Don't expect Troy to be overwhelmed by the prospect of facing the defending national champions.
It's what the Trojans do.
Saturday's contest in The Swamp will mark the third year in a row that Troy has taken on college football's title-holder, and after nearly upsetting LSU last season, intimidation is no longer a factor.
Troy has nothing to lose.
"We want to go in and show the big teams we can compete with them," receiver Austin Silvoy said. "We have a game plan we've created, and we're expecting to win with it.
"If we win, we beat the best team in the nation. If we lose, it only makes us better playing the best."
The Trojans went 8-5 in 2008, winning the Sun Belt Conference, and put up strong fights against the Tigers and the Buckeyes.
They fell 28-10 to Ohio State, but OSU led just 14-10 after three quarters. Then, in November, they led LSU 31-3 in the third quarter, but the Tigers rattled off 37 unanswered points to fend off the upset bid, 40-31.
Performances like that have made it easy for UF coach Urban Meyer to keep his squad from overlooking Troy.
"The best thing that happened to us is when they should have beaten LSU, when they outplayed LSU," Meyer said.
"The good thing is, I think our players know from watching the film that they're good schematically and have good personnel."
Meyer singled out defensive end Brandon Lang this week as a player to watch, and for good reason. Lang led the Trojans with 10.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss, and he ranked in the nation's top 15 in both categories.
Linebacker Boris Lee, who attended football camps at UF growing up, and receiver Tebiarus Gill could also cause problems for the Gators, but the Trojans will have to play better than last week's 31-14 loss to Bowling Green to keep things competitive.
Troy jumped out to a 14-0 lead in that contest before falling apart, in large part because quarterback Levi Brown cooled off. Brown completed 18 of 20 passes for 176 yards in the first half but slipped in the second, while the Trojans struggled to contain the Falcons' passing attack.
Receiver Josh Jarboe could also have a big impact for Troy. The 6-foot-2, 199-pounder was rated as the nation's No. 10 receiver by Rivals.com out of high school, but he was kicked off the team at Oklahoma after a gun charge and an online rap video that stirred controversy.
The game Saturday will also mark a reunion between UF quarterback Tim Tebow and Silvoy. The two played together at St. Augustine Nease High, where Silvoy nearly caught more passes in his senior season (54) than UF starting wideouts David Nelson and Riley Cooper have combined for during their careers in Gainesville (57).
If Silvoy duplicates his two-touchdown performance from the 2007 meeting between Florida and Troy, Tebow will be partly to blame, as Silvoy credits the quarterback with making him a successful player.
"For me, it was huge because I played junior varsity my junior year," Silvoy said. "Having him as a leader, he taught me how to work out and how to practice right, having that never-let-up intensity."
