The Florida Gators open the 2026 season with a three-game series against UAB.
' season-opening series against UAB will now feature a doubleheader on Saturday to avoid the potential for severe weather on Sunday, UF announced on Friday. Saturday's original 6 p.m. game will now begin at 2 p.
m., while Sunday's original 1 p.m. game will begin 50 minutes after the first Saturday game. Both games will be nine innings and will be streamed via SEC Network+. Fans with tickets for both Saturday's original game Sunday's game will be allowed to use their tickets to attend both games, UF announced, with reserved tickets only good for the original specific game. The general admission area is good for both games. Friday's season-opener remains scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. start with streaming coverage on SEC Network+.Florida ace Liam Peterson will take the mound for the Gators' season-opener on Friday, while sophomore star Aidan King will start for the first of Saturday's doubleheader. Hawai'i transfer Cooper Walls , tabbed as the Sunday starter to begin the season, is still slated to start for the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. Walls joins Florida after a stellar freshman campaign in which he was named the 2025 Big West Freshman Pitcher of the Year.Florida Gators on SI about Walls. "And I think the main thing for him was just his physical aspect of the game. I mean, when you have a velo jump like he had from last spring to what he has now, it's like, definitely a physical maturity of himself." Florida pitcher Liam Peterson headlines the Gators' pitching rotation in 2026. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated However, Florida will be without head coach Kevin O'Sullivan, who will serve a three-game suspension as a result of last year's outburst during the Conway Regional. The suspension is not tied to his previous leave of absence from earlier this offseason. "I don't want to go back to that, but certainly the one thing I can say is I regret it. I mean, I certainly wish I didn't do it," O'Sullivan said. "No one feels more regretful than I do. I mean, last thing I want to do is misrepresent Florida or myself or anybody for that matter."and will instead split up coaching duties among the current staff. New associate head coach Tom Slater, the interim during O'Sullivan's leave of absence, will continue his duties as hitting coach, assistant Taylor Black will continue to coach third base and pitching coach David Kopp will handle the pitching staff, a duty he usually shared with O'Sullivan. Additionally, student coach Michael Byrne will move to the bullpen, while director of player development Mike Rivera is being elevated to coach first base. "Everybody's kind of trying to find their role, and they've done it so well," outfielder Kyle Jones told of the staff stepping up during O'Sullivan's absence. "You give a lot of props to them because it's not only us going through a tough time. It was them, too. They did an amazing job."More From Florida Gators on SICam Parker is a reporter covering the Florida Gators, Auburn Tigers and Clemson Tigers with a degree in journalism from the University of Florida. He also covers and broadcasts Alachua County high school sports with The Prep Zone and Mainstreet Daily News. When he isn't writing, he enjoys listening to '70s music such as The Band or Lynyrd Skynyrd, binge-watching shows and playing with his cat, Chester, and dog, Rufus.
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