Every year, college football expert Phil Steele puts out his annual college football preview magazine, which includes a ranking of the toughest schedules in college football. And this year, one SEC team has the misfortune of having the nation’s toughest schedule: the Florida Gators.
The Gators are heading into their second season under head coach Billy Napier, and as Alex Weber of On3 explains, they’ve got their work cut out for them based on Steele’s ranking.
“Among SEC schools, it’s going to be the non-conference slate that makes or breaks your schedule, since we know every school is facing a gauntlet in conference play and SEC schools get four non-conference games each year. So, the Gators go on the road against top Pac-12 power Utah early in the year and then host likely top-15 Florida State to end the season,” Weber wrote of the Gators for On3.
“Billy Napier better have his boys ready to compete in year two, otherwise he could be looking at a brutal record and a potential firing should things not go well in Gainesville this fall.”
The Gators finished the 2022 season with a losing record even despite having No. 3 overall pick Anthony Richardson at quarterback. We’ll have to see how they handle an even more difficult schedule without their star quarterback.
[On3]
