Gators' 2025 Schedule Rated as Nation's Toughest by ESPN

Head coach Billy Napier doesn’t seem to be shying away from the upcoming competition in 2025. Instead, it looks like he is welcoming the competition. 

“As a competitor, you want to play the very best,” Napier said Wednesday at SEC Media Day. “To be the best, you have to beat the best.”

Florida will begin their season with a lighter workload than in previous years. They kick off the 2025 campaign with Long Island and South Florida, giving the Gators two non-Power Four opponents to open a season for the first time since 2021.

After these two games, Florida will have a two-game road trip to LSU and Miami. Then, they will be back home against Texas before traveling to College Station to take on Texas A&M. All four teams rank inside ESPN’s way-too-early top 25, with LSU and Texas being inside the top 10. 

Moreover, comparing these games to last year, the Gators finished just 1-3 against this pod of opponents. Additionally, three of these opponents also have quarterbacks who are preseason contenders for the Heisman Trophy in Texas' Arch Manning, LSU's Garrett Nussmeier and Miami's Carson Beck.

While Florida will host Mississippi State once they return from their battle with Texas A&M, the next three are all outside of Gainesville. It starts with a neutral-site game versus Georgia before a trip to Lexington to face Kentucky and a trip to Oxford to play Ole Miss. 

Despite Kentucky’s recent struggles, going to Lexington is no easy task with Florida coming on the losing end in their last two trips. Meanwhile, Florida has had recent success in trips to Ole Miss with a 6-2 all-time road record versus Ole Miss. 

To round out the season, the Gators will host Tennessee and Florida State. 

The Gators have a good track record with Tennessee at home. They are 17-5 all-time and have won the last 10 in the Swamp. Florida State, on the other hand, has not been as easy, with the Seminoles holding a 5-2 record in the Swamp since 2011.

All released television windows for the Gators' 2025 season can be found here.

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