You might think an important in-state soccer showdown against No. 1 Florida State is a game that standout senior forward Savannah Jordan circled on her calendar before the season started.
In her last year at Florida, you might think Jordan would be waiting to pounce on the opportunity to beat one of her team’s biggest rivals in the regular season one last time.
You might also think this a game that she has at least thought about since Aug. 19, when the Gators' season officially started.
You would be wrong.
“It’s funny, actually. Someone asked me who we were playing this weekend a couple weeks ago, and I was like, ‘I’m not sure, I’ll have to look,’” Jordan said.
“So, for me, I try to take it weekend by weekend and focus on who we are playing.”
On Friday, Jordan and the No. 5 Gators (3-1-0) travel to Tallahassee to take on the Seminoles (4-0-0) in a top-10 matchup.
It will also mark Florida’s second-consecutive Friday night matchup against a top-three team.
Since Jordan joined the team in 2013, the Gators are 2-1 against the Seminoles.
Most recently, the Gators won 3-2 at home last season. Jordan contributed with Florida’s first goal of the game in the 18th minute.
“We know it’s going to be a tough game, big rival for us, so it should be really exciting,” Jordan said.
“I think if we get everyone on the same page about that we should be good to go.”
Jordan, who leads the team with four goals, has played the most minutes of all her teammates this season with the exception of sophomore goalkeeper Kaylan Marckese.
She was also named the Southeastern Conference Offensive Player of the Week last week, the seventh-such honor of her career.
The three-time All American's skills have been consistent throughout her career, as exemplified by her recent performance against No. 15 UCLA.
Jordan supplied some desperately needed offense for her team by securing the Gators’ 4-3 victory when she pinballed a shot off a UCLA defender for an own-goal in the 96th minute of the game.
Head coach Becky Burleigh is excited to see how Jordan and her teammates react to playing their third-straight road game after a weekend spent traveling cross-country.
“I think it’s a great opportunity. This stretch of our schedule is one of the most fun parts of our schedule because we really get to test ourselves against top-teams,” Burleigh said.
“(We can) sort of see where we can improve and find out our weaknesses.”
Going into the game, Florida leads the all-time series 13-10.
But the Gators know that Florida State is going to try their best to even that record, starting with this weekend.
“I think that we are on a really high note right now,” Jordan said.
“I think were are on a high note going into this weekend.”
Contact Lauren Staff at lstaff@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter @lstaff27.
UF forward Savannah Jordan takes a shot on goal during Florida's 5-2 win against Iowa State on Aug. 19, 2016, at James G. Pressly Stadium.
