Struggling offenses to collide in rivalry
Gators, Seminoles will meet unranked for just seventh time since 1967.
GAINESVILLE — For the first time since 2011 and just the seventh time since 1967, Florida and Florida State will meet as unranked teams.
The Gators and Seminoles are both 4-6, have failed to generate the big wins they are accustomed to and have fallen to the wayside in the state to Miami and UCF.
But that doesn’t mean Saturday’s matchup has lost its luster to the teams, the players or the fans.
“This is a rivalry game. This is a state game. These teams always challenge each other no matter what,” Florida interim coach Randy Shannon said.
“So no matter what the record is and what the talent level is on both sides of the football it’s going to be a very hard, physical game that you want to be a part of.”
Even at that, though, this game has the potential to be an ugly one.
Here’s a closer look at three key points of the matchup.
Sloppy offense
Both teams rank near the bottom offensively in the national rankings.
The Gators rank 109th in yards per game (341.5) while FSU checks in one spot lower at 110 (340.3). Outside of the Seminoles’ 77-6 rout of FCS Delaware State last week, FSU has not scored more than 28 points in a game this year.
Florida has only cracked the 30-point barrier twice — its 36-7 win over UAB last week and a 38-24 win over Vanderbilt.
Both teams also rank in the bottom 15 nationally in thirddown conversions, with the Gators converting 31.9 percent of their chances and FSU just 30.7 percent.
Quarterback comparisons
Both teams will be fielding a freshman quarterback who has gone through ups and downs this season.
For the Gators, it’s redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks, the season-opening starter who has been benched three times this year and lost the job twice only to regain it after the starter was injured. In 10 games, Franks has completed 56.3 percent of his passes for 1,254 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions.
For FSU, the onus has been placed on first-year freshman James Blackman, who became the starter after Deondre Francois suffered a season-ending knee injury in the season opener against Alabama.
Blackman has started the last nine games and has completed 57.5 percent of his passes for 1,672 yards, 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Expect Florida and Florida State to have a heavy focus on the run game in an attempt to put less pressure on their young quarterbacks.
Turnover margin
Winning the turnover battle will be critical — and it looks to be in Florida’s favor.
After being in the negative range all year, the Gators finally broke even in turnover margin after forcing a season-high four last week against UAB. Florida is plus-5 in its past two games.
FSU, meanwhile, is minus-8 in turnover margin this year, which essentially guarantees the Seminoles will end in the negative for the third time since 2012.