Vanderbilt v. Florida

This is not one of the more stirring fixtures on the SEC calendar.

For much of their history, Vandy and Florida didn't play each other very often. In fact, they didn't play at all until 1945 -- twelve years after the SEC began. Since the SEC split into two divisions for the 1992 season, however, they have met every year -- and the Gators have won every time. This is not surprising; the Gators have been the best team in the SEC since 1992, while the Dores have been very much the worst. The Dores last beat Florida in 1988. In fact, the Gators lead this series 32-9-2, and they may never lose to Vandy again.

Currently, the longest continuous losing streak by one team to another in college football is Kentucky's quarter-century of defeat to Tennessee. But if Kentucky can knock off a depleted Tennessee team this year, I would expect the Vandy/Florida series to eventually take its place in the record books.

Vanderbilt and Florida have met in two previous UCFC games. In 1983, Florida captured the UCFC with a 31-17 victory over LSU, and the next week (October 8) the Gators successfully defended their title, beating Vandy 29-10. In 2009, Florida held the title for most of the year, and Vandy gave them no trouble, falling to the Gators 27-3 in Gainesville.

This year has been surprisingly painful for the Gators, who lost to Alabama, LSU and Mississippi State in consecutive weeks. The Gators are only 3-3 in the SEC, but they still control their destiny -- if they beat Vandy and South Carolina in their last two SEC games, they will capture the SEC East. Furthermore, their win over a hot Georgia team last week suggests that they are coming together. Vandy (whose coach mysteriously retired in late July, just before the season began), is bumping along with a record of 1-4 in the SEC and 2-6 overall -- pretty typical for them. Vandy has a chance to knock off Kentucky next week, and they will certainly try to pick up a rare victory over a depleted Tennessee squad the week after that. But the Dores have no chance in this game.