After Saturday's 56-6 romping of Troy, it took Florida no time at all to publicly turn its attention to Tennessee.
Privately, the Gators have been eyeing Saturday's showdown with the Volunteers and new head coach Lane Kiffin, who made waves with a variety of offseason comments about Florida, since the team reported for fall practice.
Offensive lineman James Wilson, who committed to Kiffin when he was an assistant coach at USC, said there has been a calendar in the weight room counting down the days until Tennessee comes to town.
"It's all over our locker room, that's something you don't forget," Wilson said. "It's going to be a show."
The Volunteers mark the first conference test for the Gators, who did exactly what was expected of them in their two warmup games.
The Gators dominated on defense, looked explosive on offense and made a few big special teams plays, all while getting the backups plenty of work as the starters came off the field by the third quarter.
Now, the final whistle at the end of their second game marks only the start of the third week of the season and the usual matchup with the Volunteers.
"I would be lying if I said there's not a little something different whenever we play Tennessee or one of the rivals, and I think that's a great thing about it," UF quarterback Tim Tebow said. "That's the great thing about it and about SEC play, it's a little different."
It may feel a little different for Tebow and his teammates, but UF has made Tennessee look like just another team the last two years.
When the Volunteers last came to The Swamp in 2007, the Gators put 59 points on the board on their way to a 39-point win, and a year ago, Tebow and company leaned on the defense in a 30-6 victory in Knoxville.
Tennessee has made a coaching change since then, replacing longtime coach Phillip Fulmer with Lane Kiffin, who instantly jumped into the rivalry upon his arrival.
"I'm really looking forward to embracing some of the great traditions at the University of Tennessee," Kiffin said at a press conference. "For instance, the Vol Walk, running through the T, singing Rocky Top all night long after we beat Florida next year. It's going to be a blast so get ready."
If Kiffin has watched any of the Troy game tape since losing 19-15 to UCLA at home, he knows making good on that guarantee will be no easy task.
The Gators held the Trojans to 139 yards of total offense while amassing 663 yards of their own - the second highest total in Meyer's five years in Gainesville.
Janoris Jenkins, back from suspension, picked off Troy quarterback Levi Brown in the second quarter, extending UF's streak of games with an interception to 14, the longest in the nation.
Meyer and defensive coordinator Charlie Strong figured out a way to get all three of their safeties - and arguably their fastest possible unit - on the field with a blitz-heavy 3-3-5 defense that wreaked havoc Saturday.
Sophomore running backs Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey combined for 183 rushing yards, Riley Cooper and Aaron Hernandez proved to be reliable receiving targets and Tebow passed for four touchdowns for the second time in his career while tying former Auburn running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams for third on the Southeastern Conference's all-time rushing touchdown list with his 45th career score.
For the Volunteers to come into The Swamp and prevent the Gators from winning a program-best 13th straight game, Kiffin's squad will have to be perfect and force Florida into uncharacteristic mistakes, like the three fumbles lost against Troy.
"You'll lose next week if you turn that ball over three times," Meyer said after the game.
Perhaps Tennessee's best chance at a win would have been coming into Gainesville under the radar and sneaking out with an unexpected win the way Auburn and Ole Miss did the last two seasons.
Unfortunately, Kiffin's brash offseason comments and bravado have taken that opportunity away from the Volunteers, who will undoubtedly clash with a highly motivated Gators team come 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
"They're posting up all kinds of Tennessee stuff in the locker room," linebacker A.J. Jones said, "so we're just really motivated to go play them."
