Gators Prepare For Hostile Environment At Tennessee
Monday, September 13, 2010 | Football, Scott Carter
There's Smokey, the bluetick coonhound that serves as Tennessee's mascot. There's all that ubiquitous orange packed into Neyland Stadium. And of course, there's “Rocky Top,'' which will be played over and over again when the Gators visit the Volunteers on Saturday.
Florida senior offensive lineman Carl Johnson has experienced them all and lived to tell about it. As Johnson summoned his memories of the Florida-Tennessee rivalry on Monday afternoon, he recalled once when a young Tennessee fan -- hmm, there's really no nice way of saying it – gave him the finger at Neyland Stadium.
Johnson chuckled at the memory, knowing that anything is possible when the Gators and Volunteers get together in early September each season.
“It's Tennessee vs. Florida,'' Johnson said. “I don't care if both teams are 0-13. It's still going to be a rivalry.''
As the Gators met with the media on Monday inside The Swamp, you sensed that preseason was officially over in these parts. Florida opens Southeastern Conference play on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville looking for a school-record sixth consecutive victory over Tennessee.
Since Florida coach Urban Meyer took over the program in 2005, the Gators have not lost to the Volunteers, including wins at Neyland Stadium during both of the Gators' national championship seasons (2006 and 2008) under Meyer.
Still, a game at Tennessee to open the SEC schedule remains one of the highlights of the season despite the rivalry being one-sided of late and distanced from the Lane Kiffin drama of a season ago.
“That's one of the most difficult environments in the country to play in, so we've got to be on our game,'' Meyer said Monday.
The No. 10-ranked Gators (No. 7 in the USA Today coaches poll) open SEC play after home wins over Miami (Ohio) and USF. Meanwhile, the Volunteers are coming off a 35-point home loss to Oregon on Saturday after a 50-0 win over UT-Martin to open the season.
The mood in Knoxville is somber this week after the Vols took a 13-3 lead over Oregon early in the second quarter but then allowed the Ducks to score 45 unanswered points the rest of the game.
On his weekly teleconference Sunday night, first-year Volunteers coach Derek Dooley voiced concern over his team's play after Oregon started to run away with the game early in the second half.
“You should be able to turn on the TV and, based on how we're competing, you don't know if we are winning or losing,'' Dooley said. “Sometimes players nowadays, they get so focused on wanting to win that they don't enjoy the competitive element of the game and they don't enjoy when it gets tough.''
The Gators expect Tennessee to be fully prepared by the time kickoff rolls around Saturday, including the young players who have never played at Neyland Stadium but have heard all the stories from their veteran teammates.
“I hear a lot about 'Rocky Top' and the rivalry between Florida-Tennessee and the importance of the game,'' Gators sophomore defensive back Jeremy Brown said. “I definitely think about all that stuff. I'm ready for the challenge. It's going to be a hostile environment.''
Florida hasn't lost to Tennessee since a 30-28 defeat in Knoxville in 2004. During the Gators' recent surge in the rivalry, the Gators have overtaken the all-time series lead (20-19) since the schools first met in 1916.
Meyer likes to bring former Gators back to campus during two-a-days to remind his team of just how important rivalry games are. During his five seasons, Meyer is 14-1 in games against the Gators' traditional rivals Tennessee, Georgia and Florida State.
Florida quarterback John Brantley grew up around the rivalry, taught by his father and uncle – both former UF players – that a game against Tennessee isn't just any other game. Brantley served as Tim Tebow's backup in 2008 when the Gators won 30-6 in Knoxville. He'll finally get his shot on Saturday at beating the Volunteers on the road.
“It's such a great rivalry over the years,'' Brantley said. “Throughout the years, it's just built up. That's a tough stadium to play in. I don't think they like anybody who comes into their stadium.''
After all the hyperbole that comes with the Tennessee-Florida rivalry, veteran center Mike Pouncey probably summed up what to expect on Saturday the best.
“All their fans hate us,'' he said. “They don't want to have back-to-back losses.''
