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SEC Football: Predicting the 2023 SEC standings and final rankings

By Kevin Miller

South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer approaching Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea for a handshake after the Gamecocks beat the Commodores in 2022. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer approaching Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea for a handshake after the Gamecocks beat the Commodores in 2022. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /
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South Carolina Football
The Florida Gators have their lowest SEC football expectations in some time heading into 2023. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun] /

2023 SEC Football Standings No. 13 (and 6th in the SEC East):
Florida Gators

The Florida Gators have been a disappointing team for the past two seasons. Back-to-back 6-7 seasons are unacceptable in Gainesville, and Dan Mullen was run out of town because of his losing season, and Billy Napier already could be on his way out if he doesn’t win enough in 2023.

The fans in blue and orange have been happy with Napier’s recruiting (according to 247Sports, 17th in the transition class of 2022, 12th in the class of 2023, and currently 3rd in the class of 2024), but he will need to show improvement on the field to see those classes in their full fruition on the field. Napier seems like he could be the right man for the job in Gainesville, but he may never get enough time to find out for sure.

The Gators brought in Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz to be the replacement for 1st-round quarterback Anthony Richardson, but his addition does not necessarily elicit much excitement. The Florida offense will be run-heavy behind Trevor Etienne and Montrelle Johnson.

The defense in Gainesville has the potential to be bad again in 2023 as the struggling unit from last year also returns just 4 starters.

Even with some of the problems from the end of Dan Mullen’s time at the helm of the program, Florida has enough overall talent on the team to surprise some people in 2023, but that talent’s performance on the field has not matched the expectations handed down from the recruiting industry.

Playing two tough out-of-conference games against Utah and Florida State, getting three conference swing games on the road (South Carolina, Missouri, and Kentucky), and having to play LSU as usual, UF seems destined to be on the outside looking in when it comes to bowl season.

PREDICTION

Overall: 4-8; SEC Football: 2-6

@Utah (L), McNeese State (W), Tennessee (L), Charlotte (W), @Kentucky (L), Vanderbilt (W), @South Carolina (L), Georgia in Jacksonville (L), Arkansas (W), @LSU (L), @Missouri (L), Florida State (L)

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