Expert Predictions: Texas A&M game can go either way for Florida
Florida football gets set to return to the gridiron this weekend against the Texas A&M Aggies in College Station, Texas. The matchup features a pair of programs that have found little success in 2022, both of which are currently mired with a 1-4 record in Southeastern Conference competition.
The Aggies hold the edge in the all-time series history with a 3-2 mark, going 2-1 against the Gators since entering the SEC including the last two matchups. Prior to that, the two schools split their meetings with Florida earning a home win during the 1962 regular season while Texas A&M evened things up with a Sun Bowl win in El Paso, Texas, in 1976.
The Gators Wire crew converged to give their predictions for the Gators’ upcoming road matchup with the Aggies. Take a look below at what we think will go down this Saturday on Kyle Field this Saturday.
Adam Dubbin - Managing Editor
Initially, my prediction was set at 28-24 in favor of Florida, stating, “This matchup is truly between a stoppable force and a movable object,” as well as, “Both teams have had disappointing seasons, though TAMU has left significantly more to be desired.”
However, the dismissal of starting edge defender [autotag]Brenton Cox Jr[/autotag]. has completely deflated my optimistic outlook and flipped the scoreboard. This team has serious issues on defense already and the loss of its top defensive lineman just makes things more perilous.
The game will be a close one, but unfortunately given the recent news as well as home field advantage for the opponent, [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]’s boys will fall short.
Texas A&M 31, Florida 28
David Rosenberg - Assistant Editor
I’ll play the devil’s advocate to Adam’s point. As deflating as the Cox dismissal was, [autotag]O’Cyrus Torrence[/autotag]’s words during Monday’s availability provided a glimmer of hope for the rest of the season.
“I’m starting to see it compared to how we started in fall from the first game even to now,” Torrence said when questioned about the team’s buy-in to Billy Napier’s process. “It’s very important because I feel like there’s a lot of games left to be played. Depending on how we finish, we can have a pretty good season and have a nice record.”
He continued to say that what’s done over the next month will have a major effect on how the team comes together in year two of the Billy Napier era. Torrence has seen Napier’s process work before, so I’m going to take his word and trust the Gators when I probably shouldn’t.
It’s going to be close against Texas A&M, but the Gators can win if they play the entire game with the same passion as that third quarter against Georgia.
Florida 31, Texas A&M 24
Pat Dooley - Staff Writer
The Aggies are nothing to write home about unless you are writing a sad song. These are two sinking ships passing in the night with two bad defenses and two erratic offenses. I’m sticking with the home team.
Texas A&M 30, Florida 27
Sergio De La Espriella - Staff Writer
Before the season started, this game was supposed to be one of the toughest games on the Gators’ schedule. A road game in College Station against a team projected to compete for the SEC West title going up against a first-year head coach that’s rebuilding a historic program. Ten weeks later, the stakes couldn’t be any more different.
The Aggies are 3-5, have lost four straight games, are riddled with injuries, and have had enough off-season issues to last an entire coaching tenure. Their offense is stuck in 2012, and conversations about Jimbo Fisher’s buyout have been more interesting than watching A&M’s offensive scheme. This should be a bounce-back win for the Gators, right?
As Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friend.” The Gators have been very inconsistent this season, and the dismissal of Brenton Cox from the team earlier this week makes an already bad defense look more susceptible to giving up points. The combination of A&M’s offense (even though freshman quarterback Connor Weigman looked pretty good last week in his first start) and Florida’s defense does not excite me when those two units are on the field.
Hopefully, we get the same Gators team that played in the third quarter of the Georgia game and not in the first half.
Florida 24, Texas A&M 21
Tyler Nettuno - Gators Wire alumnus
I wish I could say I feel anything resembling confidence heading into Florida’s matchup against a truly mediocre Texas A&M team that plays a completely uninspiring brand of football. Alas!
The Gators acquitted themselves decently in the loss to Georgia, but there also wasn’t really any reason to believe this team has turned a corner. The Aggies, meanwhile, saw a very strong debut from five-star true freshman quarterback Conner Weigman in a tight loss to Ole Miss. The Rebels’ defense has flaws, but it’s leagues better than the Gators’.
Weigman could be in for a big game as he gets more comfortable with the offense, and we know that Texas A&M boasts a good defense that should be able to keep Florida’s run game relatively in check. Unless Anthony Richardson gets going with his legs, I don’t know if UF has enough offensive dynamism to keep the Aggies on their toes.
The fact that it’s an 11 a.m. local kick should help nerf the 12th Man crowd a bit at Kyle Field, but I think there’s too much going against Florida in this one.
Texas A&M 24, Florida 13
Editor’s note: Tyler is the managing editor of LSU Tigers Wire and a college football staff writer for FTW!
Composite Prediction
The Gators Wire consensus is at a near split among the respondents, with three choosing TAMU and two picking UF to prevail. Only one member of the roundtable predicted a margin of victory larger than a touchdown, while three others foresee a finish within a field goal’s width. The composite score is about as tight as can be, with technically a 1.4-point difference separating the two teams — which rounds up to our final composite prediction.
Texas A&M 26, Florida 25
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