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Florida football: FBS teams the Gators have played but never beaten

By Will Thomas

September 3, 2011; Gainesville FL, USA; A Florida Gators helmet on the field prior to the game against the Florida Atlantic Owls at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
September 3, 2011; Gainesville FL, USA; A Florida Gators helmet on the field prior to the game against the Florida Atlantic Owls at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame linebacker Nolan Zieglar (42) tries to tackle wide receiver Jaden Greathouse (19) during the Notre Dame Blue-Gold Spring Football game on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend.Nd Football Blue Gold Game /

Florida football has never beaten: Notre Dame Fighting Irish (0-1)

Like their game against Michigan State, the Gators dropped their lone matchup to Notre Dame on a big stage, 39-28 in the Sugar Bowl.

This team, coached by Steve Spurrier, couldn’t finish off their 10-2 season with a bowl win.

With an offense led by Shane Matthews and Errict Rhett, the Gators went 7-0 in SEC play and scored 32.4 points per game, but just got outscored by the Irish in New Orleans.

For a program with as much history as the Irish have, it would have been nice to be the winner of this lone matchup, but the Gators couldn’t pull it off.

Would Florida football beat them today?

This is the first hypothetical matchup that I’ve got a pretty definitive answer for, and unfortunately, my gut tells me no,

Marcus Freeman has done a great job with that program and picked them up after a really rocky start to last season, and I think that he and his guys would get the better of the Gators.

The defensive-minded approach that Freeman would bring from his history as a defensive coordinator would probably shut down what figures to be a rather one-dimensional offense for the Gators.

But the good news is that we don’t need to worry about playing them unless we draw them in a bowl game.

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