Florida football has canceled its scheduled 2031-32 home-and-home series with Notre Dame, removing one of the few marquee non-conference games on its future calendar. The cancellations follow the Southeastern Conference's decision to expand to a nine-game conference schedule, which has forced member schools to reevaluate their non-conference commitments.
The Gators were set to visit the Fighting Irish on November 15, 2031, and host them on September 11, 2032. Both matchups have now been scrapped. Florida negotiated a clause in the 2021 contract allowing the program to cancel the series without financial penalty if the SEC adopted a nine-game conference slate. This provision enabled the university to pull out of the agreement without incurring costs.
Florida's football program had already ended future home-and-home series with Arizona State, California, and North Carolina State after the SEC schedule change was confirmed. The Notre Dame series was the latest casualty in this reshuffling of non-conference games.
The two teams have faced each other only once, in the 1992 Sugar Bowl, where Notre Dame defeated Florida 39-28. Since then, the programs had not met on the field, making the planned 2031-32 series a rare and much-anticipated matchup between two prominent college football programs.
The SEC’s move to a nine-game schedule aims to increase conference play and reduce the number of non-conference contests. This adjustment aligns with the broader changes in college football, including the adoption of an expanded 24-team College Football Playoff format. Under the new playoff system, Power Four conference teams, including Florida, must face at least 10 qualifying opponents each season.
Florida’s annual rivalry game against Florida State counts as the Gators’ 10th power conference opponent, satisfying the new playoff requirement. Beyond the Notre Dame cancellations, Florida still has non-conference games lined up against Colorado in 2028 and 2029. The Gators also plan to honor their remaining commitments to UCF with a visit to Orlando in 2030 and a home game in Gainesville in 2033.
This shift suggests Florida is prioritizing conference matchups and manageable non-conference schedules over high-profile clashes with teams like Notre Dame. The expanded playoff format changes the incentives for scheduling tough non-conference games, as the emphasis moves toward meeting specific qualification standards rather than marquee matchups.
Florida fans had been looking forward to the Notre Dame games, but the cancellations reflect the evolving landscape of college football scheduling in the SEC era. The Gators’ focus appears to be on securing their spot in the postseason under the new rules, even at the expense of rare cross-conference contests.
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According to Yahoo Sports.