The Streak - Don't Look Ethel!

The Streak - Not Ray Stevens, and Not Will Ferrel through the "quad" - but win/loss records in head-to-head college football match-ups. I’ve waited to post this for quite a while – since the Georgia vs. Florida game, actually. So here it goes…

Whether a team wins or loses a game, the fans, players, sports writers, and sports commentators enjoy identifying the head-to-head streak that favors their team or their point of view, regardless of whether it makes any sense. This happened a great deal before, during, and after the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (WLOCP) this year. The mantra was something like this:

“Georgia comes into this game being dominated by Florida. Florida has won 14 out of the last 16 contests.”

Had Florida lost this year's contest, they would still be touting a 14 out of 17 record. Now I know what you are thinking. You are thinking that there is no way to spin the record against Florida in favor of the Dawgs. Well you are not completely correct in that way of thinking. Let me explain.

What logical factors should be considered when presenting the streak? It first depends upon the subject of the conversation. Here’s my opinion:

• When discussing an individual, the streak must be tied to that individual’s involvent with the school. If you are discussing the coach for either team, tie it to that coach’s tenure. If the coach has been there for 4 years, then the record is based on his 4 years. If you are discussing a player, same thing.
• When discussing the team or school as a whole, then there are several options.

Multiples of 5. As in, the last 5 meetings, or the last 10 meetings, etc.




Overall record. As in, Georgia has an advantage over Tech with an overall record of 57-36-5.




Number of games since the last win or loss. As in, Georgia has won the last 12 meetings against Georgia Tech. [think vacate]

Home game winning or losing streaks.

Conference winning or losing streaks.

Which brings me back to this year’s Georgia vs. Florida mantra. Mark Richt has lost 4 out of the last 5 meetings against Florida. Not good but it counts as a streak. Florida coach Urban Myth has won his only contest against the Bulldogs. Again, not good, but it counts. The Dawgs have an overall record against the Gators of 46-36-2. Better, and it counts. Even the Evil Genius couldn't flip that record.

Check out Georgia's streaks here. Also note that these streaks meet the criteria above in head-to-head matchups. I purposely did not discuss unbeaten streaks involving multiple teams.