Here's a new word you can describe the UF defense with: Consistent. The squad which would go from impressive to embarrassing is gone. Its replacement is a unit which starts at a high level, and is now finishing at that same plateau.
The Gators have only allowed 33 points in their last three games - 21 of which came against LSU on Oct. 11 - and they only gave up a field goal against Kentucky on Saturday in UF's 63-5 debacle.
"We had to pin them down," said freshman safety Will Hill, who had his best game yet with 11 tackles. "We had our foot on their throat, and we had to keep pounding them."
Coach Urban Meyer said the defense's performance against the Wildcats "was about the best you can do." On Kentucky's first five drives, the Wildcats failed to get a first down and didn't have a play for more than seven yards.
"That's about as good as you get to start a game," Meyer said.
In blowout wins last year the Gators still allowed a bundle of points to opponents - 20 to Tennessee, 22 to Vanderbilt and 31 to South Carolina.
"Whole different team," sophomore cornerback Joe Haden said. "It's a 180-degree turn. Every position group you can tell there's a difference. People are back talking to coaches, telling them what they see is going on. Coaches are listening to what we feel is going on."
UF allowed only 268 yards of total offense and had one interception by Ahmad Black which was returned 40 yards for a touchdown. It was the second straight game a Florida player has had an interception return for a touchdown.
"We're preparing more as a team," Black said. "We're locking arms, like a band of brothers. At times last year our defense looks like it does now, but it wasn't consistent."
So you can officially forget about those bad dreams of players missing tackles, blowing coverages and getting physically dominated by opponents' offensive lines.
"We're getting more mature and we're knowing it know," Black said. "(The Mississippi loss) was like a wake-up call."
That must've been on strong alarm clock the Gators had. Even against LSU, Florida only gave up 321 yards of offense and the Tigers looked frustrated for most of the game. And that just got this older defense more amped for Kentucky.
"We knew we took things for granted," Hill said. "We had to come out and prove that The Swamp belonged to us. We had to rebuild our walls."
