Florida Gators’ 2018 SEC schedule released

The 2018 Florida Gators schedule is now complete, as the SEC released its entire conference schedule for next year this afternoon.

That isn’t necessarily the easiest thing to read, so I’ve put it into a more manageable table below. Also - and this is fun - the schedule Florida has posted is different from the schedule released by the SEC.

As you can see, everything remains the same on both until October, when the SEC schedule has LSU visiting Gainesville on October 6, while Florida’s version has Missouri in The Swamp. The two dates just aren’t switched either, as the SEC version has the Gators heading to Nashville to meet Vanderbilt on October 13, while UF’s release puts Florida at home against LSU on that date and in Nashville on November 3, when the SEC release has the Gators home against Missouri.

There is clearly a mix-up regarding Florida’s dates with both sets of Tigers and the Commodores.

I’ll note that the rest of the SEC schedules that were released align with what the league announced for the Gators, and that I’m not sure what happened with Florida’s version. Are the schedules on the conference’s site messed up? Or is Florida’s release wrong? I guess we’ll find out!

But, let’s go ahead and look at some of the other aspects of the schedule, that aren’t impacted by those aforementioned date mishaps.

The Gators start the 2018 season in a more traditional way, beginning with three home games and opening with what should be an over-matched opponent (Charleston Southern). Florida has seven total home games next season, including the normal rotation of home contests with Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina, and LSU. The Tigers traditionally play the Gators in Gainesville in even years, but are of course also visiting The Swamp this season due to the Hurricane Matthew game rescheduling terms.

Florida will start their SEC season early, getting Kentucky in Gainesville in the second week. This will mark the second time since 2012 that the Gators will open conference play in the second week of the season.

In week three, the Gators welcome Colorado State, for a game that was scheduled as part of Jim McElwain’s deal in leaving the Rams to come to Florida. CSU gets a guaranteed $2 million for that game as a part of McElwain’s buyout. It will be the first time that those two teams will meet.

The Gators’ rotational SEC West opponent next season is Mississippi State, and Florida will make the trip to Starkville for that game. It will be the first time that the Gators have visited Starkville since 2009, and the second time that the two teams will have met since a 2010 Bulldogs win.

Florida’s non-conference schedule includes the aforementioned Rams and Buccanneers, and Idaho and Florida State to close out the season. As you may recall, the Vandals were to have played the Gators in The Swamp in the 2014 opener, but that game was cancelled due to inclement weather after a single delayed kickoff.

The Gators’ keep the traditional schedule placements for their rivals Georgia and Florida State, meeting the Bulldogs in Jacksonville at the end of October (after a bye for both teams) and finishing the regular season with the Seminoles.

Update (September 20, 2017): Florida has amended and re-released their schedule to follow the schedule that was announced by the SEC.

Your correct 2018 Florida Gators schedule is below: