Florida holds steady in year-end USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

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Dec 29, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators forward Alex Condon (21) and Florida Gators guard Alijah Martin (15) smile while walking to position against the Stetson Hatters during the second half at Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

The top nine programs in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll stayed put in the final vote of 2024. The Florida Gators (13-0) remain the No. 5 team in the country entering conference play.

Florida won its 13th game of the 2024-25 season on Sunday, defeating the Stetson Hatters, 85-45, and securing a perfect record through two months. Maintaining perfection will be difficult moving forward as the Gators attempt to navigate the SEC schedule, playing against the toughest conference in the country.

The Orange and Blue began the year at No. 21 in the preseason rankings. It’s been a steady climb with each week of play, moving up to No. 19 (Week 1 and Week 2), No. 16 in Week 3, No.  13 in Week 4, No. 7 in Week 5, No. 6  Week 6 and No. 5 a week ago. Florida now leads No. 6 Alabama by 25 poll points and trails the No. 5 Duke Blue Devils by just 13 points.

Oklahoma replaced Kentucky in the No. 10 of the poll this week, with the Wildcats falling to No. 11. Tennessee and Auburn held the same 20-11 split in first-place votes as last week.

SEC schools in Coaches Poll top 25

In addition to the six top-11 SEC programs mentioned above, the Texas A&M Aggies (No. 12) are just behind Kentucky, and the Mississippi State Bulldogs aren’t too far behind at No. 16. The Ole Miss Rebels fell seven spots to No. 23, giving the conference nine programs inside the top 25.

The Arkansas Razorbacks (58), Georgia Bulldogs (36) and Missouri Tigers (6) all earned votes in this week’s poll.

Coaches Poll Top 25 Week 8 rankings

Ranking

Team

Record

Points

Change

1

Tennessee

12-0

764 (20)

–

2

Auburn

11-1

747 (11)

–

3

Iowa…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/florida-holds-steady-end-usa-193152401.html

Author : Gators Wire

Publish date : 2024-12-30 19:31:00

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