It has been years since the phrase "The World's largest outdoor cocktail party" has been used officially, but the stakes of the Florida-Georgia football rivalry remain as high as ever.
Georgia (6-1 SU, 2-5 ATS) and Florida (4-3 SU, 4-3 ATS) will meet today at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla.
Georgia hopes to make an SEC championship game appearance and earn a College Football Playoff berth. Florida hopes to turn some heads down the stretch with four games against ranked teams over the next month.
The Bulldogs are 16 or 16.5-point favorites depending on your sports betting app. Here are our expert Florida vs. Georgia predictions and best bets for today.
Georgia fans who just want their team to win have enjoyed this season. Sports bettors who have backed Georgia have not.
The Bulldogs have been winning games, but have not covered bigger point spreads. They covered in their season-opener, but had five consecutive non-covers before last week's win as an underdog at Texas.
On the other hand, the Gators have covered four games in a row, including last week's 48-20 win over Kentucky in which they were 2.5-point underdogs.
If Florida's season was going poorly, this might be different. Instead, Florida is playing well and has a chance to win some big games on its way to a bowl berth. Look for the Gators to compete well enough to cover this point spread, even if the backdoor is necessary.
A big reason the Gators can compete is the presence of QB DJ Lagway. Taking over full-time for Graham Mertz, who was injured in the Tennessee game, Lagway showed off his knack for the long ball in a 48-20 win over Kentucky.
Lagway was 7-for-14 for 259 yards. That is an incredible 18.5 yards per attempt and 37 yards per completion. He isn't the kind of player who can move the ball down the field methodically.
The Gators certainly spent their off week scheming up the kind of deep passes Lagway excels at throwing. It only takes a few of those completions for Lagway to surpass his passing yardage prop of 202.5.
Best odds: -750 at DraftKings
Georgia is a well-oiled machine under coach Kirby Smart. In the last 3-plus seasons, the Bulldogs' only losses are to Alabama. Georgia flexed its muscles again in last weekend's 30-15 win at No. 1 Texas.
The Bulldogs are playing like one of the most dominant teams in the nation should. In the last three seasons, they have crushed Florida by an average of 24 points per game.
It would be shocking to see Georgia lose this game. The only question will be whether the Bulldogs cover the point spread.
Best odds: +580 at FanDuel
The Gators have not met expectations, but have played better in the last four games. They have three wins in that time, with the only loss coming at Tennessee -- a game in which they led in the second half before losing in overtime.
Florida is coming off its best performance -- the win over Kentucky. If the Gators can carry that momentum to Saturday's game, they could give Georgia fits.
The Bulldogs are coming off a big win over Texas, so there's a chance they come out flat and can't stave off another strong Florida performance.