If you didn't know UF was a big football school the day you submitted your application, you probably figured it out sometime in between jumping up and down in your parent's living room after tearing open your admission letter and watching your mom tear up as she sets your brand new Macbook Pro on your spiffy dorm room desk.
For those of you who have still missed the memo on this (I'm surprised the University Athletic Association doesn't send every acceptance a spankin' new No. 15 jersey), here it is: COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS A BIG DEAL AT UF.
Now the most important thing to know is which teams are the Gators top rivals, because if you don't know college football is a big deal in Gainesville, which could be akin to atheism, then being unaware of UF's rivals is simply blasphemy.
Consider this the first set of Einstein or Smokin' Notes you'll ever use. And mine come free of charge.
5. Auburn: It's hard to say a team the Gators don't play every year is a prime rival, but you can't deny them when you consider the types of thrilling victories the Tigers have enjoyed at the Gators' expense. Two seasons ago Auburn served UF with its only loss in 2006. Quarterback Brandon Cox led the Tigers rally from a 17-11 halftime deficit, to claim a 27-17 win over UF at home.
If that wasn't bad enough, Auburn handed the Gators their first home loss in the Urban Meyer era as the Tigers raced out to a 14-0 halftime lead and clinched the victory when freshman kicker Wes Byrum nailed a 43-yard field goal that gave Auburn a 20-17 win. Just to make sure UF realized they did indeed lose a home game, Byrum scampered down the field and Gator chomped 90,000 of his closest friends. I'm sure they would have all preferred it if he flipped them off instead.
4. South Carolina: Seeing Steve Spurrier's visor roam the opposing team's sideline has been tough for most Gators fans. It would have been even tougher if Jarvis Moss' outstretched arm hadn't saved the day. Most people don't remember that South Carolina toppled Meyer and Co. 30-22 - and it wasn't even that close - in their first years at the helm of new programs.
And if Moss wasn't doing his best Stretch Armstrong impression in 2006 in blocking two field goals (one extra point and a potential game-winner with eight seconds left), fireurbanmeyer.com could be humming along and you may not have attended UF. Maybe we should call Moss butterfly effect.
3. Tennessee: Many would say the Volunteers deserve the top-billing on this, but I'm not one of those people. They've never beaten UF in the Urban Meyer era and last season it wasn't even competitive as the Gators blasted Tennessee 59-20. Despite making the Southeastern Conference title game last season you haven't gotten the sense that they were a legit conference power since Tee Martin was running the show in 1998.
But, hey, at least they've got an overweight coach who was served a subpoena.
2. Florida State: If Tennessee has become irrelevant then Florida State is like Bobby Bowden at a position meeting that runs past 6 p.m. He's not there, and neither is FSU's program. Despite placing them one spot ahead of the Volunteers since I'm pretty sure it's an admission requirement that every prospective UF student have at least 4 friends who attend Florida State. So while the Seminoles haven't beaten the Gators in five years, it's still too much of a built in rivalry to ever rank much lower than this.
1. Georgia: The Bulldogs wouldn't have topped my list at this time last season. They had lost to UF in 15 of their previous 17 meetings and there was no reason to believe that would change entering 2007. All of that changed when Georgia spanked the Gators 42-30 at the World's Largest (don't call me a) Cocktail Party. And, oh yeah, the entire Georgia team stormed the field in one of the true "oh, no they didn't" moments in sports.
Here's to hoping Meyer allows Tebow to take a penalty to bring back the Falcon's old "Dirty Bird" in this year's contest. We all want to know if the Golden Boy can dance.
