Mark Ingram underwent surgery just four weeks ago.
Since then, he has knifed his way through two defenses for 308 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
The Alabama running back has shown no signs of the arthroscopic knee surgery he received just before the season, averaging 9.3 yards per carry after missing the first two games.
“My main focus coming back into the first game was to not have any hesitation in my step whatsoever,” Ingram said. “I wanted to have 100 percent confidence in my ability and what I can do out there on the field.”
He has done that, and the team isn’t surprised.
“I don’t think I have ever been in shock,” Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy said. “I have never doubted what he can do. He has great ability, and he does a great job with the ball in his hands. We all thought he was going to have a great season this year.”
But Ingram isn’t alone. Sophomore running back Trent Richardson has provided a second option in the Crimson Tide’s backfield.
Richardson, who ran for 751 yards as a freshman, is already almost halfway there with 356 through four games. He racked up 210 of those yards in Ingram’s absence.
The Crimson Tide’s backs, who are as strong as they are fast, weigh a combined 435 pounds, something the Gators’ undersized linebackers could struggle with.
“I’ll tell you, [tackling Ingram is] hard to do,” Alabama defensive back Mark Barron said. “You can’t go in scared, you just have to play ball. You have to go at him. You can’t be scared of him.”
Florida defensive coordinator Teryl Austin knows exactly how to stop Ingram and Richardson.
“Probably have to stop the bus from getting to the stadium, that’s probably the only way,” he said. “We’re going to have to have our best tackling effort Saturday. Anything less than our best won’t be good enough.”
Austin, who coached in the NFL from 2003-09 before coming to UF, said he feels the Crimson Tide’s talented tandem is already good enough to suit up on Sundays.
But slowing them is just half the battle.
The two will be key in setting up the play-action pass for McElroy, who hurt the Gators in their Southeastern Conference Championship loss to the Crimson Tide last season.
But Alabama isn’t using its recent win against Florida as any indication of how Saturday’s meeting will turn out.
“What happened last year, happened,” said Ingram, who ran for 113 yards and three scores in that game to lock up the Heisman Trophy. “It’s not really going to help us win or help them win this year. There is no dwelling on it from a personal standpoint.”
Florida’s run defense has faced the SEC’s leading rusher in each of the past two weeks and has held them to an average of 68 rushing yards. However, coach Urban Meyer knows the Gators can’t be complacent.
“This will be a completely different challenge,” he said. “This is going to be a grind-it-out outfit that we have to tackle. [Ingram] breaks tackles at an alarming pace. Both those backs do.”