Florida takes its show on the road tonight in a highly anticipated top-10 matchup against Texas A&M, but if you believe the players, the only number they are concerned about is the final score.
Fresh off a weekend sweep of conference foes Georgia and Missouri, Southeastern Conference offensive player of the week Savannah Jordan leads the No. 9 Gators (8-2, 3-0 SEC) into College Station, Texas, to take on the sixth-ranked Aggies (9-1-1, 3-0 SEC) at 8 p.m.
But Florida is not putting stock into what the voters think about either team.
"We don’t know anybody’s ranking, I don’t even know our ranking," junior Christen Westphal said. "I think they’re kind of pointless, honestly."
While those rankings will have little influence on tonight’s outcome, they do speak volumes about the quality season each team is having.
The Gators enter College Station on a four-game win streak, outscoring opponents 11-3 during that stretch. They’re undefeated in SEC play and haven’t lost a game in regulation since August 29.
But both of Florida’s losses this season came on the road, and Texas A&M boasts one of the toughest home-field advantages in the country.
The Aggies are 7-0 at home this season, outscoring opponents 20-5 when playing at Ellis Field, the last time being a 3-0 victory on September 18 against Tennessee.
Texas A&M is an offensive minded team that will look to attack early and often. Florida coach Becky Burleigh knows that defending them will be a big challenge.
"We respect their players," she said. "They’re a lot like us. They’re a senior-laden group, they’re older, they’re experienced, and I think that part of it is what makes them special.
"I think the biggest thing for us is possession. When we keep the ball a lot, the other team doesn’t have it. Nothing can happen when they don’t have it."
Westphal, who plays primarily as a defender, agreed with Burleigh.
"For our team, our offense is our defense," she said. "As long as we keep the ball and we play how we wanna play, we shouldn’t be pressured that bad."
Playing a weekend on the road means the team has limited practice time during the week, and because of that, Burleigh said she does not worry about the opponent.
Instead, she has the players work on themselves, focusing on the details of their own games.
"It’s more about sort of refining some of the things that we do, and making sure that we focus on the details that we need to – to prevent them from scoring, and to create scoring opportunities for ourselves," Burleigh said.
Follow Graham Hack on Twitter @graham_hack24
Christen Westphal dribbles the ball during Florida's 2-1 win against Georgia at James G. Pressly Stadium.
