Sin City serves as the scene for the first matchup between two Power Five conference programs when No. 14 Oregon State takes on Florida in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday. It’s the first-ever meeting between these two in football and only the second time ever an SEC team has taken part in the Las Vegas Bowl, which was first played in 1992.
This is the third appearance for Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl, which has maintained a relationship with the Pac-12 since 2001, with the Beavers winning in 2003 against New Mexico and falling to BYU in 2009. This also marks the first time Oregon State has been in a bowl game in back-to-back seasons since 2012 and 2013, as Jonathan Smith and last year’s squad snapped an eight-year bowl drought with their appearance in the LA Bowl.
While Florida’s appearance in this game is notable for its rarity as an SEC school, it also comes as a result of the Gators going 6-6 in Year 1 under Billy Napier. Florida got off to a strong start with a win against reigning (and eventual) Pac-12 champion Utah in the season opener, prompting a surge in the rankings and rapidly raised expectations, but as the schedule unfolded the Gators failed to find some consistency with their performances. They enter the Las Vegas bowl having lost four of their final six games, concluding with back-to-back defeats to Vanderbilt and rival Florida State.
Florida vs. Oregon State: Need to know
Beavers enter the bowl game on a roll: Oregon State went 6-1 in the final seven games, a stretch in which the defense has shown great improvement. Across the final seven games of the season, the Beavers held opponents to an average of 17.3 points and 331.0 yards per game. According to Oregon State, both marks are the best in the Pac-12 in that span. The six wins included a thrilling comeback victory against rival Oregon in the regular season finale and solidified the program’s first nine-win season since 2012. With a victory against Florida, Oregon State could claim their 10th win for just the third time in school history. Of note: the first-ever double-digit win season came in 2000 when current head coach Jonathan Smith was the team’s quarterback
Florida without its star QB (and several other notable contributors): Starting quarterback Anthony Richardson will not play in the Las Vegas Bowl as he begins his preparation for the NFL Draft. He will be joined by starting tackle O’Cyrus…
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