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The state of the modern Florida-LSU rivalry, summed up pretty well in a single GIF:
That’s LSU wide receiver Russell Gage grabbing a handful of Florida defensive back Duke Dawson, then catching a real hat-jiggler of a slap. Look at that thing bobble! There were offsetting penalties, but this one probably should’ve been only on Dawson.
This follows a recent tradition of chippiness between these two.
Last year, a Florida DB eventually claimed to have intentionally instigated a pregame scuffle that inspired an injured Leonard Fournette to suit up:
Fight breaks out between #LSU-Florida players.
— Joshua Thornton (@JoshuaThornton_) November 19, 2016
Leonard Fournette and a Florida assistant coach shove each other. pic.twitter.com/wFZwyW1nU7
And that was part of an ugly, public back-and-forth between the two over Hurricane Matthew rescheduling.
All told, this rivalry’s gotten hotter and hotter since 2006.
This isn’t an ancient rivalry, and the two only play every year because of the SEC’s weird division alignment. But that’s OK, because at this point, they must play each other to boiling frustration every year.