The Storyline: Florida at Utah
The 2023 opener marks the third-ever meeting between Florida and Utah, with the Gators holding a 2-0 series lead.
UF and Utah last faced off in the 2022 season opener, when unranked Florida upset No. 7 Utah, 29-26, behind 274 yards of total offense and three rushing touchdowns by QB Anthony Richardson and a game-sealing pick by LB Amari Burney. Florida matched its highest-ranked win ever in a season opener (Florida 59, No. 7 Houston 34 - Sept. 20, 1969). HC Billy Napier became the first Gators football coach to defeat a ranked team in his debut.
Prior to last season, UF most recently played Utah on Nov. 19, 1977 in Gainesville, with Florida winning, 38-29. Florida’s 531 rushing yards in the team’s first meeting are the most all-time in a single game.
Florida is 8-13 all-time in true road season openers including a 6-4 mark in the last 10 dating back to 1956.
This is Florida’s third true road game in a season opener in the last 38 years (1987 at Miami, 2020 at Ole Miss).
The last time the Gators faced a ranked opponent on the road in a season opener was in 1987 at No. 10 Miami (L, 31-4).
Florida last opened consecutive seasons against ranked opponents in 1953-54 against Rice in Houston (L, 20-16; L, 34-14).
The Gators have never won ranked matchups in back-to-back season openers.
Florida has lost just one season opener since 1990, going 30-1 in that span (2017: No. 11 Michigan 33, No. 17 Florida 17).
Although UF opens on the road, Florida’s 33-straight wins in home openers leads the NCAA (1989: Ole Miss 24, Florida 19).
Napier embarks on his second season as a head coach, while Utah HC Kyle Whittingham enters his 19th campaign with 228 games under his belt. Whittingham replaced Urban Meyer in December 2004 when the latter left for Florida. Whittingham is the longest-tenured HC in the Pac-12 and the second-longest at the same school in the FBS.
The Gators return four starters on offense, four starters on defense and two on special teams.
Florida is coming off its fifth-straight bowl appearance and eighth in the last nine seasons.
The Gators played seven opponents in 2022 that were ranked in the CFP Final Top 25 - tied for the most in the FBS - and now eye up the SEC’s toughest schedule in 2023, according to CBS Sports.
31 different players made their Florida debuts last season, while 24 Gators made their collegiate debuts.
The Gators’ 5.5 yards per carry in 2022 ranked fourth in program history (behind the 2008, 1976 and 2009 seasons). » Florida ended the season ranking sixth in the FBS and fifth in the P5 in YPC.
Florida’s 6.6 yards per play last season was the 10th-highest in school history.
UF finished the 2022 campaign with 200.2 rushing yards per game - the program’s second-straight season over 200. That output ranked 25th in the FBS, 15th in the Power Five and fifth in the SEC.
Florida has scored in 436-consecutive games dating back to 1988 - an NCAA record and 55 games longer than any other college football team in the history of the sport.
Florida scored its most rushing touchdowns in a season in 12 years in 2022, as the Gators’ 29 were the program’s fifth-most all-time (2008 - 42, 2007 - 39, 2010 - 31, 2009 - 30).
In their first seasons as Gators, RB Montrell Johnson Jr. (155 carries, 841 yards, 5.4 YPC, 10 TD) and RB Trevor Etienne (118 carries, 718 yards, 6.1 YPC, 6 TD) teamed up to form one of the top backfield duos in the country.
Florida averaged 5.5 YPC and 200.2 rushing YPG, posted eight 200-yard games and eclipsed 100 yards 12 times.
As a duo, Johnson Jr. and Etienne averaged 5.7 YPC and 120.0 rushing YPG.
The duo combined for a touchdown in all 12 regular season games, scoring 17 total TDs (rush TDs in 11 of 13 games).
They were one of 15 RB duos in the FBS to rush for over 700 yards apiece last season, including one of three duos to do so while each averaging over 5.4 YPC.
Johnson Jr. and Etienne combined for 47 of Florida’s 76 explosive rushes (10-plus yards) last season (61.8%).
Johnson Jr. is one of nine FBS players with 10-plus rushing TDs and 800 yards rushing each of the last two seasons.
In 2022, Johnson Jr. became the first UF running back to rush for over 800 yards since La’Mical Perine in 2018.
Johnson Jr.’s 10 rushing TDs last season ranked t-fourth in the SEC and t-24th in the Power Five.
Etienne’s ‘22 FBS ranks among true freshmen RBs: YPC (fourth - 6.1), TD (T10th - six), rush yards (eighth - 719).
Etienne had a career-high 129 yards rushing and one TD in Week 13 vs. FSU, marking his second 100-yard rushing game in the final four weeks of the season.
Johnson Jr. posted back-to-back 100-yard rushing games in Weeks 10-11, including a career-high 161 yards vs. South Carolina in Week 11. He was the first UF RB with consecutive 100-yard games since Jordan Scarlett in 2016.
Johnson Jr. and Etienne became Florida’s first pair of 100-yard rushers in 22 games (9/4/21 vs. FAU) in Week 11.
Etienne’s 85-yard TD rush in Week 11 was the seventh-longest TD rush in school history, and the longest by a UF player since Lamical Perine’s 88-yard TD run vs. Auburn in 2019. It was also the second-longest TD run by a freshman in school history, and the tied for the 12th-longest TD rush in the FBS this season.
Etienne ranked fourth in the FBS among true freshman running backs with 6.1 yards per carry and was one of nine true freshman RBs in the FBS with over 700 rushing yards.
The trio of Johnson Jr. (841), Etienne (719) and QB Anthony Richardson (654) became the third trio in UF history to eclipse 600 rush yards apiece last year.
The running back duo of Johnson Jr. and Etienne became the fifth pair of Florida running backs to eclipse 700 yards apiece in a season in 2022.
Florida boasted three of the top-17 rushers in the SEC in yards per carry last season: Richardson (sixth - 6.3), Etienne (eighth - 6.1) and Johnson Jr. (17th - 5.4). Georgia was the only other team to do so.
Florida was one of three FBS teams (Oregon, Georgia) with three qualified players averaging over 5.4 YPC.
Over the last two seasons, 24 FBS RBs surpassed 800-plus yards and 12 RBs eclipsed 10-plus rushing TDs in consecutive years. Johnson Jr. is the only player on either list to accomplish the feats at two different schools.
Florida transfer QB Graham Mertz comes equipped with 34 career games played, having started all but one of Wisconsin’s 33 games at quarterback to total over 2,000 snaps across the past three seasons from 20-22.
The Badgers went 19-13 in Mertz’s 32 starts at Wisconsin (.594).
Mertz has completed 460 passes out of 773 career attempts (60.0%) for 5,405 yards and 38 touchdowns against 26 interceptions
Ole Miss’ Spencer Sanders (41) and LSU’s Jaydon Daniels (43) are the only active SEC quarterbacks with more career starts than Mertz, who is tied for the third-most alongside Mississippi State’s Will Rogers (32).
Among active SEC signal callers, Mertz ranks seventh in attempts and completions while sitting eighth in yards and passing touchdowns.
Mertz wields more career games, starts, completions, attempts, yards and touchdowns than six other SEC quarterback rooms: Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Missouri and Vanderbilt.
Florida brought in a plethora of experience this past offseason, adding 13 players via the transfer portal.
UF’s group of 2023 transfers wields more than 10,000 combined snaps and 123 career starts, helping to fill vital voids at quarterback, offensive line, defensive end and inside linebacker.
Over 70% of UF’s scholarship players are in their first or second year at Florida.
93% of the 2023 roster was on campus for the offseason, featuring 27 midyear enrolees (17 HS, 10 transfer).
Staff attrition was minimal during the 2022-23 offseason, as seven of Florida’s 10 full-time assistants returned.
Despite last year’s 6-7 record, Florida outscored its opponents, 384 to 375, including 70-42 off turnovers.
Florida lost six regular-season games in 2022 by a combined 61 points.