The confidence of the Florida Gators and its fans has rocketed sky high ever since Jake Fromm left UGA early for the NFL Draft.

All the chatter seems to be centered on one thought: This could finally be the year that Florida coach Dan Mullen finally beats the Bulldogs.

Former Gators coach Urban Meyer added to the hype when he recently spoke to GatorBait’s Buddy Martin. Meyer is now a college football analyst with Fox Sports. Said Meyer:

“I think (Florida) should be in the playoff. I think it’s time. Dan’s built a good program. But I spent six years at Florida. Georgia is a big game. Until you beat Georgia you can’t say a thing. And I think this is the year.”

Meyer explained that “this is the year” because UGA is going through a transition period: The Bulldogs have a new offensive coordinator with Todd Monken and a new quarterback in Wake Forest transfer Jamie Newman.

UGA fans may look it at very differently than Meyer.

While some were sad to see the popular Fromm exit for the NFL, the early departure seems to be a distant memory after the addition of Newman, who offers much more versatility as a dual-threat quarterback and has already shown up on many Heisman watchlists. Former UGA coach Mark Richt even went as far to boldly predict that Newman will be the best QB in the SEC for 2020.

With regards to Monken, his resume is one of the best UGA has ever had at offensive coordinator, with Monken’s background as a former NFL offensive coordinator and former college head coach. He is viewed by many as a serious upgrade for the Bulldogs.

UGA has won three straight against its SEC East archrival, and Mullen was the coach for the last two. Fromm was quarterback in all three games. It was Bulldogs receiver Lawrence Cager who put the team on his back to win last season’s game, with seven catches for 132 yards and one touchdown.

So will Urban Meyer be proven correct? We’ll find out when the Gators and Bulldogs clash on Oct. 31.