For the first time in my life, I have a beard.
It's a little scraggly and hasn't really come together as a cohesive unit yet (like UF before the LSU game) but despite the raggedy look, it has had a positive effect on me.
It makes me wiser.
So maybe it's because of the beard, but I'm not ready to jump on the bandwagon just yet after the Gators' 51-21 trouncing of the then-No. 4 Tigers.
UF morphed from a disappointing No. 11 in the AP poll to fifth this week, and everyone is amazed at how one game can change the perception of a team.
That's exactly my problem. It was one game.
The Gators finally showed the potential that made them a preseason top-five team. The offense was nearly unstoppable, the defense made plays when it had to and forced turnovers, and the special teams unit was solid.
But that's the first time I've seen that this season. UF played well against a weak Tennessee team and then was unimpressive against Ole Miss and Arkansas.
Now, everywhere I look, people seem convinced that the team we watched on Saturday will show up again in two weeks against Kentucky, and then stay hot the next few games against No. 10 Georgia, No. 22 Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
I'm not.
Over the last two seasons, I've seen the Gators play a real Jekyll-and-Hyde style of football. They come out firing on all cylinders in some games, and in others there seems to be a lack of focus or effort. I have no reason to believe they'll stop doing that.
And don't buy into the argument that UF will show up every week now because there's a national title on the line. A Southeastern Conference title bid was in play against Auburn, Georgia and Kentucky last year, but the Gators played poorly in those games.
A lot of this comes from the insanity of the polls. Voters took LSU's close win against a disappointing Auburn team to mean the Bayou Bengals had the skills to make a run at a repeat national title, and they overhyped them.
Don't get me wrong, the Gators played an incredible game against the Tigers - the best I've seen them play in at least a year - but you have to admit that LSU was not the team you expected.
The highly touted defense was on its heels, the quarterbacks were so-so at best, and the brutal running game was a no-show.
Sure, UF outplayed the Tigers and magnified their mistakes, but LSU was overrated and the win should not have re-launched all this BCS talk the Gators are getting, especially in light of the loss to Mississippi.
Imagine this scenario: UF lines up to kick the tying extra point in the fourth quarter against Mississippi. Realizing the Rebels are sure to block the kick, holder Butch Rowley pulls the ball away, leading to a comedic, Charlie Brown-type fall from kicker Jonathan Phillips.
This amuses the Ole Miss players so much that Rowley is able to race to the corner of the end zone untouched for the two-point conversion. Then, he breaks out "The Butchie Shuffle," a celebration dance he has honed for the past four-plus years.
The dance becomes a hit with youth football players nationwide and spawns a rap career for Rowley, and the Gators win.
Now, assuming all that (or just that UF beat Ole Miss), the Gators are probably ranked No. 3 this week, behind Texas and Alabama.
So, essentially, that terrible home loss to the Rebels only warrants a two-spot drop at this point in the season?
I have to disagree.
Fans were right in the first quarter on Saturday when they chanted "Overrated," toward the Tigers, but if the Gators aren't careful, they'll be the recipients of that line soon.
