Urban Meyer's Final Four prediction remains intact as Florida overcomes back-to-back national champs in tense win

As the NCAA Tournament's Round of 32 concluded on Sunday, anticipation continues to build for the upcoming Sweet 16 matchups. The tournament's first few days largely followed expectations, with all No. 1 seeds advancing beyond the opening round.

However, teams like Duke and Florida still had one last challenge before officially securing a spot in the Sweet 16.

Former Florida football coach Urban Meyer made a bold prediction on Wednesday, showing confidence in the school he formerly coached. Meyer picked his favorite and stated the Gators would get to win it all. (starting at 58:35)

"I'll go right now, Florida's gonna win it all," Meyer confidently stated. "South, I got Michigan State; Bama, East; and then Tennessee is my fourth pick... So, I have three SEC schools in there, and the Final Four is great, but I think the Gators are gonna pick up their third national championship in school history."

As of this writing, one of the four teams predicted go through to the Sweet 16, has done so in the form of the Florida Gators, while Tennessee, Michigan State, and Bama are yet to play their Second Round matchups.

As head coach of the Gators football team from 2005 to 2010, Meyers led the program to two national championships in 2006 and 2008.

Florida ends UConn’s title streak

Walter Clayton Jr. stepped up in the clutch, knocking down two critical three-pointers in the final minutes, as the Florida Gators ended Uconn's runup for a third consecutive national championship with a 77-75 victory in the second round.

A first-team All-American, Clayton led the charge with 23 points as the top-seeded Gators (32-4) battled past the No. 8 seed Huskies (24-11). Florida has now reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2017.

Florida will next face either Colorado State or Maryland in the West Region semifinals, which will be played in San Francisco.

Had UConn advanced, they would have continued their pursuit of making history as the first team to three-peat since UCLA’s legendary championship run from 1967 to 1973.

Clayton wasn’t alone in leading Florida’s charge. Alijah Martin contributed 18 points, while Will Richard added 15, helping Florida overcome a potential upset and secure their spot in the next round.

This marks the 12th time in program history that Florida has advanced to the Sweet 16, with their last appearance coming in 2017.