One week after suffering their first loss under head coach Jon Sumrall, the No. 16 Florida Gators (4-1, 2-1 SEC) return home to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to battle the South Carolina Gamecocks (2-3, 0-3 SEC). Follow along for live updates.
Fresh off their first loss of the season, Jon Sumrall and the Florida Gators are looking to bounce back in a big way. At 12:45 p.m. Saturday, No. 16 Florida will host South Carolina at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in a battle between teams on opposite sides of the conference standings. As part of this week’s Tailgate Edition, I spoke with John Davis, the sports editor at The Daily Gamecock, the University of South Carolina’s student-run newspaper.
Florida’s Homecoming football game, originally dubbed “Dad’s Day,” was created as an opportunity for students’ fathers to come to campus. But in 1916, it became the school-spirited event modern Gators recognize.
For over a century, Florida’s Homecoming has been a cornerstone of Gators football. No. 16 Florida (4-1, 2-1 SEC) will look to add to the rich history when it hosts South Carolina for the 103rd Homecoming football game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
No. 16 Florida (4-1, 2-1 SEC) plummeted eight spots in the AP Top 25 Poll following the road loss. It now faces South Carolina (2-3, 0-3), which has yet to prove it can tango with top SEC talent. The Gamecocks opened the season 2-0 but have failed to play a cohesive 60 minutes in any of their three latest contests.
Behind Lena Bailey’s late goal, Florida (6-4-3, 2-2-2 SEC) defeated No. 5 Alabama (12-2, 5-1 SEC) 1-0 at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
As the championship season grows near, the Gators stand ready to compete in their final regular-season race on Friday. In the Nuttycombe Invitational, the men will face 15 ranked teams, and the women will face 13. This race has historically been one of the most competitive in all of cross country.
Missouri looks to claw its way to victory against the No. 5 Gators in a home battle as Florida (12-1, 3-0 SEC) eyes its 11th consecutive win.
Florida could strengthen its case for a spot in the 64-team field with another signature win. That opportunity arrives Thursday when No. 5 Alabama visits Gainesville.
Ahead of its Saturday afternoon matchup against South Carolina (2-3), No. 16 Florida (4-1) has released its initial availability report on Wednesday night.
No. 3 Gators women’s golf experienced the worst words in golf Wednesday: Your tee time has been canceled. After two rounds at The Ally in West Point, Mississippi, the final round was called off due to illness among the competing teams.
Florida landed four-star center Kamsi Awaka just over a week after Ian Condon made his announcement to join the program. Awaka is the No. 41 recruit in the 2027 class and boasted offers from Michigan, Connecticut, Arizona and Michigan State.
In Week 5, the SEC took part in some of Saturday’s most notable games. Florida fell for the first time in 2026 in a rout at Missouri, Alabama demolished Mississippi State on the road and Kentucky won an overtime thriller at South Carolina. Now, the Alligator’s Florida football beat reporters, Ava DiCecca, Max Bernstein, Curan Ahern and Riley Orovitz, are back to make picks for this week’s seven-game slate.
Florida football saw glaring issues hinder its effectiveness on both sides of the ball in a 45-17 loss to Missouri, but with the Gators set for a Homecoming bout against South Carolina on Saturday, defensive coordinator Brad White and offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner spoke on exactly what needs to be improved ahead of Florida’s 12:45 p.m. kick.
In his sixth appearance at Gator Talk, Florida head coach Jon Sumrall spoke about the need to embrace the demoralizing 45-17 loss at Missouri and grow moving forward.
Solutions by The State News
