Florida football: 3 bold predictions for the Gators in 2023
![Florida Gators quarterback Graham Mertz (15) throws the ball during fall football practice at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, August 5, 2023. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2Fd51b1e0350baba7dbd83da2b3a3fd39c128bafd1b61f63b4e78d61e71358126d.jpg "Florida Gators quarterback Graham Mertz (15) throws the ball during fall football practice at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, August 5, 2023. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]")
![Florida Gators running back Montrell Johnson Jr. (2) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the LSU Tigers at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 15, 2022. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]Ncaa Football Florida Gators Vs Lsu Tigers](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2Ffdda117285c99890a088529c3273014582b95387901a3b32e97a7fdf1c6742b0.jpg "Florida Gators running back Montrell Johnson Jr. (2) celebrates after scoring a touchdown during the first half against the LSU Tigers at Steve Spurrier Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 15, 2022. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]Ncaa Football Florida Gators Vs Lsu Tigers")
1. Florida picks up two road upset wins
Florida has a pretty tough schedule in 2023. The Gators do have teams like Utah, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, LSU, Arkansas, and Florida State on the docket, but I think that they could steal a couple of wins on the road against favored opponents.
The road schedule isn’t ideal. The Gators start the season off at Utah, then head to Kentucky to end September, and then head to South Carolina two weeks later. They don’t have a true away game for another month after that, heading to Baton Rouge to play LSU on Nov. 11.
That’s not what you want to see if you’re planning on contending for an SEC title.
However, I do believe that Florida will be in the business of shocking some teams this season, even pulling off two road upsets.
My three likely upset candidates would have to be Utah, Kentucky, and South Carolina. I think the Gators will two of those three games and then end the road slate with a win at Missouri as the slight favorites.
If they can win two ranked road games, this could be a special year.
Next. One of these 8 teams will win the national title in 2023. dark