For the first time in seven years, the Florida Gators and Auburn Tigers face off on the collegiate gridiron in the renewal of what was once a robust rivalry between two Southeastern Conference charter members.
The series between the two SEC schools hit a high-water mark in the mid-90s, when both teams came into the matchup undefeated in 1993 and 1994, and Auburn snuck away with a pair of three-point victories. Florida then ran off seven straight wins, including a 28-6 triumph in the 2000 SEC championship game.
More recently, the Gators and Tigers have split their last two meetings — the only two matchups between the two over the past couple of decades. Florida prevailed in the Swamp, 24-13, in 2019, while Auburn emerged victorious from their battle
at Jordan-Hare Stadium, 17-6, in 2011.
Given the history of this rivalry, it comes as little surprise that this year's edition landed in the top tier of USA TODAY Sports writer Paul Myerberg's college football TV schedule rankings for Week 3. It also represents the first real test for both programs under their first-year head coaches.
"This will help answer questions about the state of each program under new coach Jon Sumrall and Alex Golesh," says Myerberg.
Auburn leads the all-time series between the schools dating back to 1912, 43-39-2, and has dominated Florida at Jordan-Hare Stadium with a 26-8-1 mark, which includes three straight wins coming into this weekend. However, before the current streak, the Gators had won three in a row on the Tigers' home field.
The Florida vs. Auburn game kicks off at 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida's Week 3 battle at Auburn a top-tier watchable matchup
