Georgia-Florida Moves to Atlanta: Betting Preview & Pick

Segment Spotlight: Quick Hits From SportsGrid College Football Today

Florida Gets the Points Against Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium

The Georgia-Florida game is temporarily moving away from Jacksonville while the Jaguars renovate their stadium. Although the Jaguars are still playing there, the venue is operating at half capacity during the billion-dollar project.

Florida and Georgia decided that playing in a half-capacity stadium would not be fair to their alumni bases. The rivalry will instead be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta this year and Raymond James Stadium in Tampa next year. The game is expected to return to Jacksonville after the two-year absence.

The matchup traditionally features a 50/50 ticket split, with Georgia fans on one side and Florida fans on the other. Atlanta could provide Georgia with a slight home-field advantage because of its proximity. If Florida fans return tickets, Georgia fans may be more likely to buy them. Next year’s game in Tampa could create a similar advantage for Florida.

The location could have a small impact on the point spread. The line climbed from Georgia -10 to -12.5 before dropping back to -11.5. The decision was to take Florida at +12.5 after initially planning to avoid the game.

Florida offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner is a major reason for that play. Faulkner previously coached with Kirby Smith at Georgia and later faced Georgia annually while at Georgia Tech. His Georgia Tech offenses averaged more than 24 points and 400 yards per game against Georgia. The Yellow Jackets lost those three games by a combined 17 points, covered each time and consistently challenged the Bulldogs.

Faulkner now leads a Florida offense ranked ninth in points and 21st in yards. John Summerall also brings a 30-11 career record against the spread as a road underdog from his coaching stops at Tulane, Troy and elsewhere. While this is a neutral-site game rather than a true road game, Florida is still playing away from home.

The pick is Florida +12.5, with the hope that the right version of the Gators shows up. Georgia may still be the best team in the country, but its recent performance against Auburn revealed issues, including sloppy ball security.