Florida basketball to face ACC non-conference foe in Hall of Fame Series
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Florida will be on a mission during the 2026-27 campaign to return to the Final Four, where it fell short of last season after winning it all in 2025.
Todd Golden’s Gators are loaded with talent to accomplish just that by next April, and on Tuesday the SEC powerhouse announced who it will be facing in the Hall of Fame Series Orlando at the Kia Center. It’ll be a good, old-fashioned SEC-ACC showdown on Dec. 12 when Florida faces Georgia Tech in a neutral-site matchup.
Tipoff time and the TV designation for the battle will be announced at a later date, according to the Gators.
Florida is under .500 all-time against Georgia Tech, with a 20-24 all-time record. Shockingly, the programs from neighboring states have only played once in the past 50 years. That 1 meeting came way back in 1987, when the Gators took down the Yellow Jackets, 80-69, in Gainesville.
Finally, UF and Georgia Tech will square off again, with the Gators returning 4 double-digit scorers for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
The matchup will be Florida’s first at the Kia Center since the opening weekend of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.
The Florida-Georgia Tech showdown will be part of a doubleheader at the Hall of Fame Series Orlando, with FAU facing VCU in the other matchup.
For Gators fans who can’t wait to grab tickets for the matchup down the road a bit from Gainesville, tickets for the Georgia Tech showdown will be on sale on Aug. 19 at 9 a.m. at HOFSeries.com.
Tuesday’s announcement about the Georgia Tech meeting wasn’t the only one involving Florida’s schedule for the upcoming season. The Gators announced another non-conference, neutral-site matchup that will take place just 6 days after the game in Orlando, with this one being in Jacksonville. Florida will face Grand Canyon in the Jacksonville Hoops Showdown on Dec. 18, with the tipoff time and TV information to be announced at a later date.
The Gators have never played Grand Canyon, but this will be the 3rd straight season that UF plays at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville. Florida announced there will be a 1-day presale on Oct. 20 at 11 a.m., followed by a public on-sale the next day on Oct. 21 at 11 a.m.
That mission this upcoming season to get back to the Final Four will be real for Florida. Here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about UF’s chances to be playing for another national championship next April:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
