Florida Gators Lock Down New Opponent for 2025 Schedule

The Florida Gators have made a last-second switch to next season's schedule and it will be their season opener

The Gators switch up next season's schedule as the current one winds down / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The Florida Gators made some changes to their 2025 schedule on Tuesday. FAMU has been taken off the schedule and replaced them with Long Island University-Brooklyn (LIU), a source told Swamp247.  

The new game against the Sharks is scheduled for Aug. 30. This would make it the opening game of the season. No reason was given as to why the change was made, especially this late in the preceding season. 

Last season, the home opener was the Miami Hurricanes, losing 41-17. So, Florida will have a tune-up win to start the year in a few years. 

The last time the Gators opened the season against an FCS opponent was the opener against Charleston Southern in 2018. 

Over the last six seasons, the Gators have opened against Miami twice, Utah twice, Ole Miss and Florida Atlantic. All are FBS teams, but only FAU can really be considered a tune-up, guaranteed win to start the season. 

They have a 4-2 record in these matchups. They’ve split the games against the Hurricanes and Utes while also beating the Rebels and Owls. 

Florida continues to make adjustments to its upcoming schedules. They were supposed to play a home-and-home with Cal in 2026 and 2027, but that was canceled. NC State was also on the Gators' schedule for 2026 as well as 2032 before axing the plans. 

Both mashups were made ahead of the massive conference realignment that has occurred over the last couple years. Cal was in the Pac-12 at the time - not in the ACC with NC State. The SEC has also grown since then, adding Texas and Oklahoma. 

Breaking Down the Gators 2025 Slate

Along with LIU, the Gators' non-conference schedule will include hosting USF in Week 2 on Sept. 6, traveling to Miami on Sept. 20 in Week 4, and Florida State for Rivalry Week on Nov. 29, according to FBSSchedules. 

Apart from Georgia on Nov. 1, none of the conference games have scheduled dates yet, leaving one bye week still to be determined. One of them is always the week before Georgia, so we can assume there will be no game on Saturday, Oct. 25. 

Florida will host Tennessee, Texas, Mississippi State and Florida State at home along with the USF and LIU game. Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss and Texas A&M will all be road games, along with the Miami game. They’re the designated home team in Jacksonville against Georgia.