The next page of the Florida-Tennessee rivalry will be written on Saturday. While the Gators’ bowl eligibility was snapped following their loss to Ole Miss, Florida still has the opportunity to extend its home-win streak against the Volunteers to 11 games. This year’s matchup looks slightly different than most with Florida facing a coaching vacancy and No. 20 Tennessee (7-3, 3-3 SEC) holding the most dangerous offense in the SEC.
After struggling in the second half against Ole Miss, and possibly its future coach Lane Kiffin, Florida will look to put the stumbles aside and take down its conference foe.
Limit Tennessee’s explosiveness
The Volunteers’ strong suit this season has been its offensive weapons. Quarterback Joey Aguilar leads the No. 2 offense in the nation with 2,941 passing yards and 22 touchdowns. He’s thrown for more than 330 passing yards in four separate occasions this season.
“He’s done a really good job of managing the offense and they’re as explosive as can be,” Gonzales said Wednesday.
The Vols have No. 1 offense in the conference and average 495 yards per game. Tennessee is yet to post fewer than 20 points and has accumulated at least 34 points in games won.
Running back De’Shean Bishop has racked up 10 scores thus far and averages 6.5 yards per carry. Aguilar has also made it a point to spread the ball to his numerous weapons.
The wide receiver corps of Chris Brazzell II, Mike Matthews and Braylon Staley has played an immense part in Tennessee’s high-powered offense.
Brazzell, a fourth-year route runner, has accounted for eight of Aguilar’s touchdowns and has notched a career-high 873 receiving yards.
“Are they going to hit something?” Gonzales said. “Yeah. But again, it's about how we respond, how we bounce back. Don't let it fester, and don't let it affect the next play.”
The Gators will have a familiar face back on the field Saturday. Redshirt senior defensive lineman Caleb Banks will make his return for Florida after undergoing foot surgery following the loss against LSU on Sept. 13.
“You got a young man that fought hard, he went through rehab, continued to push it to make sure he could try to come back,” Gonzales said.
Banks is an integral part on the defensive line. At 6-foot-6, 330-pounds, he is a disruptive force and Florida will rely on him for added pressure on Aguilar. He tallied 21 total tackles and 4.5 sacks in 2024 and entered this season with expectations he would go as high as the first round in the upcoming NFL draft. After facing surgery just two months ago, Banks will hit the field for his second time this season.
Take advantage of Tennessee’s inconsistent defense
While the Volunteers pride themselves on their ability to spread the ball offensively, their defensive group has fallen short thus far. Tennessee has allowed the third-most yards in the SEC and is allowing 28.9 points per game.
Missed tackles and struggling against the pass have been at the forefront of defensive coordinator Tim Banks’ group all season.
Tennessee has given up the most passing yards per game and the third most touchdowns through the air. The Vols have also allowed opponents to post more than 24 points in eight different contests.
Despite the Gators being without junior wide receiver Eugene Wilson III and freshman wideout Dallas Wilson, they may see the return of freshman Vernell Brown III.
Brown has missed two games this season dealing with a shoulder injury and was on the wrong side of a gametime decision last week. He is tagged with a questionable status per Wednesday’s availability report.
Freshman wide receiver TJ Abrams and senior J. Michael Sturdivant stepped up in last week’s loss. Abrams, a Florida local, added a career-high 76 yards. If Brown is unable to suit up, he will be a prime target for Lagway once more.
“It's very cool to see him be able to blossom and take advantage of the opportunity that we have now that the receiver room is a little bit lighter than it was at the beginning of the year,” Sturdivant said.
Sturdivant caught sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway’s sole passing touchdown in Oxford, reeling in a 57-yard catch-and-score in the second quarter.
“We have to do our job as receivers to be able to go out and catch those balls and get open down the field,” Sturdivant said. “We do it in practice, and when it comes game time, we just got to make the play."
Play a full 60 minutes
Lagway looked back to his freshman year self against Ole Miss — for about 30 minutes. Florida led the Rebels 24-20 at half, but fell short after the break.
Florida added its most points in a single half since its season opener against Long Island, but completely fell apart after accomplishing the feat.
Lagway managed to bounce back from being benched against Kentucky and finished the contest with 218 passing yards and a touchdown, but a late interception sealed the Rebels’ victory.
“You'll hear me keep saying, 'reset, refocus' with the quarterback,” Gonzales said. “That's been the main objective with him and to continue the process.”
The Gators’ storyline of the season has been their inability to play a full 60 minutes. Florida is averaging less than a touchdown in the second half this season and didn’t score a second-half point against Kentucky or Ole Miss.
The offense totaled three punts, four turnover on downs and an interception across each second-half drive in its previous two contests.
Contact Riley Orovitz at rorovitz@alligator.org. Follow her on X @rileyorovitz.
Riley is a sophomore sports journalism student and is the swim & dive beat reporter for Fall 2025 in her first semester with The Alligator. In her free time, she may be watching past Miami Dolphins or Florida Panthers highlights or hanging out with her friends.
