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Gasparilla Bowl brings UF and Tulane to Tampa

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Published  December 20, 2024 12:13pm EST
Tampa
FOX 13 News

The Brief

    • The University of Florida takes on Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl on Friday. 
    • The Florida Gators are favored to win the football game. 
    • Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. 

TAMPA, Fla. - Longtime SEC rivals of yesteryear Florida and Tulane will meet again on the gridiron this afternoon for the first time in 40 years as the Gasparilla Bowl kicks off in Tampa. 

On paper, the Green Wave (9-4) and Gators (7-5) come into the contest with similar records, but the two took very different paths en route to the Gasparilla Bowl. 

The Gators went through the gauntlet this year with arguably the toughest schedule in college football. Eleven out of 12 of their games were Power Four opponents and when all was said and done, Florida made it through its beast of a schedule against five programs that made the College Football Playoff rankings and two more, LSU and Texas A&M, that spent most of the season in the Top 25. 

The Gators started off shaky but finished strong with three straight wins. Much of Florida’s turnaround has been attributed to freshman phenom DJ Lagway, who took over starting duties after senior Graham Mertz tore his ACL in October. 

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Lagway threw for 1,610 yards and 11 touchdowns and went 5-0 in games he started and finished. 

UF takes on Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl on Friday afternoon.

UF takes on Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl on Friday afternoon. 

Meanwhile, the Green Wave’s season had a very different trajectory. 

Tulane was in the running to crack the College Football Playoff before a pair of disastrous late-season losses to Memphis and Army. 

The Green Wave will also be without starting quarterback Darian Mensah, who recently transferred to Duke.  

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The oddsmakers have Florida as a heavy favorite in this match, which should play out in front of a largely blue and orange "home" crowd. 

"Well, we know Tampa is Gator Nation at its finest so we anticipate having a great crowd," said Gators head coach Billy Napier. "For us, home or away regardless, it’s about the execution and we will be thankful for the fans that showed up."

For Gators fans this should be a preview of what’s to come for this program that’s been struggling claw its way back to dominance in the powerhouse SEC. 

Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are still available starting at $40. You can also catch the game on ESPN2. 

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