GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- More than a month later, Florida and LSU will finally square off this weekend in the game that was postponed and moved by Hurricane Matthew's approach off the east coast on Oct. 8.

After a lot of public bickering back and forth and accusations from fans and media alike that Florida was trying to "dodge" the game, the Gators admit this one will mean a little something more.

"That part bothered me a little bit," safety Nick Washington, a Jacksonville native, said Monday. "They think we had a choice of avoiding this game when there’s a hurricane. Not just me but a lot of my teammates, a lot of us had family in places where the hurricane was hitting."

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The SEC ultimately made the decision late Thursday afternoon before the LSU game was supposed to be played: no game in Gainesville that weekend. Days of negotiations went by before the league finally settled on the ultimate solution of playing in Baton Rouge on Nov. 19.

It cost both teams a home date (Florida was scheduled to take on Presbyterian, while LSU was scheduled to take on South Alabama). In exchange for traveling to Baton Rouge this year, Florida will host LSU twice in a row beginning in 2017.

Needless to say, though, there's some bad blood ahead of this year's contest. Moreso than normal.

"It’s a big rivalry game," Washington said. "I think the LSU game is one of the biggest games for us every season just like FSU, just like Georgia. I mean we’re going to go into it with a little more of a chip on our shoulder because of what’s been said in the media and what not. I know we’re ready to go."

For coach Jim McElwain discussion about the postponement is old news. He refused to call it a disadvantage, though Florida is significantly more banged-up than it was in early October and LSU is probably a little more healthy, specifically having star tailback Leonard Fournette available this time around.

At the end of the day, two teams will square off. In Florida's case, everything is on the line. There's only one way to approach it at this point.

"Look, anything that comes up that really is out of your control, I mean, you can sit and cry about it or do whatever or you can just move on," McElwain said. "That's what we've got to do. You know what, it is what it is. We're going there to play and that's the way it is."

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Contact Thomas Goldkamp by 247Sports' personal messaging system or on Twitter at @ThomasGoldkamp.