Game Day: No. 20 Florida at No. 11 Tennessee (CBS, 3:30 pm) - Florida Gators

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Because the game traditionally has fallen so early in the season, the Rocky Top faithful have allowed their imaginations annually to run wild relative to the possibilities for their beloved Tennessee Volunteers. 

And all too often their Big Orange dreams have met Orange & Blue reality, courtesy of the Florida Gators. 

Here are are again. 

No. 20 Florida (2-1, 0-1) and No. 11 Tennessee (3-0, 0-0) are set to renew their bitter Southeastern Conference East Division rivalry Saturday in front of a sold-out and salivating Neyland Stadium house of 106,000-plus. UF has won five straight in the series, as well as a whopping 16 of the past 17, dating to the 2005 season. And yet this — 2022 — is the year the Gators get their comeuppance and the balance of power shifts. It has to be, right? At least that's what the Vols have thinking. 

If not this year — with UF reeling and rebuilding, while UT appears to be in a second season of ascension — then when? 

[Read senior writer Scott Carter's comprehensive "Opening Kickoff" setup here]

Last year, while Florida was crashing and burning to a 6-7 record and midseason coaching change, Tennessee was going 7-6 in the first season under Josh Heupel and finishing second in the SEC East (including an exciting home win over 18th-ranked Kentucky), behind only eventual national-champion Georgia. 

Yet, the Vols were bombed 38-14 in their September visit to Gainesville. 

But after averaging 42.4 points and over 500 yards during its final five games of the '21 season (with a 671-yard eruption in a 45-42 shootout loss to Purdue in the Music City Bowl), Tennessee was pegged to finish second again in the division race (with Florida fourth) and has answered the optimism with more high-octane offense over the first three games of 2022, including a huge road upset of No. 17 Pittsburgh. 

UF linebacker Amari Burney (2) chases down UT quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) in the Gators' 38-14 drubbing of the Vols in 2021 at the "Swamp."
[Photo by Calvin Mattheis / Knoxville News-Sentinel]

The Vols redshirt senior quarterback Hendon Hooker, in his second season as a starter after transferring from Virginia Tech, has completed nearly 70 percent of his passes for 844 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. UT is averaging 52.0 points and 553.7 yards per game (both 1st in the SEC, 3rd in the country), with 182.3 of it coming on the ground, courtesy of tailbacks Jaylen Wright (231 yards, 3 TD), Jabari Small (94 yards, 3 TD) and Dylan Sampson (89 yards, 3 TD). Hooker's top target is wideout Jalin Hyatt, with his 18 catches for 267 yards (14.8 per) and three scores. The next-best receiver, Cedric Tillman, was injured in last week's 63-6 wipeout of Akron and is doubtful. 

Defensively, Tennessee's 344.7 yards-per-game surrendered is ninth in the league, with almost half the yards coming in the overtime defeat of Pitt. 

The numbers — Tennessee's or Florida's — don't favor the Gators. Not at all. In fact, Vegas installed the Vols as a 10.5-point favorite, which is the largest UT spread since the 1950s. 

Florida is 12th in the SEC in total offense (353.0 ypg) and scoring (25.3 points pg), both of which check in (just barely) in the nation's top 100. Quarterback Anthony Richardson is the lowest-rated starting passer in the league and is still looking for his first TD pass against four interceptions. Defensively, the league's 11th-ranked unit (77th nationally) will be feverishly tested by a UT offense that operates at a breakneck pace and snaps the ball every 20.2 seconds. 

The Vols (all of them) have been waiting years for these circumstances.

Florida's last loss at Knoxville came in 2016. The Gators jumped to a 21-3 halftime lead, only to give up 35 unanswered after the break as the Vols roared to a 38-28 victory. The next week, UT stunned Georgia on a thrilling "Hail Mary" to stay unbeaten through five games, rocket into the top 10 and take complete command of the SEC East. 

Then they lost three straight and the Gators won the division. 

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on the CBS, with Brad Nessler on play-by-play, Gary Danielson providing analysis and Jenny Dell working the sidelines. For radio and television broadcast info, click here. The game will be replayed Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. and Thursday at 1 a.m., both on SEC Network. The Learfield Gator IMG Sports Network coverage, with Sean Kelly and Shane Matthews in the booth, and Tate Casey on the sidelines, will begin at 12:30 p.m. 

Finally, follow FloridaGators.com senior writer Scott Carter (@GatorsScott) on Twitter for commentary and analysis throughout the game. FloridaGators.com will have complete coverage content from the game late Saturday night and fresh follow-up content Sunday, also.

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2022-09-24 15:41:22Z
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