TAMPA, Fla. - Texas is showing up on Florida’s schedule again, and again, and again.
That’s the strange new rhythm of the SEC after the league expanded to 16 teams with the additions of Texas and Oklahoma. Rivalries have been bent, old annual games have gone missing, and coaches at SEC media days kept circling back to the same idea: this is college football now, whether anyone likes it or not.
Florida coach Jon Sumrall put it plainly when he looked at the Gators’ third straight meeting with Texas this season and the absence of longtime foe Tennessee.
“Who would've thought 10 years ago that Florida was playing Texas for the third year in a row and not playing Tennessee?” said Florida coach Jon Sumrall.
“Like, we don't play Tennessee this year. That's really kind of weird.”
That kind of scheduling oddity is exactly what the SEC has been living with since the conference changed shape. The coaches didn’t pretend otherwise. Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said rivalries still matter, but he also pointed to the upside of the new setup, where teams will eventually get chances to visit every stadium in the league’s footprint.
“I think rivalry games absolutely matter,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said. “I think the passion, the tradition of some of the games are what make college football unique. But I do also like that as a program and for your fan base, you're going to have the opportunity every four years to be able to go to every stadium inside of the SEC footprint.”
For Tennessee, that means opening SEC play Sept. 26 against Texas in Knoxville, Tenn. It’s the first time the Longhorns will play there, and the game carries an extra layer because of the Manning family connection. Peyton Manning starred at Tennessee, while Arch Manning is entering his second season as Texas’ starting quarterback.
“It's a unique game,” Heupel said. “Peyton having played here, Arch currently playing there.
So, there's a lot of things. I think our fan base is really excited about it.
Opponent we haven't played in a long time. That's part of the expansion of the SEC footprint, having an opportunity to play these types of games.”
South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said his program hasn’t played Texas yet in conference play, and the Gamecocks don’t have the Longhorns on the schedule this season. Still, he said Texas’ arrival in the league has already created new possibilities for both fans and recruiting.
“We haven't played Texas yet in Columbia (South Carolina) or Austin, but when we do, I know that will be a great trip for the Texas fans to come to Columbia, and it will be a great trip for the South Carolina fans that go to Austin,” Beamer said. “That's one thing just for the fans, the opportunities it presents.
“Two, the geographic footprint, it opens up for schools. (Defensive back) Peyton Williams for us is from Rockwall, Texas.
Texas is not going to be a primary recruiting area for us, but it allows us the opportunity to maybe get in some doors and some schools that maybe we didn't before. We have a couple of other guys on our team from the state of Texas.
So, I think it opens up more geographic opportunities.”
Florida’s own matchup with Texas comes Oct. 17 in Austin, and Sumrall said the setting doesn’t change the approach. The Gators beat the Longhorns 29-21 last season in Gainesville, but this one brings a different backdrop and the same expectation of a hard SEC game.
“Yeah, it's a big game because you're playing Texas, and they're really good,” Sumrall said. “Every SEC game is a big game. ...
It doesn't change, doesn't matter who we play. Doesn't change the prep.”
Florida linebacker Myles Graham said the league itself has become the weekly reminder that every game can feel like a rivalry, even if the traditional ones have been shuffled around.
“I think just being in the SEC, you feel like you're playing a rivalry every week, just like how close the games are,” Graham said. “I think any week you come in, you're going to have to be ready for a dogfight, regardless. We’re ready for whatever steps up in front of us.”
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