Florida wide receiver Eric Singleton Jr. is headed into the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party for the first time, but Georgia won’t be seeing a new face.
Singleton has already lined up against the Bulldogs before, first with Georgia Tech in 2023 and 2024, then with Auburn last season. He’s still 0-3 in those matchups, and that history is part of what makes Saturday matter to him.
“It means a lot to me,” Singleton said at Florida’s media availability on Tuesday. “I still have yet to beat them, yet to beat Kirby Smart, but I have to do it this year, I have to beat Kirby Smart.”
Georgia knows him well, too. Bulldogs running backs coach Josh Crawford coached Singleton at Georgia Tech during the 2023 season, and Singleton has produced against Georgia in all three meetings. He’s caught 15 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown in those games.
His best showings against the Bulldogs came alongside Buster Faulkner at Georgia Tech. Faulkner is now in his first season as Florida’s offensive coordinator after three years in Atlanta in the same job, and he’s seen Singleton working back toward form after a high ankle sprain.
“He’s always been extremely competitive, but he’s definitely, you know, improving as getting back to the close to Eric, you know, that I’m familiar with,” Faulkner said on Tuesday. “The bye week really helped him.”
Singleton has been limited this season. He has 82 yards on nine receptions and has missed two of Florida’s seven games. Faulkner credited him for pushing through the injury, while also noting how the ankle still affects him.
“I give the kid credit,” Faulkner said. “I mean, it’s tough to come back from a high ankle sprain and really be the same.
And you see, you know, you see him still fighting through it. Every time he kind of gets tackled or rolled up, it does bother him.
There are, there were several in that game last week where he’s down the field, where you see the speed, the elite trait that he has that not many people has.”
Florida has some familiar history in this matchup beyond Singleton. Several players on the Gators’ roster were part of last year’s 24-20 loss to Georgia.
And the recent series trend hasn’t offered much comfort, either. Florida has dropped five straight to Georgia, with the last Gators victory coming in 2020. Georgia’s last six-game winning streak in the rivalry stretched from 1978 through 1983.
Singleton said Florida will need to bring a physical edge if it wants a different result on Saturday.
“The defense I’m about to face, they’re very disciplined,” Singleton said. “I know Coach Kirby, he’s probably zoning them very hard about being physical. You can see it on film, but I think we’re going to be able to go out there and out-physical them and play some hard-nosed football.”
In Other News...
Georgia Backfield Just Got An Encouraging Chauncey Bowens Update
Georgias backfield has been waiting on Chauncey Bowens, and there is at least some encouraging movement after a two-game absence. The running back has been dealing with an injury described as being between the toes, and his return to practice this week offered a sign that the recovery is heading in the right direction. He has been working through agility drills, which is a step forward for a group that has had to keep adjusting without him.
Bowens still is not cleared for full contact or game action, so the Florida matchup appears to come too soon. Even so, the fact that he is back on the field at all gives Georgia reason to think he may factor in later this season, depending on how the injury responds over the next stretch. For a team trying to manage depth in the backfield, that kind of progress matters, even if the finish line is still a little ways off. [Read more 🡒]
Georgias Auburn Loss Exposed A Problem Kirby Smart Cant Ignore
Georgias home loss to an unranked opponent was the kind of setback that can linger well beyond one Saturday in Athens, especially when the details point to self-inflicted damage. Costly penalties and turnovers helped drag the Bulldogs into an avoidable defeat, and even with some bright individual performances, the overall picture was hard to miss for Kirby Smart and his staff.
Freshman receiver Craig Dandridge gave the offense a spark with a team-high 88 receiving yards, while linebacker Raylen Wilson turned in a busy day with 10 solo tackles and a sack. Still, the most jarring number belonged to Auburns Byrum Brown, whose 115 rushing yards topped Georgias entire ground game, a mismatch that underscored a problem the Bulldogs cant afford to shrug off as the season moves on. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Fans Are Suddenly Eyeing Sanford Stadium For A Huge Reveal
Georgia fans have spent the day trying to decode a simple butterfly image posted by the athletic departments official social media accounts, and the lack of explanation only added to the buzz. In Athens, even a vague tease can turn into a full-blown guessing game, especially when it appears tied to Sanford Stadium and the kind of announcement that could bring a different crowd to campus for a big fall reveal.
One theory making the rounds points to a concert by Grammy-nominated artist Noah Kahan, with the butterfly imagery echoing what is on his tour website and a countdown timer adding to the speculation. Nothing has been confirmed yet, but the clock is clearly ticking, and Georgia fans will not have to wait long to find out whether the tease is about football, music, or something else entirely. [Read more 🡒]