Hate Week 2011: The Warm Up

Florida Hate Week doesn't officially begin until Sunday but with both teams on a bye this weekend, it is never too early to start hating the Gators. We all know Georgia's lack of success against Florida over the last 20 years, but for the first time in a long time, I can honestly say that the past should have little affect on this year's game. Here is why:

• This is not the typical match up of ranked teams. Yes, this game means a great deal to the SEC East race, and specifically to Georgia . But both teams are coming off disappointing seasons in 2010 and have seen South Carolina pass them as the top team in the east. There's no national championship implications, no Heisman trophies, just two historic rivals meeting on the field.
• Urban Meyer is gone. So if Tim Tebow. Florida may have been struggling last year coming into the game, but they still had Urban on the sideline. There is no more curse of Tim Tebow or Urban's crazy spread offense.
  
• Muschamp was a Dawg. Yes, he may be burning bridges fast, but he still played football at Georgia and that will not be forgotten. As much as he claims to be all in at Florida, I can't see Muschamp pulling any of the tricks Spurrier or Meyer would have against Georgia.
• We both have byes this week. No one has the advantage in the rest department. After all these years of Georgia coming in beat up while Florida is healthy, Georgia actually looks like the healthier team right now. Florida will get Brantley and rested Demps back, but the Dawgs get Alec Ogletree, Malcolm Mitchell, and (hopefully) a revived Isaiah Crowell back.
  
• Georgia has a lot more on the line than Florida. Muschamp's job is not in jeopardy, it is his first year with a new offensive scheme. But Mark Richt (despite 5 straight wins) still has to be a little uneasy about his position. Georgia has not been to the SEC Championship game since 2005. Florida has won two NCs in that time.

None of these factors mean Georgia is going to win or that the team will forget their shortcomings in Jacksonville. What it does mean is that I am going to try and remove the past from my analysis of the game. Just as I won't talk about Tim Tebow, neither will I talk about Knowshon Moreno. Florida's dominance over the last 20 years won't be discussed, nor will Georgia's dominance for the first 90 years or so of the 20th century. This game is the dawn of a new decade and hopefully this will all just become a thing of the past.