This Ain't Your Father's Kentucky Football Team, And Florida Has Some Chomp Back

September 7, 2022 by CollegeFootballPoll.com Staff

Football in Lexington used to be something that occupied some time before basketball season got underway, but Mark Stoops has made Kentucky relevant. And Florida was supposed to be an afterthought in the SEC title race this year, until the Gators pulled off a huge upset of Utah in Billy Napier's debut as head coach.

Now what?

Well, how 'bout we schedule a game between UK and UF and see where this goes from here.

As luck would have it, this intriguing matchup takes place this Saturday in Gainesville in a game that epitomizes how everything is NOT the same in the SEC.

Yes, Alabama and Georgia are still strong at the top, but the challengers aren't just folding their tents and walking away. In fact, just about everyone seems to be on the rise - from Shane Beamer at South Carolina to Josh Heupel at Tennessee, from Napier at Florida to Clark Lea at Vanderbilt - fresh faces are breathing life into programs that have had varying degrees of struggles.

This week, Kentucky at Florida not only matters in the world of football - it's kinda must-see TV. The Gators have this kid at quarterback named Anthony Richardson who's just fun to watch. The Wildcats have a head coach who just tied Bear Bryant for the most wins in school history.

These teams have split the last four meetings with the 'Cats winning last year and, more importantly, at Gainesville in 2018 when they broke a 39-year drought of losing in "The Swamp", as well as a 31-game overall losing streak in the series. But the computer's 8.8-point edge for Kentucky seems off the mark and surely won't happen if Billy Napier's team plays like it did in its opener against Utah. Especially if Richardson handles the QB role as well as he did against the Utes (168 yards passing, 106 rushing and 3 TD's). Kentucky opened the season with a 37-13 win at home over Miami (O) as Will Levis threw for 303 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The winner this week gets the obvious reward of a 1-0 start in the SEC, but also reaps respect and gathers momentum for a run at Georgia for the divisional title in the eastern half of the SEC.