Seemingly overnight, Florida Basketball has a budding rivalry brewing with Alabama. Todd Golden wasn’t shy last week about calling out the Crimson Tide over their G-League nonsense, and it has created a bit of a back-and-forth between the two teams in the media.
On Sunday, they will play for real, but for now, Todd Golden isn’t worried about whether or not he kicked a hornet’s nest and woke up Alabama.
Todd Golden isn’t backing down
During his media availability this week, Golden was asked whether or not he was concerned that he gave Alabama bulletin board material ahead when he chastized the Crimson Tide for adding Charles Bediako to the roster out of the G-League:
“I think it would be a really strange and unconfident place to be in if a team adds one guy and you're like, holy crap, we can't beat these guys now."
Is Todd Golden worried about giving Alabama bulletin board material?
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) January 30, 2026
Todd Golden: "I think it would be a really strange and unconfident place to be in if a team adds one guy and you're like holy crap, we can't beat these guys now." https://t.co/3Ed4vbV4IH pic.twitter.com/v4EgbEPKEp
Make no mistake about it, Alabama has heard the noise ahead of Sunday’s game. After their win against Missouri, Alabama guard Latrell Wrightsell said, “They called us out, so we’re gonna be ready for them on Sunday. Not much else to talk about.”
Alabama head coach Nate Oats is also very aware of the noise, as he already started whining about whether or not Florida camps out in the lane too long, as he is already trying to work the refs.
The thing about Golden’s approach to this whole situation is that he is 100% correct to call out the Crimson Tide for adding Bediako AND he is 100% correct in his approach to build a mindset within Florida’s locker room to make no excuses. If anything, Golden’s comments over the past couple of weeks have served as motivation for Florida more than Alabama.
Because as much as Golden will try to work refs during the game, his post-game approach has been to never blame anyone but Florida when it falls short. Frankly, without this mindset, the Gators wouldn’t have won the national championship last season.
There is a reason why Golden has a national title while Oats has to desperately resort to gimmicks just to stay competitive in the SEC.