Florida-LSU Get Chippy Over An Hour Before Kickoff

Who said this wasn't a rivalry!?

The Florida Gators are set to take on the third-ranked LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge, and as the age-old adage goes, there's no love lost in this one.

Oh man, it's a good old-fashioned Saturday night "don't disrespect my homefield" brawl in Death Valley.

Apparently, the officials will be assessing offsetting unsportsmanlike penalties on both sidelines more than an hour before this one is set to kick off.

This game is no stranger to pregame fisticuffs.

If any of you Florida-LSU historians will recall, the 2016 edition of this rivalry saw a war of words between athletic directors over a rescheduling thanks to Hurricane Matthew, and that vitriol spilled over onto the field during the pregame-stretching festivities.

The Gators would get the last laugh in that contest, stopping LSU on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line and stamping their ticket to Atlanta for the right to get obliterated by Bama in the SEC Championship Game.

Florida fans had better hope the Gators show the same fire on the field as they did during their pregame spat, as beleaguered head coach Billy Napier could use all the motivation he can get.

There is a good chance these young men will be playing for their coach's job tonight in Baton Rouge.

If this shoving match is any indicator, though, we could be in for an all-time classic between two football teams that have garnered a reputation for entertaining ball games.

Seven of the last eleven matchups between the Gators and Tigers have been one-possession games, and last year's showdown in The Swamp was a four-point game with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter.

The betting line has plummeted in the past seven days, dropping from -9.5 to -5.5 in favor of LSU.

Maybe the Tigers heard about the disrespect coming out of Vegas and decided to show some spunk.

Regardless, this one should be very entertaining, so get your popcorn (or crawfish) ready!