For the second time in two weeks, a hurricane is in the Gulf of Mexico and headed towards Florida. Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in the Tampa area on Wednesday before working its way across the state and into the Atlantic Ocean.
While Gainesville isn’t on the coast, it is on the path that Hurricane Milton is projected to travel on across the state before making its way into the Atlantic Ocean.
During his Monday press conference, Napier discussed how the hurricane is altering Florida’s plans this week as they prepare to face Tennessee football on Saturday night in Knoxville.
“We have had several discussions yesterday and today. I think ultimately what we know is that we anticipate today and tomorrow being traditional and then we are ready to adapt Wednesday and Thursday,” Napier said. “Look, I think one thing I have learned — I have lived in some places that deal with this type of weather consistently — is that you play it six or 12 hours at a time. You are ready. You build out Plan A, Plan B and Plan C. We did that yesterday.
“Got to have a good ops crew. We have a great one. The UAA staff to go along with Josh Thompson. I think we have really good people there. We will be fine and we are ready to adjust.”
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Hurricane paths can change quickly. That was evident just two weeks ago when models projected Hurricane Helene to hammer Tallahassee but the storm ended up missing the state capital to the east.
Most SEC teams typically travel to road games on Friday afternoon but it Hurricane Milton could change Florida’s travel plans as they prepare to face Tennessee in a critical SEC matchup.
It’s the third time this year that weather has impacted a Tennessee-Florida sporting event. In January, a snowstorm in Knoxville led to tipoff between Tennessee and Florida being moved up two hours. Just two weeks ago, Hurricane Helene postponed Tennessee soccer’s matchup at Florida until the end of October.
Both Tennessee and Florida are desperate for a victory as the two teams prepare to clash on Saturday in Knoxville. The Vols need a win to preserve their College Football Playoff hopes following their loss at Arkansas. Florida is still looking to rebound from its disastrous start to the season as Napier looks to preserve his job.
Kickoff at Neyland Stadium is at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday night. Bob Wischusen, Louis Riddick and Kris Budden are on the call for ESPN.
