Way-too-early Top 25 projections for 2021 college football season

Florida ended its 2020 season on a downturn, losing its last three games to fall from College Football Playoff contention to a humiliating rout in a New Year’s Six game. The Gators stumbled to LSU by three in the regular season finale, then Alabama by six in the SEC title game, and finally by a sobering 32 points against Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl. That won’t be enough to sour voters who will put Florida back into the top half of their preseason AP Top 25, even with the loss of a Heisman hopeful at starting quarterback.

Kyle Trask finished fourth in the final voting for the Heisman, throwing for 43 touchdowns and nearly 4300 yards in 12 games. Replacing that production will be difficult in the passing game, and the running game ranked 96th in the FBS as they averaged only 131 yards per game on the ground. Florida also hope to see at least some improvement from a defense that ranked ninth in the SEC in yards allowed and eighth in the conference with nearly 31 points given away per game. Even regression to the mean on defense could flip a game or two.

Florida doesn’t have the easiest of schedules, with Alabama coming to Gainesville and their annual Cocktail Party brawl with Georgia in Jacksonville. The Gators do avoid both Texas A&M and Auburn out of the West, and they have little of consequence in non-conference play. Intersectional battles in 2021 include Florida Atlantic, South Florida, FCS Samford, and the annual rivalry game against Florida State. Getting to at least nine, if not 10, wins in the regular season should be little problem for Dan Mullen’s crew.