Heading into Southeastern Conference play, Florida’s secondary is looking to hit the reset button.
Despite entering the season regarded as arguably the best coverage unit in the nation, the Gators have struggled to live up to the billing, ranking 88th nationally in passing yards allowed through their first two games.
Part of that was due to three notable absences — safety Marcus Maye was suspended for the opener against New Mexico State, cornerback Vernon Hargreaves missed the East Carolina game with an injury to his leg and safety Keanu Neal missed both games with a strained hamstring.
But while those are three significant starters, a team with as much depth at the defensive back position as Florida shouldn’t be struggling against mediocre competition.
Florida’s players agreed.
On Sunday, following the team's narrow victory over East Carolina, Neal called a players-only meeting with the secondary to hit the refresh button and get back on track.
"You heard all the Twitter talk and social media talk about us being DBU (Defensive Back University) and the best in the country," Neal said.
"Well, in the first two games we didn’t show that.
"That meeting was to come back to a platform where we need to be, start from the ground up and work our way up, instead of having this pedestal. Just going back and figuring what we need to do better."
Make no mistake: the group wants to be on that pedestal.
They just want to earn it.
All season long, nearly every member of Florida’s secondary has stated repeatedly they believe they’re better than any other group in the nation.
They’ve embraced the pressure that has come with the surrounding hype.
"We want that," Neal said.
"We wanna be the best in the country and best defense in the nation. That’s what we preach and what we wanna do, and we gotta do it."
With that desire in mind, it made it that much worse for Neal to watch helplessly on the sideline while East Carolina passed the ball for 346 yards.
"It was killing me inside," Neal said.
"Injuries happen, you have to accept it, but it was definitely killing me."
UF coach Jim McElwain said the Gators didn't expect a drop off in performance with Hargreaves and Neal missing, but their absence on the field was noticeable.
McElwain even acknowledged the team could "take a step backwards."
"You know you obviously lose arguably one of the best players in college football," McElwain said.
"You know things are going to take a step backwards.
Neal’s return will certainly help on that front, both in terms of performance and communication on the field.
"Leadership, toughness are two things that jump out," defensive backs coach Kirk Callahan said about what Neal’s return brings to the secondary.
"That’s a guy that does things the right way."
Neal played in 10 games last season, starting eight, including a two-interception performance against Kentucky, Florida’s upcoming opponent.
The Gators might need a similar performance from the junior if the Wildcats, led by quarterback Patrick Towles, duplicate their performance from last season.
Towles torched Florida in 2014, throwing for 369 yards and three touchdowns, although the Gators were able to intercept him three times in a 36-30 win in triple overtime.
With Neal and Maye back for Florida for this year’s contest, and Hargreaves in a good position to return in some capacity — he practiced on Tuesday — Saturday’s matchup will be the first time Florida’s secondary will be at full strength.
If that is the case Saturday, Maye says there are no more excuses to give.
"For the most part we have everybody back now and we have to live up to that standard if we’re gonna talk about it," Maye said.
Florida safety Keanu Neal intercepts a pass during the Gators' 36-30 triple-overtime win against Kentucky on Sept. 14, 2015, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
