REPORT: Georgia-Florida may not be played in Jacksonville in near future

The path out of Jacksonville for Georgia-Florida may be clearer than ever before. David Baurlein of the Florida Times-Union wrote on Wednesday that the city council, including Mayor Lenny Curry, is starting to explore options for the Jaguars during a renovation to TIAA Bank Stadium.

According to Curry, the “best-case” would be a project that only costs the city two years in the stadium. He added that the hope is for 2025 and 2026 football season to be the only affected. During those two years, The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party would take place on campus with each school taking a turn to host a game.

“(The Jags) will have to play somewhere else,” Curry said in an interview on 1010XL radio. “The goal would be to play somewhere in Jacksonville. Those discussions are happening, but two years is the goal. I do know that they are considering certain sites that are local that could accommodate them for at least two years.”

It’s the first time that any city official in Jacksonville has made mention of the $120 million renovation project putting TIAA Bank Field off limits to home games.

As for Georgia and Florida, the Bulldogs and Gators have an agreement to play games in Jacksonville through 2023 with a two-year option to extend the contract after that. Prior to the game this past season, the two schools released a joint statement on the future of the game in Jacksonville.

“The annual game between our two universities is an important tradition. At this time, both programs are focused on our current seasons,” the statement read. “Typically both schools begin conversations regarding future games in the series as the last contracted game nears. We anticipate following that timeline. When those discussions take place, we will consider a multitude of factors including tradition, finances, future SEC scheduling models with the addition of Texas and Oklahoma, and what is best for both schools’ football programs overall.”

Georgia and Florida have played in Jacksonville annually since 1933 with the exception of two years: 1994 in Gainesville and 1995 in Athens. That also came due to stadium construction for the Jaguars. However, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has called for a change to that. His concern is the recruiting disadvantage that it puts the programs at playing the game at a neutral site.

“There’s really quality benefits to both,” Smart said this past October when asked about whether he would prefer playing the game in Jacksonville or on campus. “When it comes down to it, there’s a very, very basic element of everything comes back to, number one money, and number two recruiting and getting good players. I firmly believe that we’ll be able to sign better players by having it as a home-and-home because we’ll have more opportunities to get them to campus. But, I also think there’s a financial factor that factors into that, with having the game there, and being able to make more money for the university, possibly, there. You have to weigh both those and make really good decisions.”

“It’s really not a big debate for me. It’s been made really big by the media because they’ve made it out to be a really big deal,” he added. “I enjoy the pageantry of going down there and playing. I enjoyed playing there as a player, I enjoy tradition. I enjoy all those things. But, I promise you, I have not thought about that one second since the start of the season. And I’m not going to think about it for one second because I got to worry about coaching our team, and I’m not fighting the fight in the public forum. I’m not fighting the fight for anything. I’m worried about our team and us playing well and how we block and tackle of what plays we call it, how we play special teams. That’s just not a priority for me, where that game is right now.”