Somehow, some way, Florida is still in the hunt for a trip to Atlanta.
Despite two of the worst played games since the John Brantley era, the Gators still (almost) control their own path to the Southeastern Conference Championship Game.
With two conference losses, UF is tied for second in the SEC Eastern Division with Georgia and South Carolina behind one-loss Missouri.
Thanks to the Gamecocks’ win against the Tigers on Saturday, the Gators still have a shot.
What Florida needs to do is win out and pray for more teams to beat Mizzou. The Tigers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Gators because of Florida’s awful showing against Missouri on the road, but UF’s season is not over.
The Gators have the “easy” part. Just win.
Their quest begins on Saturday in Jacksonville when they take on the Bulldogs. Both teams have been wracked by injuries, which have caused Florida and Georgia fans to lament for the season that might have been. If you’re sitting in the first few rows, stay hydrated. You might be called into action if things get too rough.
Then, Vanderbilt comes to The Swamp for Florida’s homecoming game. The game that features parades, pageantry and Gator Growl is picked before the season starts and is intended to be a contest the Gators will win easily in front of all the alumni who grace Gainesville for the weekend.
However, homecoming has been rough for UF recently. From 2010 on, Florida is 2-1 in homecoming games against Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Louisiana-Lafayette. The biggest win? A seven-point victory on a last-second blocked punt against the Ragin’ Cajuns last year.
So, if Florida survives homecoming, it will travel to Columbia, S.C., to face No. 14 USC in Williams-Brice Stadium with an SEC title game berth still within the realm of possibility.
The Gators had a bad day the last time they played in a town named Columbia, but they need to shake those memories and pull out a win against the Ol’ Ball Coach, Steve Spurrier.
It’s possible — South Carolina is in the middle of an up-and-down season that includes a loss to Tennessee and narrow victories against UCF and Kentucky.
But even if the Gators win out, they would still need assistance to reach Atlanta. The Tigers need to lose at least twice.
Missouri still has a tough road ahead of it. A somewhat resurgent Tennessee team is next on the schedule.
The Volunteers nearly pulled off an upset against the Bulldogs before knocking off the Gamecocks as part of a topsy-turvy week for the SEC.
Things returned to some semblance of normality last week as Alabama blew out Tennessee, but the Vols have another chance to defeat a division leader and send the SEC into anarchy against the Tigers.
Kentucky follows Tennessee on Mizzou’s schedule. This is as close to a surefire win as any SEC game. Next.
The Tigers’ final two games will be their toughest. An upstart Ole Miss squad that already took down a top-10 LSU team followed by the Texas A&M Fightin’ Johnny Footballs await Missouri.
Assuming the Tigers win those first two games as the heavy favorite, Florida fans will need their friends in Oxford, Miss., and College Station, Texas, to do them some big favors.
The Rebels have already shown the ability to play with the conference big boys, and the Aggies have the ability to beat any team in the conference on any given Saturday thanks to the pairing of Johnny Manziel and Mike Evans.
Missouri needs to lose both of those games for Florida to make it to the SEC title game. That way, the Gators can receive the honor of being obliterated by Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide — a noble fate Florida would be lucky to enjoy.
Follow Adam Lichtenstein on Twitter @alichtenstein24.
Coach Will Muschamp watches players warm up prior to Florida’s 36-17 loss to Missouri on Oct. 19 at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo.
