Florida's last two wins over rival Florida State have been the most lopsided in the series in nearly four decades. Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden tipped his cap and admitted last year the Gators simply had better players at many positions.Bowden cites his team's youth this year and believes FSU has closed the gap on UF.
"We're getting closer," Bowden said Sunday. "Next year, we should be neck-and-neck."
Thirty-five of 44 players listed on the Seminoles' two-deep depth chart (not including specialists) are underclassmen, highlighted by 27 freshmen and sophomores. Three freshmen played key roles in the final two minutes of FSU's 29-26 come-from-behind victory over Maryland on Saturday.
The Seminoles became bowl eligible for the 28th consecutive year with the win.
Florida, by comparison, lists 62 players on its depth chart. Forty-nine are underclassmen, 25 of whom are freshmen or sophomores. The Gators also have at least seven juniors who are NFL-quality players, according to analysts.
Another reason why Bowden thinks FSU will be able to compete next year is that UF quarterback Tim Tebow graduates. Bowden chuckled and says he will be glad to see Tebow go.
"Yeah, I really am, because he is so good," Bowden said.
"The question is, what will they do without him? What would Texas do without [Colt] McCoy? You see what Oklahoma did without their guy (injured Sam Bradford). One great player can make a lot of difference."
Top-ranked UF certainly has more at stake than its in-state neighbor.
The Gators need to beat FSU in Saturday's nationally-televised showdown at The Swamp and Alabama in the SEC championship game to secure a spot in the BCS national title game in January.
The FSU game expects to be emotional for another good reason -- it will also be Senior Day for Tebow, linebacker Brandon Spikes and several other key players who are hoping to win a second consecutive national title and third in the past four years.
Like UF, there was a time when FSU was consistently favored to win each time it stepped on the field. From 1987 to 1996, the Seminoles beat the Gators eight of 11 times.
UF has turned the tables, winning the past five games in the series. Three of the four victories under coach Urban Meyer haven't even been close, with UF winning by scores of 34-7, 21-14, 45-12 and 45-15.
The last two games (90-27) have been the most lopsided in the series since the Gators won by a combined score of 91-13 in 1972-73.
"It's one of those things you know it can't go forever," Bowden said.
"That's the thing I try to bring out for our people. The great teams of the past -- Southern Cal, Alabama, Notre Dame, Texas. Yeah, they are on top today. But 10 years ago people were stomping them.
"Ten years ago, Southern Cal didn't go to a bowl, I don't think. Texas had their down years. It goes like that. You simply can't stay there forever. We've been there and we'll get back. Someone will get us back."
Of course, Bowden, whose future remains in doubt, hopes he gets that opportunity next season. If FSU (6-5) falters against UF and in its bowl game, it will mark the Seminoles' first losing season since 1976 (5-6) -- Bowden's first in Tallahassee.
The UF-FSU rivalry used to be one of the best in the country, with bragging rights, recruiting battles and national championship hopes on the line almost every year.
While Bowden admits his team still might not match the Gators' talent across the board, he likes his team's talent despite its struggles. FSU has won four of its last five to salvage its season.
"You know, that's the thing people don't understand," Bowden said.
"When you have a great year and you've got a good team, maybe it's one guy that ties that team together. Now here's another team over here that's not having a good [year], it don't mean all their players are bad. It's just that one guy that can do it.
"When we play Florida, do we have some guys as good as theirs? Yeah, I'm not going to break it down position by position. But yes, we've got some good players too. We've just been making more mistakes defensively than they have."
Bowden started an Internet uproar on UF-FSU-related message boards late last summer when he indicated he didn't believe Tebow was better that former FSU quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward.
Bowden hasn't changed his thinking, though he stresses Tebow certainly belongs in the discussion of college football's greatest players ever.
"He'll always be in the argument," Bowden said.
"To be honest with you, I don't know if he's better than Charlie Ward. What if Charlie started four years? We had two pretty good ones ahead of him. National championships, I don't know. [Chris] Leak helped there on one of them. Didn't he (Leak) help on one?"
UF, of course, has plenty of streaks on the line.
The Gators have won a school-record 21 straight games, also the nation's longest current streak. They've won 15 in a row against SEC teams, 10 consecutive at home and eight straight against non-conference foes.
UF also has owned the Seminoles.
"Two years they've ripped us," Bowden said.
"I imagine they ripped everybody else the same way. We're about like anybody else. We just have to play the best we can do. That's all we can do.
"Not anybody is going to beat them with an imperfect ball game. They're too good. We're going to have to play the best we can play and they're going to have to turn the ball over. Upsets are caused by turnovers. When a superior team, No. 1, is playing somebody not ranked, then the only thing that neutralizes it is turnovers."
