Florida Gators 2016 College Football Betting Preview

Posted by Eric Williams on Saturday,July 9, 2016 5:24, EDT in

With the Florida Gators looking to build on their solid first season under head coach Jim McElwain and the start of the start of a new season just weeks away, it’s time for some college football betting predictions. Thanks to this in-depth look at Florida Gators as they get set for the upcoming campaign, you’re going to find out just what you should expect from the national title hopefuls in 2016. Let’s get started.

Take a Look at Our Florida Gators 2016 College Football Betting Preview

Offense

Florida (10-4 SU, 8-6 ATS) had an impressive season in 2015, but it certainly wasn’t because of their offense, which can best be described as underwhelming. The Gators ranked just 112th in total offense (334.0 ypg) and 100th in scoring (23.2 ppg).

McElwain has six returning starters, but needs to find a new starting quarterback following last season’s Will Grier-Treon Harris debacle at the position, two new offensive linemen and replacements for star wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and gifted running back Kelvin Taylor.

Transfer signal-caller Luke Del Rio, the son of Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio, or Purdue graduate transfer Austin Appleby will compete for the job, but whoever gets it will be inexperienced, likely making the quarterback position a problem for McElwain for the second straight season.

Last but not least, the Gators could have problems on the offensive line as they replace two starters from last season’s squad. The good news is that Florida’s young offensive linemen should be a lot better than they were when three true freshmen either started or regularly suited up while allowing a nation’s worst 45 sacks.

Defense

Florida was absolutely monstrous in limiting the opposition to just 310.2 yards per game (eighth) and a paltry 18.2 points per contest (11th). The good news for McElwain is that he returns seven starters from last year’s shutdown unit.

Unfortunately, there is some bad news in the fact that McElwain needs to find replacements for a quartet of stars that all made it to the NFL in defensive tackle Jon Bullard, defensive end Alex McCalister, safety Keanu Neal and cornerback Vernon Hargreaves.

More good news however comes in the fact that the Gators are brimming with talent, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, starting with ends, Bryan Cox Jr. and Cece Jefferson and tackle Caleb Brantley.

By The Numbers

Florida is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games
Florida is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Florida's last 7 games
Florida is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 home games
Florida is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Florida's last 6 games at home

2016 Betting Prediction

The Gators may have made a great hire by bringing Jim McElwain on board and they are certainly headed in the right direction. However, as far as the upcoming 2016 season is concerned, I just can’t see Florida improving on its surprising 10-4 mark from a year ago. Simply put, I expect Florida to be good in 2016, just not great, nor worthy of a pick against their +6000 CAAF Championship futures odds.