There is nothing like the season opening game for the Florida Gators

It’s finally here! Game week! Opening Game Weekend! The first home game of the season is upon us.

I’ve always been a fan of college football, heck, who am I kidding? I’ve been a fan of any kind of football for as long as I can remember. But in 1987 I moved to Gainesville. I was fortunate to be able to establish friendships with some of the players and coaches and it didn’t take long to become a true Florida Gators fan. I think the first home game in 1987 was the first key part of my Gator transformation. The Gators beat Tulsa that day 52-0. I learned the traditions. I joined in with 2-Bits, The Gator Chomp, and stood and swayed without knowing the words to "We Are The Boys."

I was there for both losses on opening day since then in 1989 against Ole Miss and in 2024 against Miami. The Gators have only lost 7 times when they opened the season at home against 69 wins. Overall, they are 89-25-1 over their 115-year history of playing football. So, the odds are in our favor for this weekend at home!

I was there when Florida Atlantic was the opening day opponent in 2011, which was also the debut game for Will Muschamp. The Gators won that one 41-3 as John Brantley threw for 229 yards, Jeff Demps rushed for 105 yards and Chris Rainey led the receivers with 67 yards. The Gators led 24-3 at the half and pulled away in the second half for a comfortable win. How in the world did that team end up 7-6? Maybe Brantley’s two interceptions were a sign of the struggles to come.

I was there when the Owls came back to the Swamp in 2021 and lost 35-14. That team was led by Coach Mullen and went 6-7. Let’s hope there is not a trend here! That game featured Emory Jones as the starting QB, who went 17-27 passing for 113 yards with one touchdown and one interception. It also saw the introduction of Anthony Richardson who went 3-8 for 40 yards but ran for 160 yards to lead the team! Malik Davis also ran for more than 100 yards and the Gators put up 400 yards on the ground alone.

I was there when the Gators first played the Owls in 2007 but that wasn’t an opening game. Urban was the coach and Tim Tebow was the QB as the Gators put a 59-20 beatdown on the upstarts from Boca Raton. Tebow threw for 346 yards, 3 TDs and 1 Interception in the win. The Gators gave up 20 points in the second quarter. Whatever the coaches said at halftime must have worked because the Owls would not score again.

I was also there in 2015 when the Gators needed overtime to defeat the Owls 20-14 in another November contest the week before playing FSU. The score was 0-0 at the half! Florida pushed out to a 14-point lead in the third quarter only to watch FAU tie the game with 8:03 left in the fourth. An overtime pass from Treon Harris to Jake McGee was the winning play. That was under Coach Jim McElwain. Somehow that team with 10-4! It seems playing them early gives the Gators the advantage as opposed to playing them as a trap game later in the season.

Opening days come with jitters and nervous anticipation. In Florida, it also comes with the potential for weather delays and even cancellations! I have been there through the monsoons, the oppressive heat, the sweltering humidity, and even the cancellation of the game against Idaho. There is nothing quite like the experience you get by being in the Swamp with 90,000 of your closest friends on opening day!

This weekend at least we get a night game! The fans will have to get rowdy at tailgates and fraternity houses all over campus all day. The start of the Jon Sumrall Era will be launched with a crowd in a frenzy and at full volume. Does the opponent matter? You bet your orange and blue socks on it. Napier went 3-1 but will be remembered as the coach when the 34-year home opener streak ended with the beating applied by Miami in 2024. I for one do not like openers against quality opponents. I like games where there will be a little challenge, but where the success of the guys in Orange and Blue is almost guaranteed. We have enough challenging games in the SEC schedule. A cupcake or two to start the regular season gives the guys a chance to learn, make a few mistakes, and get coached up without it ending the season dreams before they even get to SEC play.

What will this season hold? Well, that’s anyone's guess right now, but in a week, we will either be 1-0 or 0-1. Time will tell but we don’t have to wait much longer now!