Florida Atlantic @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 17, 2007 ) Florida Atlantic 20, Florida 59

THE STORY: Florida's Will Muschamp makes his head coaching debut as the Gators begin a new era against Florida Atlantic. The Owls' Howard Schnellenberger begins his 27th season as a head coach, and 11th at Florida Atlantic. He plans to retire at the end of the season. The 23rd-ranked Gators won the only meeting between the teams, 59-20 in 2007.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU. LINE: Florida by 35

ABOUT FLORIDA ATLANTIC (4-8 in 2010): This is the first of three consecutive games against teams from BCS conferences for the Owls, who will travel to Michigan State next week and Auburn on Sept. 24. The Owls will lean on running back Alfred Morris on offense. Morris rushed for 928 yards last season. Quarterback Graham Wilbert will take over for two-year starter Jeff Van Camp. He beat out fellow junior David Kooi for the starting job.

ABOUT FLORIDA (8-5 in 2010): Muschamp takes over for Urban Meyer after leaving behind his coach-in-waiting status at Texas. New offensive coordinator Charlie Weis has plenty of weapons to work with, starting with senior RBs Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey, who have combined for 4,227 career yards from scrimmage. Fifth-year senior QB John Brantley is back to run the revamped pro-style passing offense, along with versatile sophomore Trey Burton, who led the team with 12 touchdowns last season.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Florida is 16-6 in the previous 22 games in which a head coach makes his debut with the Gators.

2. Florida has appeared in 20 consecutive bowl games, the longest active streak in the Southeastern Conference and the second-longest in the nation.

3. Schnellenberger is 3-4 all-time against the Gators. He won his first three meetings against Florida while at Miami, but lost his last two with the Hurricanes and one apiece with Louisville and Florida Atlantic.

PREDICTION: Florida 45, Florida Atlantic 17 - The Gators' young defense will hold its own, and they have too much firepower on offense for the Owls to keep pace.