Getty Graham Mertz will start under center for the Gators in their season opener against Utah.
The Florida Gators and the No. 14 ranked Utah Utes kick off their respective 2023 campaigns on Thursday, August 31 when the Gators visit Rice-Eccles Stadium.
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The game will be televised on ESPN, but if you don’t have cable or don’t have that channel, you can watch a live stream for free on FuboTV or DirecTV Stream.
Here’s how:
FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of ESPN and 100-plus other live TV channels on FuboTV, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch Florida vs Utah live on the FuboTV app or FuboTV website.
Compatible devices for the FuboTV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Fubo credentials to do that.
DirecTV Stream
DirecTV Stream has four different channel packages: “Entertainment,” “Choice,” “Ultimate” and “Premier.” ESPN is included in all of them, and you can pick any package and any add-on you want with your free five-day trial:
Once signed up for DirecTV Stream, you can watch Florida vs Utah live on the DirecTV Stream app or DirecTV Stream website.
Compatible devices for the DirecTV Stream app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Samsung TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your DirecTV Stream credentials to do that.
Sling TV
If you’ve used up all your free trials for other streaming services, Sling TV is the cheapest long-term streaming service that includes this game. ESPN is included in the “Sling Orange” bundle, which is just $20 for your first month:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch Florida vs Utah live on the Sling TV app or Sling TV website.
Compatible devices for the Sling TV app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung TV, LG TV, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com. You’ll need to sign in to a cable provider to watch this way, but you can use your Sling credentials to do that.
Florida vs Utah Preview
The Gators finished with a a 6-7 record last season, and will debuting a new quarterback under center in former Wisconsin starter Graham Mertz. Florida averaged just under 30 points a game on offense last season, while allowing 29 points a game on the defensive side. The Gators could find it challenging to fill the shoes vacated by quarterback Anthony Richardson, who was drafted No. 4 overall by the Indianapolis Colts this year.
Mertz will likely rely heavily on his duo of running backs, Montrell Johnson Jr. and Trevor Etienne, who combined for over 1,500 yards and 16 rushing scores last year. The Gators won’t have an easy time out of the gate, though.
“We have a ton of respect for Utah,” Gators head coach Billy Napier said, via 247 Sports. “In reality anytime you go play on the road against a team that has consistency, that’s been a contender, that really plays quality good football, plays really good, complimentary brand football. There’s no doubt there’s challenges that come with this game. We’ve always believed in having a formidable opponent early. I think it brings a certain level of urgency to training camp. This will be a very competitive game. They’re going to be highly motivated. We look forward to the challenge and the opportunity.”
On the other side, the Utes went 10-4 in 2022, putting up 38.6 points per game on offense while surrendering 21.4 points per contest on the defensive side. Utah won its second consecutive Pac-12 title and will be looking to win No. 3 this year.
One of the primary questions surrounding the Utes heading into the season opener was whether or not starting quarterback Cameron Rising would be ready to go after tearing his ACL late in the 2022 season. Early reports have the senior QB ready to go, although he hasn’t been officially cleared.
“You open up with a game like this and you get your player’s attention right away,” Utes longtime coach Kyle Whittingham said. “There is no easy part of the season. You have to be ready from the onset. You are not going to be able to have the luxury of looking at a bunch of players and getting some guys reps you hope to see in a game. None of that. It is like opening essentially with a conference game. It is that kind of mentality and that kind of feel to it.”