Florida may be a double-digit underdog to Georgia this weekend but one thing the oddsmakers don't know is the Brenton Cox factor.
Cox has played on both sidelines in this rivalry and when he's been on the field whatever team he was on won the football game. In 2018, as a freshman at Georgia, Cox had one tackle in the Dawgs' 36-17 win over Florida. Cox transferred to Florida following his freshman year but had to sit out the 2019 season due to old NCAA transfer rules. Cox returned to the field in 2020 and his three tackles, one for a loss, helped Florida pull off a 44-28 win over his old team.
When players leave one school there can be animosity towards the school, coaches, or fans but Cox doesn't hold any grudges against his former university or team. It's more of an opportunity to play against former friends that he grew up with and teammates he spent countless hours with during his one year in Athens.
It's what defined the 2020 game for him.
"I mean you watched the game last year, we ended up winning but it was definitely intense," Cox said Tuesday night. "Going against Jamaree Salyer, that's one of my childhood friends growing up. We played park ball together, so that's always a good matchup for me and him. I mean every year I just, I mean, other than just going against all the people I went against in high school and went against in The Opening camp, it's a good matchup all over the board, the whole front seven."
Cox knows the Georgia team better than anyone else in the locker room. The Bulldogs have been the nation's best team all season long, keeping a laser focus while railroading all of their opponents. It starts on the defensive side of the ball where Georgai defensive lineman Jordan Davis is having the kind of season where people start wondering if a defensive lineman can win the Heisman trophy.
"They're definitely as good as advertised," Cox said. "I think our biggest thing is we've just got to come in and start fast, not have many slip-ups. You can't slip up against the No. 1 team, because they take advantage of everything. But from me knowing those guys, they're good, hard-nosed players."
