The Florida Gators are hosting the Florida State Seminoles in primetime television on Saturday night and there’s plenty of high stakes for both football programs.
For anyone making an insane parlay this weekend, you’re probably looking for some inspiration for who to choose between the two in-state rivals, and sports publication The Athletic released their weekly picks against the spread and the staff are split down the middle when it comes to the Gators and Seminoles showdown.
The Gators are 6.5-point underdogs at home on Saturday night with both of the team’s starting quarterbacks missing the game after suffering significant injuries last week.
Despite both programs relying on their backup quarterbacks this week, The Athletic’s staff believes it will come down to Florida’s defense.
“Florida also will have a backup quarterback in after Graham Mertz got hurt at Missouri last week,” the staff concluded. “Freshman Max Brown led two scoring drives in the fourth quarter after entering the game in the third quarter. The other side of the ball has been more of a problem. The Gators are on a four-game losing streak in which they have failed to hold an opponent under 33 points.”
Staff writers Dan Santaromita and Ari Wasserman are both taking the Gators to win against the spread, even if it means the team is losing a close contest. However, the writers do have a losing record while picking against the spread. Bet carefully, folks.
The Florida Gators and Florida State Seminoles will kick off at 7 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
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