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Joel Klatt reveals why Florida vs. Miami needs to be played on annual basis

FaceProfileby: Thomas Goldkamp05/21/25
Graham-Mertz-Florida-Gators-offensive-line
Florida Gators quarterback Graham Mertz (15) eludes tackles during the season opener at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, August 31, 2024 against the University of Miami Hurricanes in the first half. Miami lead 24-10 at the half. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun]

College football is what it is in large part because of the fantastic rivalries the sport has produced over the years. But not every rivalry is played on an annual basis.

And for FOX Sports’ Joel Klatt, at least in some instances that’s an absolute travesty. Klatt recently made that case on The Joel Klatt Show, picking five games that he thinks should be played on an annual basis that currently are not.

Among them? Florida and Miami.

“Again, this is a no-brainer,” Klatt said. “I want to see Miami and Florida every single year. Nothing is scheduled after 2025. They used to be an annual opponent for them in the late ’80s.”

After a long run of Miami success when the series was not played on an annual basis, Florida has had a little better luck of late. The ‘Canes went on a six-game winning streak from 1986 to 2004.

Florida has won two of the four meetings since then, with a lot of time in between the matchups. Miami won the game this past year, taking a 41-17 victory lap in Gainesville.

The two teams will meet again in a much-ballyhooed affair in Miami. That’ll be a big one. But it’s also a shame it’s the last game in the rivalry series in the foreseeable future, with no plans to play the game on an annual basis at the moment.

“Listen, this has been a series that we kind of get and then it goes away. We should have it,” Klatt said. “All the kids that go to Florida and Miami play against each other their entire lives, and then they go to these schools which are right up the coast from one another and we don’t get that game every year? We should have that game every single year.”

The meeting this year will pit two very different teams. Since last year’s meeting, Florida has seen star freshman DJ Lagway take over at quarterback. Meanwhile, Miami star quarterback Cam Ward is off to the NFL.

That figures to make for an intriguing lead-in to the game that was once played on an annual basis. And with the future of the series in question, it could mean bragging rights for quite some time.