2020 Florida Gators football team

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2020 Florida Gators football
Florida Gators logo
SEC Eastern Division champion
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEastern Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 12
APNo. 13
Record8–4 (8–2 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBrian Johnson (1st season)
Offensive schemeSpread
Defensive coordinatorTodd Grantham (3rd season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumBen Hill Griffin Stadium
Seasons
← 2019
2021 →
2020 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 13 Florida x   8 2     8 4  
No. 7 Georgia   7 2     8 2  
Missouri   5 5     5 5  
Kentucky   4 6     5 6  
Tennessee   3 7     3 7  
South Carolina   2 8     2 8  
Vanderbilt   0 9     0 9  
West Division
No. 1 Alabama x$#^   10 0     13 0  
No. 4 Texas A&M   8 1     9 1  
Auburn   6 4     6 5  
LSU*   5 5     5 5  
Ole Miss   4 5     5 5  
Arkansas   3 7     3 7  
Mississippi State   3 7     4 7  
Championship: Alabama 52, Florida 46
  • # – College Football Playoff champion
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • * – ineligible for postseason due to self imposed ban
    Note: Due to COVID-19, the SEC played a conference-only schedule.
Rankings from AP Poll.

The 2020 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gators played their home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida, and competed in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by third-year head coach Dan Mullen.

Preseason

SEC Media Days

In the preseason media poll, Florida was predicted to win the East Division. Florida received the fourth-most votes to win the SEC Championship Game.[1]

Schedule

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 college football season was postponed, and there was some question if the season would be played at all. On July 31, the Southeastern Conference announced that its teams would play a ten-game conference-only season beginning in late September. Florida's previously scheduled games against non-conference opponents Eastern Washington, New Mexico State, and South Alabama were all canceled due to the scheduling change, as was the annual rivalry game against Florida State, breaking a streak of annual meetings that began in 1957. Conference games against Texas A&M and Arkansas were added to increase the usual eight-game SEC schedule to ten.[2][3]

Attendance at all college football games was restricted during the 2020 season due to COVID-19 social distancing considerations. The University of Florida limited home attendance to 20% of capacity at Florida Field. All road games along with the SEC Championship Game and the Cotton Bowl Classic were played with similar attendance caps.[4]

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
September 2612:00 p.m.at
ESPN
W 51–3513,926
October 312:00 p.m.
Gainesville, FL
ESPNW 38–2415,120
October 1012:00 p.m.at No. 21 Texas A&MNo. 4ESPNL 38–4124,709
October 31[a]7:30 p.m.MissouridaggerNo. 10
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL
SECN Alt.W 41–1712,049
November 73:30 p.m.vs. No. 5
CBS
W 44–2819,210
November 147:00 p.m.
ESPN
W 63–3516,116
November 2112:00 p.m.at
ABC
W 38–171,147
November 2812:00 p.m.KentuckyNo. 6
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
ESPNW 34–1014,453
December 53:30 p.m.at
Knoxville, TN (rivalry
)
CBSW 31–1922,943
December 12[b]7:00 p.m.LSUNo. 6
  • Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
  • Gainesville, FL (rivalry)
ESPNL 34–3716,610
December 198:00 p.m.vs. No. 1 )CBSL 46–5216,520
December 308:00 p.m.vs. No. 6
Arlington, TX (Cotton Bowl Classic
)
ESPNL 20–5517,323
^[a] Due to COVID-19 management requirements in response to positive tests and subsequent quarantine of individuals within the Florida program, the Missouri game was moved from October 24 to 31.[5]
^[b] Due to COVID-19 management requirements in response to positive tests and subsequent quarantine of individuals within the Florida program, the LSU game was moved from October 17 to December 12.[6]

[7]

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516Final
AP
88*5534101010866666111013
Coaches88*663989855555111012
CFPNot released66677Not released

Game summaries

Ole Miss

Florida Gators at Ole Miss Rebels – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 5 Florida 14 14 131051
Ole Miss 7 7 71435

at

Oxford, MS

Game information
Uniform Combination
Helmet Jersey Pants

South Carolina

South Carolina Gamecocks at Florida Gators – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
South Carolina 7 7 3724
No. 3 Florida 14 10 14038

at

Gainesville, FL

  • Date: October 3, 2020
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: N at 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Game attendance: 15,120
  • Referee: Lee Hedrick
  • TV announcers (
  • Boxscore
Game information
Uniform Combination
Helmet Jersey Pants

Texas A&M

Florida Gators at Texas A&M Aggies – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 4 Florida 14 7 71038
No. 21 Texas A&M 7 10 71741

at

College Station, TX

Game information
Uniform Combination
Helmet Jersey Pants

Missouri

Missouri Tigers at Florida Gators – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Missouri 0 7 01017
No. 10 Florida 6 14 14741

at

Gainesville, FL

  • Date: October 31, 2020
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Temperature: 76 °F (24 °C) • Wind: NE at 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) • Weather: Clear
  • Game attendance: 12,049
  • Referee: David Smith
  • TV announcers (SECN Alt.): Mike Morgan, Hutson Mason, Taylor Davis[11]
  • Boxscore
Game information
Uniform Combination*
Helmet Jersey Pants
  • For homecoming, the Gators wore throwback uniforms featuring blue helmets and jerseys based on those worn in the mid-1960s.[12]

Georgia

Florida Gators vs. Georgia Bulldogs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 8 Florida 14 24 3344
No. 5 Georgia 14 7 7028

at

Jacksonville, FL

  • Date: November 7, 2020
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m.
  • Game weather: Temperature: 79 °F (26 °C) • Wind: ENE at 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) • Weather: Partly cloudy
  • Game attendance: 19,210
  • Referee: James Carter
  • TV announcers (
  • Boxscore
Game information