Categories: Air Force, Army, Florida Gators, Navy
Tags: Dan Mullen, Scott Stricklin
It’s a phrase that just spurs animosity and anger among the Florida Gator fanbase, partly because no one can define what it is or how to apply it. It’s as generic as any company’s lame mission statement they have posted in the lobby of their main office or inside the front page of the company handbook they pass out the first day on the job. But never fear! Seth is here, to ensure that this phrase means and stands for something tangible.
This weekend and next the SEC begins its yearly mid-November sacrifice of an FCS program. Schools will pay anywhere between $500K-$800K to destroy and mutilate a lower tier program all in the name of ‘helping them financially and giving them a great opportunity’. These games are gigolo games that help SEC schools pick up a win to get either A. Closer to bowl eligibility or B. To iron out the wrinkles before playing their archrivals. SEC schools don’t really care about the finances of these schools and their athletic departments. They just want a sparring partner that will stand there and take the blows for 60 minutes.
So, I have a solution. This being Veterans Day and Veterans Day weekend I have a way to define “The Gator Standard.” Scott Stricklin and Dan Mullen can set a standard unparalleled in all of Major College Football. Hence forth every Veterans Day weekend going forward The Florida Gator football program will begin a rotation of the Three Major Football Service Academies.
Within the next five years, The Florida Gator Football program will begin a three-game rotation every Veterans Day Saturday with Army, Navy and Air Force. The Gators will pay each team $2 million per game and will play each team five times over a 15 year stretch with the payout moving up $200K per each match-up. (The Gators paid Colorado St $2 million for the McElwain game so this isn’t unprecedented) The Gator Standard Classic will be special. It will honor the academies and it will pay them to ensure that the red carpet is rolled out and the Second Saturday in November is ALWAYS a special day in Gainesville and on the Campus of the University of Florida.
I have taken the liberty to look at all three service academies and the Gators future schedules. Army has the tightest schedule with the most conflicts. If The Gator Standard Classic were to begin Veterans Day week in 2025 they would likely need to be third in the rotation and have to reschedule their November 13th clash with Tulsa in 2027. After that the coast is clear.
Here is how The Gator Standard Classic Schedule would look:
11/15/2025 Navy vs Gators
11/14/2026 Air Force vs Gators
11/13/2027 Army vs Gators
11/11/2028 Navy vs Gators
11/10/2029 Air Force vs Gators
11/9/2030 Army vs Gators
11/16/2031 Navy vs Gators
11/13/2032 Air Force vs Gators
11/12/2033 Army vs Gators
11/11/2034 Navy vs Gators
11/10/2035 Air Force vs Gators
11/15/2036 Army vs Gators
11/14/2037 Navy vs Gators
11/13/2038 Air Force vs Gators
11/12/2039 Army vs Gators
If “The Gators Standard” is a thing. How about we make it one of the most special things in all of college sports?
