchup

Expert Predictions: Can Florida earn a bowl game bid vs. Seminoles?

What do you know? 10 fascinating facts ahead of UF vs. FSU

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CBS Sports’ Barrett Sallee not confident in the Gators against Florida State

Sallee thinks the Seminoles will pull off what would be a slight upset in the Swamp on Saturday.

The Gators need a victory on Saturday to finish at .500, and doing so will not come easy. Though Florida State also sits at 5-6 and has lost its last two games against Florida (and a matchup against FCS Jacksonville State earlier this season), the Seminoles have played much better football in recent weeks.

They sit at 5-2 since that loss, and they seem to be trending in the opposite direction as the Gators, who are 2-10 in their last 12 games against Power Five competition. It’s understandable that CBS Sports’ Barrett Sallee doesn’t have much confidence UF can pull this off with an interim head coach in Greg Knox.

He picked Florida State to cover a 2.5-point spread (and win straight-up for that matter).

The Gators’ disastrous season will come to a merciful end at home when they are upset by the rival Seminoles. Florida State has won two straight games and averaged over 5.5 yards per play in the process. Florida’s defense is wildly inconsistent, and the entire roster looks wrecked from all of the drama surrounding ex-coach Dan Mullen. This has moneyline sprinkle written all over it. Pick: Florida State (+2.5)

This will certainly be a tough matchup for Florida’s defense against an FSU offense that has gotten a lot better. The Seminoles aren’t great defensively, and the Gators should be able to find some offensive success in this one. But will it be enough without the normal offensive and defensive play-callers?

Only time will tell, but Florida will try to keep its season alive with a win over an improving FSU team.

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SP+ likes the Gators to win on Saturday against Florida State

SP+ thinks Florida will extend its winning streak over the Seminoles to three.

Florida has bowl eligibility on the line on Saturday when it welcomes rival Florida State into the Swamp looking to extend its winning streak in the rivalry to three. The two teams didn’t meet last year, and the two wins in that streak came under coach Dan Mullen.

Mullen was fired after Saturday’s loss to Missouri, but interim coach Greg Knox will look to get his team a win over its rival and earn one more game as the head man.

ESPN’s SP+ rankings from Bill Connelly think Florida will get it done. It sees the team winning 32-25. That would also cover a three-point spread.

Earlier in the season, this game didn’t look like it would provide much of a challenge. But this is a Florida State team that is quickly improving. It’s 5-2 since a loss to FCS Jacksonville State, and its offense is getting a lot better behind the play of quarterback Jordan Travis and the run game.

It’s a bit surprising that the Gators are favorites in this game at all, but it goes to show that Vegas still sees a talent differential between these two teams. But that differential hasn’t helped much in recent weeks, and we’ll see if Florida puts forth a stronger performance in a rivalry game.

Here are the full SP+ predictions for the week.

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Expert Predictions: Can Florida earn a bowl game bid vs. Seminoles?

The Gators Wire staff is split right down the middle on the outcome of this game. Here’s what we had to say.

It has been a very difficult year for Florida football fans as they saw its team sink to unexpected lows that resulted in the dismissal of Dan Mullen and two of his coaching staff. Sure, many foresaw a rebuilding year but nobody expected this dumpster fire of a season.

I feel like I have said this before. Because I have… several times already.

The last item on the regular-season schedule is the annual rivalry game with the Florida State Seminoles, which takes place on the hallowed grounds of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium this year. Once upon a time, this game was the gateway to a national championship but times have certainly changed. The two schools have fallen far, now in 2021 playing a game that decides who gets to even appear in a bowl game and who stays home.

So how will things pan out against the Gators’ perennial rivals? Here is what the Gators Wire staff predicts to go down this weekend. Spoiler alert: we are completely split on the issue.

Anthony Richardson to make second career start with Emory Jones injured

Anthony Richardson fans get ready. AR-15 will be back under center for Florida against FSU.

Anthony Richardson, Florida’s explosive freshman quarterback, will be getting his second career start on Saturday against Florida State, according to Gator Sports.

Emory Jones, the team’s planned starter, went down with an ankle injury during practice on Monday and is now considered doubtful for Saturday. The extent of Jones’ injury is unknown but Richardson has taken the majority of first-team reps this week.

Gator Nation got its first taste of the AR-15 era against LSU when Richardson nearly led the Gators to a comeback before throwing an interception on the game’s final drive. Richardson’s performance was good enough to earn him the start against Georgia after the bye, or maybe Jones was just that uninspiring in the loss. Either way, the team had a new starter against one of the program’s most hated rivals.

Things didn’t go well against Georgia. Richardson threw for just 82 yards and added two more interceptions to his season total. A concussion knocked Richardson out for the second half of the game, and a dancing injury among others in practice kept him out of the team’s next two games as well.

So now Florida is once again poised to face one of its most hated rivals with Richardson under center. The Seminoles don’t have nearly as good a defense as the Bulldogs did, and Richardson grew up watching the rivalry unfold in Gainesville. Both teams need a win on Saturday to become bowl eligible, setting up an almost movie-like scenario for Richardson to bring hope to the Gators after a trainwreck of a season.

The freshman can afford to make a few mistakes this time around, but he’ll need to be at his best with presumably no one to back him up.

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Scouting the Florida State Seminoles ahead of Saturday’s rivalry matchup

Here’s a rundown of this year’s Florida State team ahead of this year’s Sunshine Showdown.

For the third time in the last four matchups, the Sunshine Showdown between Florida and rival Florida State will feature at least one interim coach on the sideline. The Gators fired fourth-year coach Dan Mullen on Sunday after a one-point overtime loss to Missouri that clinched the program’s first 2-6 finish in conference play since the league expanded in 1992.

With Mullen out, running backs coach and special teams coordinator Greg Knox, who was with Mullen throughout his entire tenures at both Mississippi State and Florida, takes over as interim coach.

This game wasn’t played last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but after losing five in a row against the Seminoles from 2013-17, UF has won the last two matchups in this rivalry series and will look to make that three at home on Saturday. Both teams sit at 5-6, meaning the winner will clinch bowl eligibility while the loser’s season will end.

Here’s what you need to know about an FSU team that is quickly improving.

A long look at Florida football’s history with interim head coaches

Pat Dooley takes a look at the many faces of the interim head coach carousel dating back to the 1980s.

What would a modern-day Florida-FSU game be without interim coaches?

It would have been a smoother transition if Dan Mullen didn’t punt his love for loyalty and stuck with his seniors for one more game. But this is the Mullenade that is being served for the final regular-season game and possibly the last game of 2021 period.

Both teams need wins to be bowl eligible and FSU has seen this before. The difference is that the Seminoles have won five of their last seven games after an 0-4 start while Florida has lost four of its last five.

The Gators have the interim coach this time around – the third interim from the two schools in the last five meetings and a fourth was close with Jimbo Fisher leaving after the Florida game in 2017 – although I’m not sure what a game between a pair of 5-6 teams will do for anyone’s resume.

Rather than give you the often-recited history of the Florida-FSU series, we thought we’d remember the long list of Florida interim coaches through the years:

Gators basketball sneaks into CBS Sports’ Top 25 And 1 after beating FSU

Colin Castleton led Florida basketball to a statement win over FSU on Sunday, and the Gators are now ranked.

After one week of college basketball, CBS Sports’ Top 25 And 1 rankings haven’t changed much. In fact, the top 18 teams remain unchanged, making Florida’s entry into the rankings all the more impressive.

The Gators took down 19th-ranked Florida State on Sunday for the first time in eight years. The upset victory moved Florida up to No. 26, effectively knocking FSU out of the rankings. The Gators join No. 10 Arkansas, No. 12 Alabama, No. 14 Kentucky, No. 19 Tennessee and No. 21 Auburn as the sixth SEC team in these rankings.

Colin Castleton led the team with 15 points, 16 rebounds and 6 blocks against FSU. He said after the game that the team played with all of their heart for Keyontae Johnson. Last season’s worst moment came in Tallahassee when Johnson collapsed in the middle of the court and was hospitalized. He has since become a bench coach of sorts for the Gators as he remains uncleared to play, and the team obviously loves ‘Coach Key.’

An emotional win over one of the program’s biggest rivals is a nice start to the season for Mike White‘s team, but there’s a lot of basketball to be played and some quality teams within the SEC. Now that Florida is inside the Top 25 And 1, they’ll have to work harder to move up in the rankings.

The Gators face Milwaukee on Thursday before heading to Fort Myers for a tournament that features No. 18 Ohio State.

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Three takeaways from Florida’s big win over No. 20 Florida State

It’s been eight years, but Florida has finally beaten Florida State on the basketball court again.

Florida snapped a seven-game losing streak against Florida State on Sunday with a 71-55 victory over the 20th-ranked Seminoles.

Defense set the tone early for the Gators. The ‘Noles couldn’t get much going in the first few minutes of the game, which forced them to play catchup for much of the half. Once they did get the lead, Florida took it right back after the half and ran away with it.

Colin Castleton, Florida’s star center, recorded his first double-double of the year, and forward Anthony Duruji emerged as the hustle player Florida desperately needed to energize the team.

Beating Florida State in any sport means a lot to Gator Nation, but ending a drought that dates back to 2013 should be even more of a confidence boost for Mike White’s team. Florida didn’t get any votes in the preseason AP Top 25 and was projected to finish somewhere in the middle of the Southeastern Conference. A ranked win could change all of that very early in the season for Florida.

Previewing Florida basketball’s matchup with in-state rival Florida State

Florida State has won the last seven games it’s played against Florida on the hardwood.

After opening the season with a 74-61 win over Elon, the Gators men’s basketball team faces its first real test of the season in No. 20 Florida State Sunday.

The in-state rivalry will be rekindled on the hardwood before the two schools match up on the gridiron to close out the college football season, and the Seminoles have had the upper hand lately. FSU has won the last seven matchups between these two, dating back to 2014. Both teams have some new faces on the roster after losing players to the NBA, but FSU is thought to be the superior team.

Last year’s matchup was of course marred by the collapse and hospitalization of Gators forward Keyontae Johnson. Coach Key will be on the sidelines for this one as he continues to recover and help the team however he can.

The Gators will have the home-court advantage at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville. FSU handled Penn at home in its season opener, but four of the Seminoles’ five starters might not score double-digit points in a more hostile environment.

If Florida is going to snap FSU’s streak this year, the Gators will need Colin Castleton and Myreon Jones to continue scoring. Anthony Duruji‘s presence on the boards would also go a long way against Florida State.

The press notes give a good look at the possible starters for both Florida and Florida State on Sunday.

Projected Starting Lineup: FLORIDA

Player Pos H/W Class
Anthony Duruji F 6-7 / 220 R-Senior
Colin Castleton F 6-11 / 231 Senior
Tyree Appleby G 6-5 / 205 Senior
Brandon McKissic G 6-3 / 185 Graduate
Myreon Jones G 6-3 / 175 Senior

Projected Starting Lineup: FLORIDA STATE

Player Pos H/W Class
Hunter Woods G/F 6-6 / 197 Junior
Jerald Gillens-Butler G/F 6-5 / 227 R-Senior
Darius Burford G 6-0 / 166 Sophomore
Kris Wooten G 6-2 / 194 Senior
Hunter McIntosh G 6-2 / 180 Junior

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