The state of Florida offers some of college football's most intense rivalries, but one of its most iconic has become a little one-sided in recent years.
Both Florida and Florida State are coming off disappointing years, and both will be under new leadership in Dan Mullen and Willie Taggart, respectively. What will it take from these two coaches to elevate this rivalry back into the national spotlight?
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This week, Sporting News will look at five rivalries that have taken on a one-sided feel and whether that will change in 2018. Today, we'll look at the next chapter in Florida-FSU.
Florida-Florida State
Florida State has won the last five meetings of this series, and Jimbo Fisher left for Texas A&M after compiling a 7-1 record against the Gators. Florida still leads the series 34-26-2, but the Seminoles have gained ground.
It's been how long?
Florida's only win against the Seminoles this decade came in 2012, when the Gators erupted for 24 fourth-quarter points in a 37-26 victory in Tallahassee. Jeff Driskel was Florida's quarterback, and Will Muschamp was the coach.
How we got here
The cyclical nature of the in-state rivalry post-Steve Spurrier-Bobby Bowden continues. Urban Meyer finished 5-1 against Florida State from 2005-10 before Fisher took control of the rivalry at Florida State. That sets up an exciting new chapter between Mullen and Taggart.
This year
Florida travels to Doak Campbell Stadium to take on Florida State on Nov. 24 in the regular-season finale for both teams.
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What's new?
We have new coaches on both sides. Mullen takes over at Florida after a long stint at Mississippi State. Mullen has been a highly regarded coach for years and knows the Gators' program from his days as an offensive coordinator. Taggart, the former USF coach, takes over at Florida State after a one-year stint at Oregon. He's an excellent recruiter with knowledge of the state, and inherits a team loaded with talent. Both coaches are offensive-minded and are known for their work with quarterbacks.
What it needs?
A series of competitive game where both offenses score in the 30s. Playoff implications would obviously help, but Bowden and Spurrier built this rivalry with exciting shootouts. It needs to be that kind of game in Tallahassee this year to generate some more excitement to get off the B-roll on rivalry weekend.
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Will it change?
That's the big question. There's always debate whether this is even the biggest game in the state. Miami is back on track with third-year coach Mark Richt, and he has a two-year head start on Mullen and Taggart. The alphabet soup of in-state Group of schools (UCF, USF and FAU) has become viral in recent seasons. Mullen and Taggart are tasked with bringing back the national stakes in a game that hasn't had that in recent years. It's on them to put this rivalry back where it belongs.
