The Florida Gators came up short against the Georgia Bulldogs for the 5th straight year. Two head coaches. Interim coach. Five different quarterbacks. So much has changed since the 2020 season but this one game has remained constant.
This game, at times, felt different. During the two years that Georgia won national championships, the games felt as if they were over before they began. Even in an inspired effort last season, during which Florida relied on Aidan Warner for three quarters, Georgia spent the entire second half with the lead. This time, it seemed that Florida had a legitimate chance to win it. The Gators offense was sluggish do a large portion of the middle of the game, but began to put together some nice drives down the stretch. The defense, a unit that has kept Florida in several games this season, played as well as one could expect.
Instead, Florida fans watched as the Dawgs ended the Gators 4th quarter drive that could have stretched the Florida lead to two scores on a 4th down stop. They watched as the familiar sight of an official ready to swing the game in Georgia’s favor graced their screens. And they watched as a Florida defense which performs well outside of any sort of big moment allowed Georgia to walk down the field to take the lead in the 4th quarter. The Gators could never keep both sides of the ball playing well enough long enough to put Georgia away. In spite of all the mistakes made by the Bulldogs, the Gators allowed them to stick around just long enough to lose.
I feel almost lost without being able to yell at Billy Napier about this, but fortunately steps have already been taken to rectify the situation that the Florida football program has found itself in, but with a roster so talented, Gator fans can’t help but wonder what life might be like had these steps been taken earlier. Indecision and incompetence have cost Florida fans so many opportunities to watch talented teams compete to their full potential. It’s time for a new era of Florida football. One in which an “L” isn’t automatically penciled in on the schedule next to “Georgia.”
Eric White
College Football Digest 