Florida jumps up four spots in The Athletic’s SEC vibe check rankings

The vibes are trending up for Florida after a big upset win over LSU in Week 12, and The Athletic agrees.

The curse of Marco Wilson came to an end on Saturday when the Florida Gators defeated the LSU Tigers for the first time since 2018, and bowl eligibility appears almost certain for the Orange and Blue with Florida State still on the schedule.

The vibes in Gainesville are sky-high, so much so that The Athletic’s Seth Emerson was forced to move the Gators up four spots to No. 8 in his weekly vibe check rankings.

“A good case can be made for putting the Gators even higher,” Emerson wrote. “They’re playing well enough now that Ole Miss is on upset watch. And the trip to Florida State looks to be close to a gimme at this point. [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] looks like the real deal. [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] is doing just enough to provide hope.

“Should Florida feel great about the overall future of the program? Eh, we’re not there yet. But should it feel much better than it did early in the season? Quite obviously.”

The future appears very bright for the Gators with Lagway at the helm, regardless of what Emerson thinks. There’s Heisman potential under center at Florida, and he’s still just a freshman. A win over Ole Miss next week would vault the Gators even further up these rankings and put a four-game win streak to close out 2024 on the table.

Week 11 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. South Carolina Gamecocks (7-3, 5-3)
  2. Ole Miss Rebels (8-2, 4-2 SEC)
  3. Alabama Crimson Tide (8-2, 4-2)
  4. Georgia Bulldogs (8-2, 6-2)
  5. Texas Longhorns (9-1, 5-1)
  6. Vanderbilt Commodores (6-4, 3-3)
  7. Texas A&M Aggies (8-2, 5-1)
  8. Florida Gators (5-5, 3-4)
  9. Tennessee Volunteers (8-2, 5-2)
  10. Missouri Tigers (7-3, 3-3)
  11. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-5, 34)
  12. Oklahoma Sooners (5-5, 1-5)
  13. Auburn Tigers (4-6, 1-5)
  14. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-8, 0-6)
  15. Kentucky Wildcats (4-6, 1-6)
  16. LSU Tigers (6-4, 3-3)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Blowout loss to Texas drops Florida in The Athletic’s latest SEC vibe check

Florida’s 32-point loss to Texas in Week 11 has the Gators dropping further down the weekly SEC vibe check rankings.

There was a brief moment where things seemed to be trending up for the Florida Gators this year, but the first half against Georgia feels a lot further away than the six quarters and eight days.

The Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check reflects the sudden depressive episode Gator Nation has slipped into after a 49-17 thumping at the hands of Texas on Saturday, with Florida slipping to No. 12 out of 16 in the conference rankings.

“We were all set to pronounce the vibes just great thanks to Thursday’s announcement that Napier was coming back next year,” wrote The Athletic’s Seth Emerson.

“A justifiable decision met with not much pushback from the fan base. Then a day later came news that the athletic director who made that announcement has issues with the men’s basketball program. Then a day later, Napier’s team got clobbered in Austin. So… yeah. There are ‘we can’t have nice things’ vibes in Gainesville.”

For once, Emerson hit the nail on the head here with Florida. Billy Napier getting a vouch of confidence did receive some pushback, but it’s mostly a vocal minority on social media — find something better to do with your life, I am begging.

Then everything went horribly wrong for the Gators, including the Todd Golden drama. The Texas drubbing has both coaches and players sounding glum, but things could change in a heartbeat if DJ Lagway returns to play against LSU and/or Ole Miss.

Despite many injuries, a three-game win streak to end the regular season is not out of the question for this team.

Week 11 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Ole Miss Rebels (8-2, 4-2 SEC)
  2. South Carolina Gamecocks (6-3, 4-3)
  3. Alabama Crimson Tide (7-2, 4-2)
  4. Texas Longhorns (8-1, 4-1)
  5. Tennessee Volunteers (8-1, 5-1)
  6. Vanderbilt Commodores (6-4, 3-3 )
  7. Texas A&M Aggies (7-2, 5-1)
  8. Missouri Tigers (7-2, 3-2)
  9. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-4, 3-3)
  10. Georgia Bulldogs (7-2, 5-2)
  11. Oklahoma Sooners (5-5, 1-5)
  12. Florida Gators (4-5, 2-4)
  13. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-8, 0-6)
  14. Kentucky Wildcats (3-6, 1-6)
  15. Auburn Tigers (3-6, 1-5)
  16. LSU Tigers (6-3, 3-2)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Lagway injury leads to dip in The Athletic’s SEC vibe check

A loss to Georgia and injury to quarterback DJ Lagway has the Gators trending down on The Athletic’s SEC vibe check after Week 10.

Florida fell two spots to No. 12 in The Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check after losing quarterback [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] in a winnable game against Georgia that ended 34-20 in favor of the Bulldogs.

It’s hard to blame Seth Emerson for dropping the Gators a couple of spots, but he’s finally admitting that [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]’s improvements as Florida continues to stay competitive with some of the best teams in the conference.

“Billy Napier seems to be maturing as a coach before our eyes, keeping his team competitive despite having to turn to a walk-on quarterback,” Emerson said. “And yet that brings us back to Napier as a program-builder and why he was left in that situation because it’s not like an SEC team has ever won with a walk-on quarterback and… wait I hear myself now too, sorry.”

The good news is Lagway’s injury isn’t as serious as initially feared, which means a return could come as early as next week against Texas. Even if Lagway’s not back to play in his home state this weekend, the more winnable games on the schedule come after that against LSU and Ole Miss.

Florida must win one of those two games and defeat Florida State in the season finale to secure bowl eligibility.

Week 10 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Vanderbilt Commodores (6-3, 3-2 SEC)
  2. South Carolina Gamecocks (5-3, 3-3)
  3. Texas Longhorns (7-1, 3-1)
  4. Tennessee Volunteers (7-1, 4-1)
  5. Texas A&M Aggies (7-2, 5-1)
  6. Ole Miss Rebels (7-2, 3-2)
  7. Georgia Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1)
  8. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-2, 3-2)
  9. LSU Tigers (6-2, 3-1)
  10. Missouri Tigers (6-2, 2-2)
  11. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-4, 3-3)
  12. Florida Gators (4-4, 2-3)
  13. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-7, 0-5)
  14. Oklahoma Sooners (5-4, 1-4)
  15. Kentucky Wildcats (3-6, 1-6)
  16. Auburn Tigers (3-6, 1-5)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Gators take two-spot dip in The Athletic’s Week 9 SEC vibe check

Florida didn’t play during Week 9, but the Gators still fell two spots in The Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check ahead of a meeting with Georgia.

The excitement following Florida’s 48-20 win over Kentucky has begun wearing off, and the existential dread that comes ahead of a meeting with Georgia is starting to sink in.

Okay, things aren’t that bad, but it’s safe to say the “vibes” are down in Gainesville as the Gators begin their collision course with four straight ranked opponents. As a result, the Orange and Blue are ranked 10th in the latest SEC vibe check from The Athletic.

“The momentum is slow, but Billy Napier might be doing enough to earn another year with the Gators,” Georgia beat writer for The Athletic Seth Emerson wrote. “If it’s a close call, you would think he’ll be back, given he has an interim president and an athletic director invested in him. But getting clobbered in Jacksonville by Georgia on Saturday quickly could derail all of that.”

The world expects Florida to get “clobbered” on Saturday, but Florida’s defense improved a lot throughout October. That’s not to say the Gators will be the Dawgs this week, but a 16.5-point spread might be an easy cover for UF.

Whoever wins this game will likely move to the top of the vibe check rankings in Week 10. Georgia lost the throne while on bye, following a big win for Texas A&M over LSU, and Florida upsetting its biggest conference rival for only the second time in eight seasons (2020) would be huge for obvious reasons.

Week 9 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Texas A&M Aggies (7-1, 5-0 SEC)
  2. Georgia Bulldogs (6-1, 4-1)
  3. Tennessee Volunteers (6-1, 3-1)
  4. Vanderbilt Commodores (5-3, 2-2)
  5. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-3, 3-2)
  6. Texas Longhorns (7-1, 3-1)
  7. South Carolina Gamecocks (4-3, 2-3)
  8. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-2, 3-2)
  9. Ole Miss Rebels (6-2, 2-2)
  10. Florida Gators (4-3, 2-2)
  11. LSU Tigers (6-2, 3-1)
  12. Auburn Tigers (3-5, 1-4)
  13. Missouri Tigers (6-2, 2-2)
  14. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-7, 0-5)
  15. Oklahoma Sooners (4-4, 1-4)
  16. Kentucky Wildcats (3-5, 1-5)

How to watch Florida vs. Georgia

The Gators go up against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday, Nov. 2 in Jacksonville. That game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on ABC.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida makes huge jump in The Athletic’s Week 8 SEC vibe check

For the first time this season, Florida is ranked higher than No. 14 on The Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check. A four-touchdown win is the cause.

Florida’s Week 8 win over Kentucky sent waves of hope and positivity throughout the Gators’ fan base. So much so that even the biggest haters can’t deny the vibes in Gainesville are up.

The Athletic’s Seth Emerson, who puts together the weekly SEC vibe check, hasn’t ranked Florida higher than 14th at any point this year. But the Georgia Bulldogs beat writer couldn’t deny the Orange and Blue this week following a 48-20 win over the Wildcats.

Sure, he managed to sneak some snark in, but moving the Gators up to No. 8 in the Week 8 vibe check had to be a tough swallow.

“(Looking around.) So we’re doing this? Yeah, we’re doing this. The vibes basement dweller early in the season, the team with the dead coach walking, is still hanging around and improving,” Emerson wrote. “By lasting this long, Billy Napier now gets an awkward reunion with Jaden Rashada before or after the team’s game against Georgia in Jacksonville. Hug it out, fellas.”

Thanks, I guess.

Rashada jokes aside, things are looking up for Florida, even with a daunting schedule looming. The defense has improved week by week, and a true freshman duo at quarterback and running back just put up 400-plus offensive yards against a top-3 defensive in the league (entering Week 8).

Beating one of Georgia, Texas, LSU and Ole Miss after the bye is key, though. Florida could fall right back to where it was if none of those games are competitive, and Billy Napier would almost certainly lose his job. A 6-6 finish is achievable though, with a floundering Florida State team at the end of the tunnel.

For now, the Gators get an extra week to enjoy the win with a bye coming up. Then comes that gauntlet of top-15 teams.

Week 8 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Georgia Bulldogs (6-1, 4-1)
  2. Tennessee Volunteers (6-1, 3-1)
  3. LSU Tigers (6-1, 3-0)
  4. Texas A&M Aggies (6-1, 4-0)
  5. Vanderbilt Commodores (5-2, 2-1)
  6. South Carolina Gamecocks (4-3, 2-3)
  7. Texas Longhorns (6-1, 2-1 SEC)
  8. Florida Gators (4-3, 2-2)
  9. Missouri Tigers (6-1, 2-1)
  10. Ole Miss Rebels (5-2, 1-2)
  11. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-6, 0-4)
  12. Arkansas Razorbacks (4-3, 2-2)
  13. Alabama Crimson Tide (5-2, 2-2)
  14. Auburn Tigers (2-5, 0-4)
  15. Kentucky Wildcats (3-4, 1-4)
  16. Oklahoma Sooners (4-3, 1-3)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida improving but not moving up in The Athletic’s SEC Vibe Check

Florida had the No. 8 team in the country on the ropes all of Saturday night, but a loss means no movement in the latest SEC vibe check from The Athletic.

Another week, another disrespectful ranking from The Athletic’s Seth Emerson, who puts together the almighty Vibe Check.

The Florida Gators check in at No. 14 for a third-straight week, which feels a bit unjustified, but at least they weren’t dropped to the bottom two following a close loss to… checks notes… the No. 8 team in the country.

“Sigh. Even as the Gators keep showing fight and improvement, they can’t close the deal,” Seth Emerson of The Athletic wrote. “As the game was winding down, you looked at Billy Napier and wondered: Dare we say, he could be starting to save his job? But then the ending, ultimately not going for two and the win and the offense going backward in overtime … again, sigh.”

Emerson is the guy who is so close to getting it but refuses to cross the finish line. His own words point out that Florida is improving, and while a loss does hurt the “vibe” in Gainesville, it’s a bit curious to keep the Gators in the No. 14 position for three weeks in a row.

Things are getting better for Florida football. A win over Kentucky — which ranks 12th overall on this list — should do the trick for the Gators. Even the Georgia beat guy can’t deny that.

Also, what’s up with 2-4 (0-3) Auburn staying a spot ahead of Florida? Are the vibes really that high on a bye week after a loss? Maybe with Jawjuh blinders on…

Week 7 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Texas Longhorns (6-0, 2-0 SEC)
  2. Vanderbilt Commodores (4-2, 2-1)
  3. Texas A&M Aggies (5-1, 3-0)
  4. LSU Tigers (5-1, 1-0)
  5. Arkansas Razorbacks (4-2, 2-1)
  6. Tennessee Volunteers (5-1, 2-1)
  7. Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1, 2-1)
  8. Georgia Bulldogs (5-1, 3-1)
  9. Missouri Tigers (5-1, 1-1)
  10. Ole Miss Rebels (5-2, 1-2)
  11. South Carolina Gamecocks (3-3, 1-3)
  12. Kentucky Wildcats (3-3, 1-3)
  13. Auburn Tigers (2-4, 0-3)
  14. Florida Gators (3-3, 1-2)
  15. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-5, 0-3)
  16. Oklahoma Sooners (4-2, 1-2)

Next up for Florida

The Gators return to Gainesville this week for a homecoming matchup with the Kentucky Wildcats. Kickoff is slated for 7:45 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida stays at No. 14 on The Athletic’s SEC vibe check after beating UCF

Florida’s win over UCF raised spirits for some in Gainesville, but The Athletic’s SEC vibe check disagrees. The Gators stay put at No. 14 after Week 6.

Despite the “vibe” in Gainesville going up following a 24-13 win over UCF this weekend, the Florida Gators remain at No. 14 in the latest SEC vibe check rankings from The Athletic.

Maybe it’s because Georgia Bulldogs writer Seth Emerson compiled this list, but leaving Florida in the bottom three after so many other teams collapsed feels intentionally disrespectful. The copy also contains some heavy sarcasm.

“Billy Napier fights on! It does seem to just be delaying the inevitable, but hey, give credit where it’s due,” Emerson wrote, without giving much credit where it was supposedly due.

To rub some salt in the wound, Emerson has Auburn jumping up three spots to No. 13 — one place ahead of Florida — for seemingly no good reason.

“By scoring margin, it was Auburn’s worst loss of the season,” he wrote. “By actual performance, it was the best loss, validation that when this team doesn’t turn the ball over it can be halfway competitive.”

Got it. “Best losses” and “halfway competitive” are better than actual wins.

Emerson got some things right, though, like moving Vanderbilt into the top spot after a gargantuan upset of Alabama — after beating Georgia the week prior.

Texas A&M moving into the No. 2 spot seems right, too. If a 31-point victory over a top-10 team isn’t getting the vibes up, it’s hard to figure out what is.

It looks like Florida will have to do something mighty impressive to break into the top 10 at any point. If that happens, maybe The Athletic will provide some real analysis instead of cheap shots at Billy Napier. (Probably not, though.)

Week 4 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Vanderbilt Commodores (3-2, 1-1)
  2. Texas A&M Aggies (5-1, 3-0)
  3. Arkansas Razorbacks (4-2, 2-1)
  4. Texas Longhorns (5-0, 1-0)
  5. Ole Miss Rebels (5-1, 1-1)
  6. Georgia Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1)
  7. Alabama Crimson Tide (4-1, 1-1)
  8. Tennessee Volunteers (4-1, 1-1)
  9. Kentucky Wildcats (3-2, 1-2)
  10. Oklahoma Sooners (4-1, 1-1)
  11. LSU Tigers (4-1, 1-0)
  12. Missouri Tigers (4-1, 1-1)
  13. Auburn Tigers (2-4, 0-3)
  14. Florida Gators (3-2, 1-1)
  15. South Carolina Gamecocks (3-2, 1-2)
  16. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-4, 0-2)

Next up for Florida

The Gators head to Knoxville next week to resume Southeastern Conference play against the Tennessee Volunteers. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida holds steady in The Athletic’s SEC vibe check while on bye

Florida stayed put on the Week 5 SEC vibe check from The Athletic during its first bye week of the 2024 college football season.

Florida didn’t play in Week 5 of the college football season, so the Gators held steady at No. 14 on The Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check.

“A week off meant watching a certain coach lose unexpectedly, meaning that certain coach might not make the Playoff and thus could be available,” senior writer Seth Emerson wrote. “There is still the matter of the current coach, who faces UCF at home this week, which could be the last time the Gators are favored this season. Probably a good idea to go bank that win.”

The “certain coach” Emerson is referring to is, of course, Lane Kiffin of Ole Miss. Many in Gator Nation want Kiffin to be the next coach in Gainesville, but that assumes Billy Napier’s time is up. A win over UCF might not save Napier’s job outright, but it gets him closer to that preseason projection of four wins.

Emerson is also forgetting about a miserable Florida State team that fell to 1-4 this week against SMU. If Florida isn’t favored to win the season finale against FSU, then it might really be wraps for Napier.

The rest of the SEC vibe check is as expected: Alabama moved into the top spot following an upset over Georgia and Kentucky jumped into the top five after beating Ole Miss.

One interesting note from this week’s vibe check is that both South Carolina and Vanderbilt fell despite being on bye. The Gamecocks only dropped one spot, which typically means another team had a strong week, but Vanderbilt fell four places with Alabama looming on the schedule.

Perhaps the Georgia writer felt Vandy had a chance to upset the Tide before Kalen DeBoer’s group put the hurt on them ‘Dawgs…

Week 5 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Alabama Crimson Tide (4-0, 1-0)
  2. Texas Longhorns (5-0, 1-0)
  3. Tennessee Volunteers (4-0, 1-0 SEC)
  4. Kentucky Wildcats (3-2, 1-2)
  5. Missouri Tigers (4-0, 1-0)
  6. Texas A&M Aggies (4-1, 2-0)
  7. Georgia Bulldogs (3-1, 1-1)
  8. Oklahoma Sooners (4-1, 1-1)
  9. Arkansas Razorbacks (3-2, 1-1)
  10. South Carolina Gamecocks (3-1, 1-1)
  11. Vanderbilt Commodores (2-2, 0-1)
  12. LSU Tigers (4-1, 1-0)
  13. Ole Miss Rebels (4-1, 0-1)
  14. Florida Gators (2-2, 1-1)
  15. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-4, 0-2)
  16. Auburn Tigers (2-3, 0-2)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida’s win over Miss. St. moves Gators out of SEC ‘vibe check’ cellar

The bad vibes are improving in Gainesville, but the Florida Gators still find themselves near the bottom of the latest SEC vibe check.

After spending the first three weeks of the season ranked 16th on the Athletic’s weekly SEC vibe check, the Florida Gators have moved up two spots to No. 14 following a 17-point win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

It’s a somewhat hollow victory for Florida, though, as MSU has spent most of the season ranked in the bottom three of the conference. With several top-25 left on the schedule, this could be the high point for Florida football.

“This result did not change the fundamentals of the situation,” college football writer Seth Emerson wrote. “It did show, well, that there’s some life in the Gators, that they haven’t packed it in despite the noise about the seemingly inevitable.

“Maybe it says something about Billy Napier, his staff and his players. Or maybe it just says something about the team they beat. Either way, let’s push the vibes up in Gainesville because while change may be inevitable — and change is exciting — the present isn’t one to write off just yet.”

Emerson is still projecting this to be the final season of the Billy Napier era in Gainesville, but at least called the Gators a “competent team” against the likes of Mississippi State and FCS Samford.

It’s hard to see Florida moving any higher than No. 14 on this list with no game scheduled for Week 5. A win over UCF the following week would send the vibes skyrocketing up, but let’s take things one week at a time.

Week 4 SEC vibe check rankings

  1. Tennessee Volunteers (4-0, 1-0 SEC)
  2. Texas Longhorns (4-0, 0-0)
  3. Ole Miss Rebels (4-0, 0-0)
  4. Alabama Crimson Tide (3-0, 0-0)
  5. Georgia Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0)
  6. Missouri Tigers (4-0, 1-0)
  7. Vanderbilt Commodores (2-2, 0-1)
  8. Texas A&M Aggies (3-1, 1-0)
  9. South Carolina Gamecocks (3-1, 1-1)
  10. Kentucky Wildcats (2-2, 0-2)
  11. Arkansas Razorbacks (3-1, 1-0)
  12. LSU Tigers (3-1, 1-0)
  13. Oklahoma Sooners (3-1, 0-1)
  14. Florida Gators (2-2, 1-1)
  15. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-3, 0-1)
  16. Auburn Tigers (2-2, 0-1)

Up next for the Gators

Florida does not play next week with its first bye of the season scheduled. The UCF Knights will come to Gainesville in Week 6 for a 2021 Gasparilla Bowl rematch. The Gators are looking for revenge after falling to the Knights, 29-17, under interim head coach Greg Knox.

UCF features the best rushing attack in college football through four weeks of play. The Knights average 375.7 yards on the ground and have 13 touchdowns on the ground. Meanwhile, Florida is ranked 107th of the 133 FBS teams in run defense after allowing 188.8 rushing yards per game.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida remains at bottom of The Athletic’s SEC ‘vibe check’ after Week 3

Another ugly loss for Florida means the Gators remain ranked 16th among SEC teams in the latest vibe check from The Athletic.

Florida is ranked 16th out of 16 SEC teams in the latest conference vibe check from The Athletic.

The Gators’ most recent loss, a 13-point defeat at the hand of Texas A&M Aggies, has Billy Napier hanging onto his job by a thread, and there’s little to no optimism surrounding the program after just three weeks of play.

“Well, what more can you say? We all know where this is going, it’s just a matter of when and who is making the decisions, since the AD probably won’t get a third bite at the apple,” Seth Emerson wrote.

“The school has to find buyout money, much of it having been spent by the former president. It may be a tear-down situation in Gainesville, but that means building back up, and building is exciting. In the meantime, yeah, the vibes are rough.”

Emerson is a senior writer covering Georgia and the SEC for The Athletic. Naturally, there’s some animosity toward the Orange and Blue from the Bulldogs guy, and why wouldn’t there be? Florida would be the laughing stock of college football if it weren’t for its ACC counterpart up in Tallahassee.

Still, there is a chance Florida will pull itself out of the gutter over the next week.

The Gators travel to Mississippi State to face a 15th-ranked Bulldogs team next week, and a win should cause the two programs to switch positions. Beating UCF and Kentucky would also go a long way, but let’s take things one week at a time.

The Athletic’s SEC vibe check — Week 3

  1. Texas Longhorns (3-0, 0-0 SEC)
  2. Tennessee Volunteers (3-0, 0-0)
  3. Alabama Crimson Tide (3-0, 0-0)
  4. Ole Miss Rebels (3-0, 0-0)
  5. Missouri Tiger (3-0, 0-0)
  6. Georgia Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0)
  7. Texas A&M Aggies (2-1, 1-1)
  8. Oklahoma Sooners (3-0, 0-0)
  9. LSU Tigers (2-1, 1-0)
  10. Auburn Tigers (2-1, 0-0)
  11. South Carolina Gamecocks (2-1, 1-1)
  12. Kentucky Wildcats (1-2, 0-2)
  13. Vanderbilt Commodores (2-1, 0-0)
  14. Arkansas Razorbacks (2-1, 0-0)
  15. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-2, 0-0)
  16. Florida Gators (1-2, 0-1)

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.