By: Mike Anthony

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

In these parts, the end of October can mean only one thing – another chapter written in the rivalry between Georgia and Florida.

To be perfectly honest, I have no stake in this matchup.

I spent the first 14 years of my life embroiled in the various college football rivalries of the Mid-Atlantic and Rust Belt states.

And while I’ve enjoyed all of the ACC and SEC rivalries since moving down south, I’ve never taken a side and simply appreciate each game as it comes while not digging too deep into the history.

So, I consider myself unfit to discuss the ins and outs of Georgia and Florida. Luckily, I’m never short of friends with deep roots in various teams throughout the south.

With the latest edition of Florida/Georgia on tap, I turned to Sudie Pennebaker (a huge Florida fan from the Sunshine State) and Morrell McCaskill (a lifelong Georgia fan) to try and sway me to their side.

Here’s a few pieces of the argument that ensued.

Me: So, let’s jump right into it. Where do we stand in this rivalry? Who’s getting the best of it?

MM: First off, UGA not only won the first ever game in this rivalry, but it still holds the largest victory in the series and is ahead in the overall record with 52 wins. Florida is more like a bitter little brother in the series. Outside of the Spurrier era, UGA has owned the rivalry.

SP: Eh… 51 wins. Georgia says 52 because they count a game when they played a school that wasn’t actually UF. And Spurrier left in 2001. We’ve won 10 times since then. Not sure how you can say Georgia has owned the rivalry when they only have seven wins in that span.

Me: The game has the moniker of “The World’s Largest Cocktail Party”, but that name has been shuttered recently. How devastating is it to lose such a great nickname.

MM: I think it’s a buzzkill. The cocktail party name lends to the two schools’ strong tailgating traditions. It also bleeds into the crowd that isn’t so into football, but loves a good party. That does nothing but help college football’s cause.

Me: How about the neutral site? Would the game be even better if it was a home-and-home?

SP: On one hand, I like Jacksonville because A.) Family is close by, B.) Go Jags and C.) It feels like a home game. But I don’t think it’s really a neutral site.

MM: Neutral? 71 miles vs. 362 miles doesn’t seem too neutral to me. I would love if it was home-and-home. Georgia does that with Auburn every year and that works great. Florida fans may be worried about wearing their jean shorts in late October in Athens though. It could be chillier than what they’re used to.

SP: Nah. We’ll just wear the jeans that we will turn into shorts next summer.

Me: You obviously have all the great moments for your team committed to memory. What’s a low point for you?

SP: I am not fond of 2012… Stupid Jeff Driskel. Stupid Will Muschamp. (editor’s note – at this point, Sudie wandered off topic and spent the next five minutes lamenting the Muschamp era)

MM: 2012 was a great year. The one I hate was 2014. We had just beaten Missouri 34-0. Florida wasn’t even ranked. We got beat handily and that was shocking. Plus, it basically sealed the SEC East for Missouri.

In the end, we all ended up right where we had started. There will never be any love lost in this rivalry and – as is often the case – this year’s matchup is heightened by the fact that the winner will be in position to claim the East and play for the conference championship.

I’ll probably remain on the fence when it comes to picking sides. Our discussion cast some light on the pride and pain each side has experienced, but I get enough of that from the allegiances I already claim.

No matter who you root for, it’s going to be one heck of a party – cocktails or not.