Tim Tebow teetered back and forth on his feet for a moment and let out an "Ummm."
That was UF's junior quarterback's response when he was asked about the last time the Gators defense carried the offense in a game.
It took Tebow a few seconds to remember it was his freshman year.
When UF's defense was on national T.V. last, Michigan quarterback Chad Henne was playing games of catch with his receivers and running back Mike Hart looked like he was on a nice jog through the park.
Unfortunately for Miami, it was a very bad thing that the Gators still had a chip on their shoulder from that.
The Gators pummeled the Hurricanes all night Saturday in the 26-3 win. The next scheduled game between UF and Miami isn't until 2013.
Miami's running game - which was its strength of the offensive side of the ball- managed just 63 yards on the ground. Top runner Graig Cooper had just 31 yards on 15 carries.
"A lot of games we got blamed for not being good on D like the '06 defense, so we just took that as a challenge," said linebacker Brandon Spikes, who had 11 total tackles in his season debut after missing the first game with a right foot injury. "It looks like a whole different d-line. I think (it is the best we've ever played as a unit).
"Michigan, running the ball on us like that, that's not Florida defense. We took it as a challenge."
That challenge wasn't a very fun thing for the Hurricanes to compete with. In his collegiate premiere, Miami quarterback Robert Marve never made a game-deciding mistake as he went 10-for-18 passing and had 22 rushing yards, but the Hurricanes were never able to get a big play. Their longest completion was 14 yards, and the longest run was 10.
In other words, UF's former toddler defense is now looking like a grown man with Spikes long beard leading the way.
"Our defense played outstanding," UF coach Urban Meyer said. "They're playing with a little bit of a chip on their shoulder."
If playing well with a chip on your shoulder leads to success, then the Gators' special teams have some very heavy shoulders. Freshman running back Jeff Demps - who had a 62-yard touchdown scamper last week against Hawaii - blocked a punt in the second quarter that led to a safety.
"It's better than scoring a touchdown," Demps said.
Sophomore tight end Aaron Hernandez might disagree with that. While the Gators offense wasn't as electric as they've been in the past, Tebow's name still came up quite a bit. On the first drive of the game, Tebow, who finished with 256 passing yards and two scores and 55 yards on the ground, avoided Miami's penetration and lofted a 14-yard pass to Hernandez for the score. Hernandez missed the Hawaii game for undisclosed reasons.
Junior receiver Percy Harvin had just five touches in his '08 debut, but he did make an impact with a 10-yard rushing score. He finished with 27 yards on the ground.
After a slow start, senior receiver Louis Murphy also got it going late as he led the Gators with 77 receiving yards and a score.
"We're not going to give up on you, we're going to stick with you," Tebow said of Murphy. "Every great receiver is going to have an off night, it's just whether you're going to pick yourself up."
And on Saturday, it was the defense that picked the offense up. Last season, UF fans never heard that statement.
"Guys got more experience, and we know what to expect," Spikes said.
Now some of those expectations are being had by the coaching staff.
"If you don't go hard (on defense), you really stand out like a sore thumb," Meyer said
