Another brutal schedule awaits the Florida Gators for 2025 season

(Photo by Chris Spears)

A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning:

On paper, it’s another brutal schedule for the Gators in 2025. Florida’s 12-game schedule includes six home games, five road trips and Georgia in Jacksonville, which will officially be a home game for UF. With quarterback DJ Lagway coming back along with most of the starters on both sides of the football, the Gators will be a much improved team, but the schedule is going to be a grinder.

After the season opener with D1AA Long Island of the Northeast Conference, the Gators will face three teams (Texas, Georgia and Tennessee) that made the College Football Playoff and five others who got to a bowl game.  The eight teams on the SEC portion of the schedule are a combined 63-35. The three Division I non-conference teams are a combined 18-18.

This year’s muderer’s row will be games three through six: at LSU, at Miami, then after the bye week, Texas at home and the Aggies in College Station.

August 31: Long Island University (4-8 in D1AA), Gainesville

September 6: South Florida (6-6, Hawaii Bowl), Gainesville

September 13: LSU (8-4, Texas Bowl), Baton Rouge

September 20: Miami (10-2, Pop Tarts Bowl), Miami Gardens

September 27: Bye

October 4: Texas (11-2, Playoff), Gainesville

October 11: Texas A&M (8-4, Las Vegas Bowl), College Station

October 18: Mississippi State (2-10), Gainesville

October 25: Bye

November 1: Georgia (11-2, Playoff), Jacksonville

November 8: Kentucky (4-8), Lexington

November 15: Ole Miss (9-3, Gator Bowl), Oxford

November 22: Tennessee (10-2, Playoff), Gainesville

November 29: Florida State (2-10), Gainesville

LET’S MAKE A DEAL: WHO’S THE TULANE BOWL GAME QB?

For Tulane, finding a quarterback to play against the Florida Gators in the December 20 Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa (3:30 p.m., ESPN2) must feel like watching “Let’s Make a Deal” on television.  Behind door number one is freshman QB Darian Mensah, who was instantly proclaimed as the hottest QB in the transfer portal market when he tossed his name into the ring on Sunday. Behind door number two is Ty Thompson, a former 5-star recruit who signed to play for Mario Cristobal at Oregon in 2021 but spent 2024 at Tulane backing up Mensah. Behind door number three is Kai Horton, a fourth-year junior at Tulane who once led Carthage, Texas to back-to-back state championships but is a career backup at Tulane.

There is no Monty Hall to capture the drama on this one. Mensah is off to Duke, reportedly for more than a million in NIL cash. Thompson is in the portal, too, and so is Horton although neither one has made a decision.

Thompson wins this one. He will remain in the portal but will use the Gasparilla Bowl as an audition since it’s the first game he’s ever started as a collegiate quarterback. Maybe he will impress someone who will make him a priority. Maybe.

You have to wonder just how many Tulane players will feel like giving their all for a QB who has one foot out the door. Can Thompson inspire teammates to go all out for him when they know he had to somehow be coerced into coming back for one more game?

BELICHICK, RICHROD AND MULLEN

This has the sound of a pricey law firm that if the price is right can get you off the hook for anything. Lest we forget, the late, great Racehorse Haynes, a legendary southern defense lawyer, once said, “Murder is the easiest crime to defend because the single most important witness can’t attend the trial.” Nobody is accusing Bill Belichick, Rich Rodriguez or Dan Mullen of doing anything illegal, but the lawyers and doctors among the alums and boosters of North Carolina, West Virginia and UNLV better bring in more billable hours to pay for these guys.

Belichick: He won six Super Bowls with Tom Brady before Brady proved that the Patriots’ winning probably had more to do with him than the coach. Still, this is an intriguing hire for North Carolina which has had a lot of good seasons, but never a great one. Kids who want to play for a coach who knows what it takes to get them in the NFL will certainly take notice. And you have to wonder what Bill can do with a 105-man roster after working all those years in the NFL with 53. Now, the ultimate finishing touch on this deal would be to bring in best bud and greatest of all time in college coaching Nick Saban as his defensive coordinator.

Rich Rodriguez: Return of the native. RichRod played for Don Nehlen at West Virginia and 17 years after graduation replaced his old coach as the HBC for the Mountaineers where he went 60-26 including 32-5 in his last three years. After the 2006 season he turned down Alabama (they hired that Saban guy) and stayed one more year at WVU. He took the Michigan job, got fired after three years; resurfaced at Arizona, got fired after six years; and spent the last two years at Jacksonville State where he went 18-8 and won the 2024 Conference USA title. Can you go home again? They’re about to find out with Rich Rod.

Dan Mullen: When North Carolina fired Mack Brown, speculation had it that Mullen would be THE guy, but that faded fast. Tulane coach Jon Sumrall became the hot name but out of nowhere Bill Belichick showed interest and got the job. Meanwhile, Barry Odom won 19 games in two years at UNLV but departed for Purdue. It had to be the money because Purdue is as dead end as it will get. Now that Indiana is good, Purdue will be No. 3 in the state behind Notre Dame and the Hoosiers. But that’s Purdue and Odom’s problem. It’s actually a really good move for Mullen. He might be able to use the glitz and glam of Vegas to lure recruits that he might not otherwise be in the running for. He sure can run an offense. If he can get a decent defensive coordinator and find a couple of gung ho types who live to recruit, he can use this job as a stepping stone to something big. Or, if he’s smart, he can do what he did at Mississippi State, which is win consistently at a place where expectations have never been too high.

SEC FOOTBALL: PORTAL DEPARTURES/ARRIVALS

Alabama: LB Keanu Koht (RJR) to Vanderbilt; CB Jahlil Hurley (FR); WR Kobe Prentice (JR); DL Jehiem Oatis (JR); WR Kendrick Law (JR); OT Miles McVay (FR); WR Caleb Odom (FR); OT Naquil Betrand RFR); DL Hunter Osborne (FR); TE Danny Lewis Jr. (SO); QB Dylan Lonergan (RFR)

Arkansas: WR Jaedon Wilson (RJR) to UCLA; QB Malachi Singleton (FR); TE Tyrus Washington (SO); TE Var’keyes Gumms (JR); OG Patrick Kutas (JR); TE Luke Hasz (SO); S Nico Davillier (JR); CB Selman Bridges (FR); WR Kamron Bibby (SO); LB Kaden Henley (SO); LB Alex Sanford (SO); WR Davion Dozier (RFR); S Dallas Young (FR); P Sam Dubwig (FR); RB Emmanuel Crawford (FR); LS Eli Stein; S Tevis Metcalf (SO); CB TJ Metcalf (FR); LB Carson Dean (FR); RB Isaiah Sategna (RSO); OG Joshua Braun (RSR); DL Ty’kieast Crawford (SR); EDGE Brad Spence (SO); OG Addison Nichols (RSO)

Auburn: DL Gage Keys (RJR); TE Grant Hidalgo (RJR); QB Holden Geriner (RSO); OG EJ Harris (SO); P Gabe Russo (FR); WR Camden Brown (JR); TE Micah Riley (SO); EDGE T.J. Lindsey (FR); S Caleb Wooden (JR); QB Hank Brown (RFR); CB Antonio Kite (SO); WR Horatio Fields (RJR) from Wake Forest; QB Maalik Murphy (RSO) from Texas; LB Phoenix Jackson (RJR) from Fresno State;

FLORIDA: DE Justus Boone (RJR); OL Mike Williams (RFR); EDGE Quincy Ivory (RJR); EDGE Bryce Capers (SO); WR Andy Jean (RFR); CB Ja’Keem Jackson (SO); DL Kelby Collins (SO); OG Christian Williams (RSO); TE Arlis Boardingham (RSO); LB Deuce Spurlock (RSO); QB Parker Leise; EDGE Jack Pyburn (RSO); TE Gavin Hill (RFR)

Georgia: CB Julian Humphrey (SO); WR Nitro Tuggle (FR); David Daniel-Sisavanh; WR Michael Jackson III (SR)

Kentucky: DL Keeshawn Silver (RJR); LS Walker Himebauch (SO); CB Avery Stuart (FR); WR Dane Key (JR); LB Jayvant Brown (SO); EDGE Tommy Ziesmer (FR); TE Khamari Anderson (SO); TE Tanner Lemaster (FR); OT Courtland Ford (SR); WR Barion Brown (JR); WR Anthony Brown-Stephens (SO); OT Ben Cristman (RJR); EDGE Noah Matthews (SO); EDGE Tyreese Fearby (RSO); QB Gavin Wimsatt (RJR); S Jarard Mosely (JR); RB Chip Trayanum (RSR); EDGE Caleb Redd (FR); WR Brandon White (RSO)

LSU: WR London Ibieta (SO); QB Rickie Collins (RFR); WR CJ Daniels (RJR); S Kylin Jackson (FR); WR Shelton Sampson JR (FR); LB Xavier Atkins (FR); CB JK Johnson (JR); PK Nathan Dibert (JR; S Jordan Allen (RSO); CB Jalailin Johnson (RJR); TE Ka’Morreun Pimpton (SO); CB Bernard Causey (FR); DL Jay’viar Suggs (RSR)

Mississippi State: QB Chris Parson (RFR); WR Creed Whittemore (SO); WR JJ Harrell (FR); CB Jayven Williams (SO) from Kennesaw State; EDGE Ty Cooper (JR); LB John Lewis (RJR); OT Makylan Pounders (JR); LB Tabias Hinton (FR); WR Antonio Harmon (JR); LB Marcus Ross (JR); WR Mario Craver (FR); CB Raydarious Jones (SR); CB Khamauri Rogers (SO); CB Brice Pollock (SO); DL Gabe Moore (FR); LB Jarvae Gilmore (RSO); DL Eric Taylor (SR); Christopher Keys (RSR); QB Michael Van Buren Jr.; EDGE Redd Hibbler (SR) from North Carolina State; S Jahron Manning (JR) from Old Dominion; CB Kevin Coleman (JR) to Missouri

Missouri: LB Brayshawn Littlejon (FR); P Will Safris (FR); WR Mekhi Miller (JR); PK Brody Boehm (FR); P Orion Phillips (SO); S Phillip Roche (SO); IOL Jack McGarry (RSO); EDGE Jaylen Brown (FR)CB Kevin Coleman (JR) from Mississippi State

Oklahoma: WR Jaquaize Pettaway (SO); QB Jackson Arnold (SO); RB Kalib Hicks (FR); WR Nic Anderson (SO); RB Emeka Megwa (JR); TE Bauer Sharp (JR); CB Makari Vickers (SO); RB Chapman McKown (FR); CB Kani Walker (RJR); OG Geirean Hatchett (SR) to Washington; CB Jayden Rowe (SO); OT Kenny Wermy (RFR); IOL Joshua Bates  (RFR); WR JJ Hester (RSR); WR Jalil Farooq (SR); S Makari Vickers (SO); WR Andrel Anthony (; TE Josh Fanuiel (

Ole Miss: S Key Lawrence (RSR); QB Walker Howard (RSO) to Louisiana; OT Cam East (RSO); OT Mana Taimani (RSR); OT Jack Mills (SR); LB Rodney Groce Jr. (SR)

South Carolina: LB Bangally Kamara (RSR) to Kansas; LB Mohamed Kaba (RSR); WR Tyshawn Russell (FR); TE Connor Cox (SO); TE Nick Elksnis (RJR); WR CJ Adams (RFR); QB Robby Ashford (RJR); DL Jamaal Whyce (RSO); DL Elijah Davis (SR)

Tennessee: OG Vysen Lang (FR); RB Khalifa Keith (SO); WR Kaleb Webb (SO); CB Jordan Matthews (RFR); LB Jalen Smith (RFR); WR Chas Nimrod (SO); QB Ryan Damron (FR)

Texas: WR Johntay Cook II (SO); DL Jaray Bledsoe (RSO); DL Aaron Bryant (SO); LB Derion Gullette (FR); EDGE Tausill Akana (FR); DL Tiaoalii Savea (SR); CB Jay’vion Cole (JR)

Texas A&M: DL Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy (SO); QB Conner Weigman (RSO) to Houston; WR Cyrus Allen (JR); TE Jaden Platt (FR); QB Jaylen Henderson (JR); OT Aki Ogunbiyi (JR);OT Hunter Erb (SO); CB Kevin Longstreet Jr. (FR); EDGE Malick Sylia (JR); LB Martrell Harris Jr. (JR); WR Micah Tease (SO); OG TJ Shanahan (FR); P Keegan Andrews (JR); LB Chantz Johnson (SO); OG Cam Dewberry (JR); EDGE Josh Celiscar (RSR); QB Jacob Zeno (RSR) from UAB; WR Jake Bostick (RSO); CB Donovan Saunders (; EDGE Enai White (JR); WR Jacob Bostick (RSO)

Vanderbilt: LB Jeffrey Ugochukwu (JR); QB Nate Johnson (JR); EDGE BJ Diakate (JR); LB Steve Sannieniola (JR); DL Devin Lee (SR); OT Gunnar Hansen (SR); CB Alan Wright (SR); EDGE Darren Agu (JR); TE Tyler Fortenberry; PK Will Faris (SR); WR Ezra McAllister; CB Alvin Williamson Jr. (FR); EDGE Evan Hermann (SO); EDGE Callahan Blair (FR); LB Keanu Koht (RJR) from Alabama

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: For all the hype about the new television deal for the Big Ten that includes Fox, CBS, NBC, Paramount and CW, the SEC (ABC, ESPN and ESPN/Disney affiliates) blew away the competition when it came to viewers during the 2024 regular season. Eight of the top ten most viewed teams are from the SEC per Nielson. From the Big Ten, only Ohio State (2) and Michigan (6) cracked the top ten.

Here are the top ten most viewed teams and their average audience for every game they were on network TV: 1. Georgia 8.6 million; 2. Ohio State 6.8 million; 3. Alabama 6.6 million; 4. Texas 6.4 million; 5. Tennessee 5.4 million; 6. Michigan 5.2 million; 7. Texas A&M 4.9 million; 8. LSU (4.8 million); 9. Kentucky 4.5 million; 10. FLORIDA 4.3 million.