The Florida Gators will attempt to find some semblance of an offensive attack while the Kentucky Wildcats will look for their defense to step up in Week 2 when these SEC East rivals collide at the Swamp in front of a nationally televised audience. These squads played to a defensive grinder at Kentucky last season that saw each team combine for less than 500 yards of total offense, but that likely won’t be how this one plays out.
This contest in Week 2 of the regular season will go down Saturday, September 10, 2016, at 3:30 p.m. ET at Steve Spurrier–Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Kentucky +17
Florida -17
Over/Under 47.5
Odds Analysis
With the under cashing in three of these division rival’s last four meetings and the Gators offense churning out a 15.1 YPP average against what could end up being the worst team in the FBS last week, the betting public has lined up in droves to hit the low side of this total. It opened at 49 and stayed there for a brief moment before dipping down to 47.5 where it currently sits.
The Gators opened up as 16.5 point home chalk and have bounced around between that outpost and -17 since Sunday night. With Kentucky looking to snap a 29 game losing streak to the Gators and managing just one cover in the last 10 meetings, it’s likely Florida gets more action come kick-off even though it looked terrible last week.
Matchup to Watch
The Gators grossly failed to cover as near five touchdown home favorites against UMASS. Much of that was due to the fact that it couldn’t get any traction going on the ground. They averaged just 3.7 yards per rush against a Minutemen defense that ranked No. 94 against the run last year and returned just three starters on that side of the ball.
Southern Miss was able to do as it pleased against Kentucky’s defense, as it ran for 296 yards at 4.4 yards per carry and passed for another 258 yards for a grand total of 554 yards. Luke Del Rio did too much dinking and dunking against UMASS which makes his 66 percent completion percentage and 256 yards and two touchdown effort less impressive. He must turn it loose here today to not only gain confidence, but get the passing game going downfield as well.
Last Meeting
The last time these teams crossed paths in the Swamp will go down as one of the most epic games ever to be played in the history of college football. It had it all. Sixty yard scoring plays. Fifty-plus yard field goals. And of course triple overtime, which is probably something under bettors still haven’t been able to get over even though a couple years have passed. I’m still bitter!
Kentucky hasn’t beaten Florida at Florida since before I was born. While they came close the last time they paid the hallowed grounds a visit, close is only good when it comes to horseshoes and hand grenades. In order to pull off the feat, the Wildcats will have to put forth two complete halves of football; something they weren’t able to do last week against Southern Miss.
Free ATS Pick
I’m not exactly sure what was worse last week. The Gators stinking the joint up against UMASS, or the Wildcats letting the Golden Eagles rattle off 30 straight points to turn a 35-10 second quarter Kentucky lead into a nine point defeat after going scoreless the rest of the way.
Either way, there’s much for both of these teams to improve upon in Week 2, and I suspect we’ll see some of it transpire in this one. That said, until Florida shows its offense isn’t the inept stinking pile of dog feces it proved to be last season and again versus the Minutemen, the defense will only be able to take it so far. Whether the Gators were playing possum or not, the Wildcats have some real nice components to the offense that should allow it to fight till the bitter end of this one.
College Football Odds: Florida 27, Kentucky 24
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
