Florida
No one is living in the past in Gainesville. Billy Donovan is not walking through those doors, though that doesn’t mean Todd Golden can’t get this program back into a decent position. Things are going relatively well in his second year at Florida, though getting the Gators back into the Big Dance is a first step towards what Golden hopes is long success in the SEC.
The NET is favorable at 39 and the Gators have completed avoided any bad losses. They had a few decent wins that didn’t really pan out earlier in the season but finally got a Quad 1 win at Kentucky just over a week ago. They played excellent ball in their two matchups with the Wildcats, but blew some of that momentum by losing at Texas A&M this past weekend.
Coming up shy in that chance for a second Quad 1 victory, the Gators get another shot on Saturday as they’ll host Auburn. The Tigers have looked really great this season and pose a significant challenge for Florida, but the Gators have met this challenges head on. They are part of a shortlist of teams with no losses below Quad 1, but that 1-7 mark against those teams needs to improve. Beating Auburn is how you get that done and maybe secure your place in the field.