Gators could be facing a weakened Tulane team in Gasparilla Bowl

Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears)

The Gators will be facing Tulane (9-4) in the Union Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on December 20 (3:30 p.m., ESPN). Prior to Sunday’s announced bowl destination for 7-5 Florida, best guesses were the Gators would wind up in Jacksonville to face Duke in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl or in Tampa to face Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl on December 31.

The Gator Bowl and the ReliaQuest bowls got it half right. Ole Miss will be facing Duke in the Gator Bowl and Alabama will face Michigan in the ReliaQuest. The Tulane team the Gators face in Tampa could be seriously handicapped as head coach Jon Sumrall is thought to be the leading contender for the vacancy at North Carolina. Additionally, freshman QB Darian Mensah placed his name in the transfer portal Sunday.

Tulane has won 32 games in the past three years, 23 for previous coach Willie Fritz (now HBC at Houston) and nine this year for Sumrall, who was an impressive 23-4 in two years at Troy prior to Tulane. Sumrall's balanced offense that averages 37.9 points, 205.4 rushing yards and 215.8 passing yards per game and defense that ranks 13th nationally (307.7 yards per game) is why he's the leader on UNC's short list to replace Mack Brown.

Sumrall has been tight lipped about the possibility of taking the UNC job. Asked Sunday about leaving, he told NOLA.com that he’s not into commenting on “hypotheticals.”

Mensah, who threw for 2,723 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2024, put his name in the NCAA transfer portal Sunday. If Mensah is out for the bowl game, the QB will be Ty Thompson, who completed 6-11 passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns while running for 243 yards and six more TDs.

If Sumrall and Mensah leave, then stud sophomore running back Makhi Hughes could join the exit. In two seasons, Hughes has run for 2,750 yards and 22 touchdowns, 1,378 yards and 15 TDs this season alone.

The early line from Las Vegas has established Florida as a 12-point favorite, but if Sumrall and Mensah aren’t available for Tulane, the spread should go higher. However, no matter if it’s an undermanned Tulane team or one at full strength, the Gators can’t afford to take this game lightly. Getting to eight wins is very important, not just for the momentum that will carry over into mat drills and spring football, but also on phase two of recruiting which begins today. The Gators can start signing players in the transfer portal starting today through December 28. When the bowl game is over, Billy Napier will have a week to focus entirely on transfers while most of Florida’s SEC brethren are getting ready for their bowl games. There could be an advantage for the Gators who are thought to be a hot ticket destination for players in the portal. 

SEC Bowl matchups

Gasparilla Bowl: FLORIDA (7-5) vs. Tulane (9-4)

Armed Forces Bowl: Oklahoma (6-6) vs. Navy (8-3)

Birmingham Bowl: Vanderbilt (6-6) vs. Georgia Tech (7-5)

Liberty Bowl: Arkansas (6-6) vs. Texas Tech (8-4)

Las Vegas Bowl: Texas A&M (8-4) vs. Southern California (6-6)

Music City Bowl: Missouri (10-2) vs. Iowa (8-4)

Reliaquest Bowl: Alabama (9-3) vs. Michigan (7-5)

Citrus Bowl: South Carolina (9-3) vs. Illinois (9-3)

Texas Bowl: LSU (8-4) vs. Baylor (8-4)

Gator Bowl: Ole Miss (9-3) vs. Duke (9-3)

College Football Playoff top 25: 1. Oregon 13-0; 2. Georgia 11-2; 3. Texas 11-2; 4. Penn State 11-2; 5. Notre Dame 11-1; 6. Ohio State 10-2; 7. Tennessee 10-2; 8. Indiana 11-1; 9. Boise State 12-1; 10. SMU 11-2; 11. Alabama 9-3; 12. Arizona State 11-2; 13. Miami 10-2; 14. Ole Miss 9-3; 15. South Carolina 9-3; 16. Clemson 10-3; 17. BYU 10-2; 18. Iowa State 10-3; 19. Missouri 9-3; 20. Illinois 9-3; 21. Syracuse 9-3; 22. Army 11-1; 23. Colorado 9-3; 24. UNLV 10-3;  25. Memphis 10-2

Associated Press top 25: 1. Oregon 13-0; 2. Georgia 11-2; 3. Notre Dame 11-1; 4. Texas 11-2; 5. Penn State 11-2; 6. Ohio State 10-2; 7. Tennessee 10-2; 8. Boise State 12-1; 9. Indiana 11-1; 10. Arizona State 11-2; 11. Alabama 9-3; 12. SMU 11-2; 13. Clemson 10-3; 14. South Carolina 9-3; 15. Miami 10-2; 16. Ole Miss 9-3; 17. BYU 10-2; 18. Iowa State 10-2; 19. Army 11-1; 20. Colorado 9-3; 21. Illinois 9-3; 22. Syracuse 9-3; 23. Missouri 9-3; 24. UNLV 10-3; 25. Memphis 10-2

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF SEEDING/SCHEDULES

First round games

No. 12 Clemson (10-3) at No. 5 Texas (11-2)

No. 11 SMU (11-2) at No. 6 Penn State (11-2)

No. 10 Indiana (11-1) at No. 7 Notre Dame (11-1)

No. 9 Tennessee (10-2) at No. 8 Ohio State (10-2)

Quarter-final games

Tennessee-Ohio State winner vs. No. 1 Oregon (13-0)

Indiana-Notre Dame winner vs. No. 2 Georgia (11-2)

SMU-Penn State winner vs. No. 3 Boise State (12-1)

Clemson-Texas winner vs. No. 4 Arizona State (11-2)

SEC FOOTBALL: PORTAL DEPARTURES/ARRIVALS

Alabama: LB Keanu Koht (RJR); CB Jahlil Hurley (FR); WR Kobe Prentice (JR); DL Jehiem Oatis (JR); WR Kendrick Law (JR); OT Miles McVay (FR); WR Caleb Odom (FR)

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); OG Josh Braun (SR); S Nico Davillier (JR)

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)

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)

Georgia: CB Julian Humphrey (SO)

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)

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)

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)

Missouri: LB Brayshawn Littlejon (FR)

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)

Ole Miss: S Key Lawrence (RSR); QB Walker Howard (RSO)

South Carolina: LB Bangally Kamara (RSR) to Kansas; LB Mohamed Kaba (RSR); WR Tyshawn Russell (FR); TE Connor Cox (SO)

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

Texas: WR Johntay Cook II (SO); DL Jaray Bledsoe

Texas A&M: DL Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy (SO); QB Conner Weigman (RSO); WR Cyrus Allen (JR); TE Jaden Platt (FR); QB Jaylen Henderson (JR); OT Aki Ogunbiyi (JR);OT Hunter Erb (SO)

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)

SEC BASKETBALL

No. 10 Alabama (7-2): Bama’s best shooter Latrell Wrightsell is done for the year with an ACL.

Arkansas (7-2): Freshman point guard Boogie Fland is averaging 15 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

No. 2 Auburn (8-1): Five players scored in double figures as Auburn bounced back from its first loss of the season (to Duke) with a 98-54 blowout win over Richmond Sunday.

No. 13 FLORIDA (9-0): The Gators are off to their best start in 19 years. They started the 2005-06 season 17-0 before absorbing their first loss. Currently the Gators are No. 6 in the NCAA Net Rankings, No. 8 in kenpom.com analytics.

Georgia (8-1): Freshman center Asa Newell leads the Bulldogs with 15.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.

No. 4 Kentucky (8-1): The Wildcats rebounded from their first loss of the season at Clemson by overcoming an 18-point second half deficit to beat Gonzaga, 90-89.

LSU (8-1): Jalen Reed, who was averaging 11.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game is done for the year with a torn ACL.

Mississippi State (8-1): Keyshawn Murphy, who averaged 4.7 points and 3.1 rebounds per game last year, is off to the best start of his career at 12.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.

Missouri (8-1): Mizzou rode 29 points by Tamar Bates and defensive pressure that forced 22 turnovers to hand No. 1 Kansas its second consecutive loss.

No. 21 Oklahoma (9-0):The backcourt duo of Jalon Moore and Jeremiah Fears are combining to average 34.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 3.4 steals per game.

No. 23 Ole Miss (8-1): Point guard Jaelyn Murray is averaging 4.8 assists per game while hitting 42.9 percent of his 3-point shots.

South Carolina (6-3): The Gamecocks hit eight 3-pointers in the second half in their 75-68 win over East Carolina.

No. 3 Tennessee (8-0): With Kansas losing twice including to Missouri on Sunday, and Auburn losing to Duke, the Vols are poised to ascend to the No. 1 ranking today.

Texas (7-2): In dropping a 76-65 game to UConn Sunday, the Longhorns were overpowered on the backboards, 39-25.

No. 22 Texas A&M (8-2): Wade Taylor IV scored 19 points to lead the Aggies past Texas Tech, 72-67, Sunday.

Vanderbilt (9-1): Jason Edwards scored 30 points off the bench Sunday as the Commodores beat TCU, 83-74.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The 12 teams for an expanded College Football Playoff have been selected with the usual bitching and moaning from teams that believe the selection committee shafted them. The fine folks 142 miles to the west, who definitely need something to laugh about after their disaster of a season, are probably giggling non-stop about now. Last year when it was a 4-team playoff, the unbeaten Seminoles were done in by 1-loss Alabama, which promptly lost to Michigan in the playoff semis.

This year, it’s Alabama doing its best butt hurt routine after SMU is in the expanded 12-team playoff and Bama will have to settle for the bowl formerly known as the Outback. Should Alabama be in rather than SMU? No question about it, but this isn’t about putting best teams in the 12-team field. If that were the case Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina would definitely be in, but they are not thanks to each of them going down in flames three times.

SMU is in because it had one regular season loss and then lost the ACC Championship Game to 3-loss Clemson on a 56-yard bomb of a field goal as time ran out. Yes, the same Clemson team that Georgia beat by 31 points, the same Clemson team that was 0-2 against ranked teams prior to beating SMU. As for SMU, Clemson and now unranked Louisville are the only ranked teams the Mustangs have played all year.  

Alabama and Ole Miss beat both Georgia and South Carolina but somehow their wins don’t count as much as those of SMU. South Carolina has won six games in a row and owns wins over three teams that were ranked when they played them. Like Alabama and Ole Miss, their wins don’t count as much as the wins by SMU.

Now, there is no doubt a 12-team playoff is better than the previous 4-team playoff or the 2-team BCS, but if we’re going to stick with a 12-team format for awhile then tweaks are necessary. It’s great that the five highest ranked conference champs get in but after that it has to be the seven best teams. This isn’t kids soccer where finishing second (see SMU) gets a participation trophy, especially at the expense of a better team.

Strength of schedule has to matter. Who you play has to matter. A near perfect record against mediocre competition is wonderful. You play who’s on your schedule, but that doesn’t make you worthy of playing for a national championship.