I had ESPN on my TV in the background Monday afternoon like I usually do, but when I looked up from my computer, I saw something strange.
At the bottom of the screen, right up there with "MLB" and "NFL" was a segment of the BottomLine labeled "LSU-FLA."
When it was finally time for the Gators' segment to be on screen, it turned out to be a summary of the last five meetings between UF and LSU. No breaking news, no mind-blowing information.
I was on the phone with a college sports editor at the time, and neither of us could figure out why ESPN would have that scrolling along with useful things like baseball scores or football injury updates. The Gators-Tigers game will be aired on CBS, too, so it didn't make sense for any reason other than this: The UF-LSU contest is a season-changing one.
Let the hype and melodrama begin.
With a loss in this game, the Gators' season is finished. Two losses is just not going to cut it this year, as teams from the Big 10 Conference and Big 12 Conference will finish with just one defeat at most.
So if the Gators are to have any aspirations of a national title before Percy Harvin and Brandon Spikes ditch small-town Gainesville for the NFL, they will need to win this game. Beat LSU, and then they can worry about beating Georgia. Lose, and it's another unhappy Jan. 1 in the Capital One Bowl or Outback Bowl.
These two teams have played each other every year since 1971, and it's no surprise they don't like each other anymore. I'd argue LSU is a bigger rivalry game in the last 10 years than Florida State, but people would call me crazy.
Case in point: The winner of this game in the last two years has gone on to win the national championship. If that's not convincing enough to show the Gators need to win this game, I don't know what else to tell you, but I'll try to give a couple more examples of this game's importance.
How about this: UF called a Sunday night practice for the second week in a row, this time to get Arkansas review out of the way as fast as possible to start on preparation for LSU.
They're going to need the work. The Tigers have one of the best defensive lines in the country, junior running back Charles Scott is seventh in the nation in rushing yards per game, and freshman quarterback Jarrett Lee is surprising everyone at 27th in the country in passing efficiency, three spots behind golden boy Tim Tebow.
Or this: UF will be spending the week in the weight room watching highlights of the 2007 game with then-Tigers running back Jacob Hester plowing forward for a few inches on fourth downs.
"It's tough watching it," sophomore offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey said. "You get motivated, like, 'We've got to go. We can't let this happen again.'"
They can't let it happen again because their season depends on victory.
So, yes, UF needs to win this game.
And if the Gators don't, you can start preparing for a January trip to sunny Orlando.
