Since we have the bigger matchups for Week 2 covered, let’s dive into one contest that is very important to the state of Florida. Two teams from the Sunshine State go head to head in Gainesville as the No. 15 ranked Florida Gators host the South Florida Bulls. Both squads won their opening matchup last week in dominate fashion, but one could certainly argue that the Bulls had a much tougher opponent in Boise State, even though they don’t have their “Should’ve been Heisman” running back, Ashton Jeanty, anymore. Nevertheless, USF looked great, the Gators got a win, and now they go at each other. Let’s get into our favorite picks!
Head over to Betting News to check out what else I’ve got on the slate for Week 1, and view the latest odds at the best online sportsbooks.
South Florida Bulls vs. #15 Florida Gators NCAA Football Insights
DJ Lagway leads the Gators in his sophomore season
Like I said, both teams dominated. Florida shutout Long Island, beating them 55-0. The Gators have now won five straight contests dating back to last season, and they seem to have their guy in DJ Lagway. Last year, Lagway had 1,915 passing yards and 101 rushing yards with 19 touchdowns but 10 interceptions, doing all of that in 12 appearances. Now, he performed well last week, throwing for 120 passing yards and three touchdowns with just one sack, but we didn’t see that man run very much, and that could change against South Florida.
The Bulls looked ROCK SOLID against Boise. I was one who had faith in the Broncos who were returning plenty of production besides Jeanty, but they came up flat, scoring just one time. Not only did South Florida’s defense hold them to just seven points, but the offense was out in full force. The Bulls were down 7-0 after the first quarter, but then they turned it on for double digit points in each of the last three quarters scoring 34 unanswered points. While Byrum Brown didn’t have a touchdown pass, he had 210 yards through the air and 43 on the ground with two touchdowns.
He looked phenomenal, so did the whole team, and now they have another tough task on the road against Florida.
Matchup Information – South Florida vs. Florida – September 6
- Venue & Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (Gainesville, FL)
- Date: Saturday, September 6, 2025
- Kick Off: 4:15 p.m. Eastern
- Broadcast: SEC Network
South Florida vs. Florida Betting Odds
Odds are courtesy of BetOnline, one of our favorite online sportsbooks, as of September 6, 2025 at 9:07 a.m. eastern. Sign up today with Promo Code FREE250 for a 50% deposit bonus up to $250 as well as 100 Free Spins at the online casino.
Spread
- South Florida +18 (-110)
- Florida -18 (-110)
Moneyline
- South Florida +613
- Florida -900
Total
- Over 57 (-115)
- Under 57 (-105)
Both of these teams are in huge look ahead spots. The South Florida Bulls stay in the state but go down to Miami to take on the No. 5 ranked Hurricanes next Saturday. On the other side, Florida has to go to Death Valley and take on an SEC opponent, doing so against the No. 3 ranked LSU Tigers and Garrett Nussmeier.
While both games next week are tough, more pressure is certainly on the hosts, who are looking to sneak their way to the top of this loaded conference. With that in mind, I’m trying not to overreact to the Bulls’ performance last week, but man, they looked good.
I’ll take some bait on this big spread and bet that Florida is looking ahead to the Tigers.
South Florida vs. Florida NCAA Football Picks and Predictions
Byrum Brown led the Bulls offense to 34 total points in Week 1
South Florida vs. Florida Prediction: Florida Wins, South Florida Covers, Over 56.5
Best Bet: South Florida +18 (-110) Bovada
Give me South Florida plus the points. This is the best line on the market, there are plenty of +17.5s out there as well, so do your line shopping and be sure to get that hook. I see Florida winning this game, but two touchdowns at most.
This total has ballooned up from 52.5 all the way to 56 where it currently sits. Clearly, the bettors and the books think we see plenty of back and forth. So do I. But South Florida, at this point in the season, is the more battle tested team. Sure, Boise didn’t look great, but they returned virtually everyone from last year’s Mountain West Championship team that made the College Football Playoff. The Gators had a cupcake against Long Island.
As focused as the Gators want to be on this matchup, there will certainly be a part of them thinking about the LSU Tigers. The pressure is not on the visitors, who will be three possession underdogs against Miami next week regardless. This is a chance for South Florida to play spoiler, and I think they keep this game closer than people think.
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