Josh Pate Issues Stark Warning to Loser of Florida vs. Miami Week 1 Clash

The first week of this year's college football season is set for some major matchups that could have significant implications for teams this season.

On the slate will be Notre Dame at Texas A&M, Clemson meeting Georgia, and USC against LSU, just to name a few. But one matchup in particular could determine the future of two head coaches and their tenures at their respective schools when the Miami Hurricanes travel to Gainesville to face the Florida Gators in a non-conference game.

Thanks to conference realignment, the now Power Four conferences are loaded with elite schools, making the schedules for teams like Miami and Florida even more difficult. That's troubling for two programs that both need to find themselves in the win column in Week 1.

"Week 1 has a massive hinge game this year. Unique circumstances," Josh Pate said on the Sunday episode of Late Kick Live .

Both Miami's Mario Cristobal and Florida's Billy Napier are entering their third seasons at their respective programs. And they're both needing to prove themselves.

"Do you understand how toxic things are gonna get for the loser of this game? Way too toxic," Pate said. "It's more of a must-win for Florida than it is Miami, in my opinion.

"If Miami loses, Mario's gonna hear a lot of the same thing: 'You can go get the players but you can't win with them.' If Florida loses, it's gonna be, 'Welp, first of many. Bowl season out the window for us this year. Fire Billy Napier.' It's going to be gross, toxic."

Cristobal has managed just a 12-13 record since returning to his alma mater. After spending four seasons as Louisiana's head coach, Napier has posted an 11-14 at Florida and actually took a step back last season, not even managing to get the Gators to a bowl game.

The Gators enter 2024 with one of the toughest schedules in all of college football, especially now with the SEC's new additions. The Canes face their own set of challenges in the ACC but have a much more favorable schedule than their in-state rival.

As of this writing, Miami is favored by -2.5 over Florida, according to FanDuel. They'll kick off on Sat, Aug. 31 at 3:30 p.m. EST.