KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee River snakes along Neyland Stadium here, and according to the Tennessee Valley Authority, flowed at a maximum 60,000 cubic feet per second as recent as last week while the river dealt with the mountain flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. The TVA reportedly was working to reduce flow to about 38,000 cubic feet per second by Friday, as the Vol Navy began to gather for Saturday night’s Florida-Tennessee showdown.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Helene’s impact — and to a lesser degree, this week’s Hurricane Milton — was still evident in Gainesville as the Gators passed piles of debris while bussing from campus to catch their flight to Knoxville on Friday afternoon. While Florida and Tennessee have endured a difficult stretch due to weather events, what is scheduled to go down Saturday night at Neyland Stadium is strictly a Gators vs. Vols affair.
“This is a huge game for us being able to go on the road in the SEC,” said Gators receiver Chimere Dike, a transfer from Wisconsin set to play in his first Florida-Tennessee game. “That’s all we are really focused on.”
Florida (3-2, 1-1) is coming off a home win against UCF. Ninth-ranked Tennessee (4-1, 1-1) suffered a 19-14 loss at Arkansas, snapping the Vols’ six-game win streak. This is the Southeastern Conference home opener for Tennessee and more than 100,000 fans will be there in what is being billed as the Vols’ 16th consecutive sellout.
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The Gators adjusted their practice schedule on Wednesday and Thursday with the UF campus closed as Milton made landfall in Florida. That is nothing new for UF head coach Billy Napier, who is a veteran at prepping around hurricanes from his time at Louisiana and the past three seasons at Florida.
Napier knows the Vols are waiting on the Gators with bad intentions.
“Going to play in Knoxville against a team that, in my opinion, has a ton of capability and certainly has been impressive,” Napier said. “I know they struggled a little bit last week, but in our league right now, heck, each week is like an NFL game. It’s coming down to the last seconds. We’ve got respect for Tennessee.
“Obviously, this is a rivalry game, one that has a ton of history and tradition. We know the importance and certainly our players will be focused and excited. I do think fundamentals…
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