Before the game at Tennessee, freshman cornerback Janoris Jenkins was asking roommate and fellow corner Joe Haden more questions than usual.
The best advice Haden could give was that "it's going to be loud, and (the fans) aren't going to be rooting for us."
Whatever Haden said, it worked. On Tennessee's fourth play of the game, Jenkins forced a fumble that led to the Gators taking a 10-0 lead.
Then he came away with an interception right before halftime that prevented the Volunteers from at least taking some momentum into the break. Instead, Jenkins' pick caused the jeers at Neyland Stadium to start to rain down even harder.
Now, Jenkins is competing for a starting spot with Wondy Pierre-Louis.
"He knows he's a good corner," Haden said. "He's been covering people since he started playing football. You have to know you're good at cornerback. If you don't, then you're going to get beat all the time."
Jenkins might know he's good, but most good players don't do what he did in their first Southeastern Conference game.
Jenkins is starting to prove he is not most players.
"He's ahead of me," said Haden, comparing his freshman year to Jenkins' year so far. "He's way ahead of me."
Considering Haden received the praise of coach Urban Meyer constantly last year, that's a significant compliment.
When asked if he thought he'd play this much this early, Jenkins replied simply, "Not really."
"The thing about him is, he has no fear," defensive coordinator Charlie Strong said.
Jenkins said enrolling at UF in the spring helped him catch on quickly. At first he said he didn't know the plays, but then Haden, Pierre-Louis and company hammered them into his head.
"He's just leading me like a big brother," Jenkins said of Haden.
Like with any little brother, however, there are times you have to stare him down after he does something that wasn't according to the plan.
Jenkins had a pass interference penalty in the third quarter against the Volunteers. Meyer said he "jumped (Jenkins') tail" after that.
"He's a very talented guy who still at times is immature," Meyer said. "He's one of those guys with very good ball skills. He could play receiver for us. He's very good with the ball in his hand."
After his interception, Jenkins tried to run it out of the end zone, which ended up not being the smartest decision as he only got three yards.
"Major (Wright) was trying to tackle him, but he couldn't catch him," Haden said.
At least he's been good at catching opposing receivers so far.
