Florida plummeted seven spots to No. 14 in the latest Associated Press poll, falling behind four other SEC teams and Miami, following its 31-6 loss to No. 1 Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
It is the first time the Gators have dropped from the AP top 10 since losing at home to unranked Ole Miss in September 2008.
See where Miami, Florida and Florida State sit in the AP and coaches’ polls below.
“We see it as a stepping stone,” linebacker Brandon Hicks said after the loss in Tuscaloosa. “No team is perfect.
“We have hit reality. There’s nothing we could do to stop that. This is time for us to … keep going forward.”
The problem for Florida is that it went drastically backward and the damage might be irreparable.
The Gators’ one loss might be enough to rule them out of the national championship hunt regardless of what happens the rest of the season. There are 10 undefeated BCS conference teams ahead of them, plus Boise State and TCU. The AP poll does not factor into BCS rankings, but the coaches’ poll has significant weight and there usually is marginal, if any, difference between the two polls. The coaches voted Florida No. 12 this week, just in front of Arkansas and Miami.
Despite the fall in the polls, Florida remains in control of the SEC East and is in prime position to reach its third straight conference championship game in Atlanta.
At that point, Florida could be looking at a rematch with the Crimson Tide, but even an upset in that game might not be enough to overtake an undefeated Ohio State, Oregon or Boise State for a spot in national championship.
None of that was on coach Urban Meyer’s mind as he hurried out of Bryant-Denny Stadium.
“No. We think about getting on a plane safely and getting home,” he said. “They’d like to see their families and get back to work tomorrow. That’s what we think about.”
Even if the Gators (4-1, 2-1 in the SEC) were to lose Saturday to No. 12 LSU (5-0, 3-0) at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, they are guaranteed the division crown if they win the rest of their SEC games in October and November.
“I told the guys just to believe,” center Mike Pouncey said. “We go through this every year. We lose a game and it’s all about how you respond, so we have to go out have a great week of practice and go out there and have a great game against LSU.”
As Pouncey alluded, the Gators have suffered one setback in each of their three national championship seasons.
Florida’s most threatening competitor in the division is No. 19 South Carolina (3-1, 1-1). The Gamecocks already have a conference loss and host Alabama this week. They also have a home game against No. 11 Arkansas in November.
After this week, the Gators likely will be a significant favorite against their final four SEC opponents: Mississippi State, Georgia, Vanderbilt and South Carolina. The first three teams in that list are a combined 5-9 this season.
Florida and South Carolina wrap up their SEC schedule against each other in Gainesville on Nov. 13. If the Gators enter that game with two conference losses, they can surpass the Gamecocks by winning that match-up.
For the rest of the division, mediocrity might be too lofty an aspiration. Georgia is 0-3 in the SEC and is trying this week to avoid its first five-game losing streak since 1953.
Kentucky and Tennessee are 0-2 in the conference including a loss against Florida for each. Vanderbilt is 1-1, but is unlikely to beat any team in the division and Florida gets a shot at the Commodores on Nov. 6.
Miami (3-1) moved up three spots to No. 13 after a 30-21 victory at Clemson. Florida State (4-1), which visits UM at 8 p.m. Saturday, rejoined the poll after a three-week absence, coming in at No. 23 after beating Virginia 34-14.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
