There's no reason to be surprised about Florida's 46-point win over Hawaii, which is a wilted version of its 2007 self.
Blowouts such as the No. 5 Gators' 56-10 victory Saturday make for a difficult dissection of a team. No real grit was needed. It's hard to praise a defense that stopped an anemic Hawaii offense.
But it's still the first time we've seen the Gators live in concert, so a five-part study session is needed.
Let's cram.
Who's Percy Harvin?: The Gators proved that they have enough playmakers to mask the losses of numerous players to injury. Harvin is out with the heel, TE Aaron Hernandez didn't play and TE Cornelius Ingram tore his ACL earlier in the month. RBs Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps are electric on breakaway plays, but they are also undersized at less than 185 pounds, which might make it difficult to create separation in the Southeastern Conference. They need the help of bigger backs Kestahn Moore (seven rushes, 33 yards) and Emmanuel Moody, who had a sprained ankle and rushed twice for 2 yards. Both didn't show much.
The defense? Not bad: This is where the national championship hopes hinge, so it's time to show up. And on paper, the defense looked terrific with four sacks, four interceptions and two forced fumbles. But it's hard to forget how Hawaii racked up 82 yards on its first two drives. Though Hawaii didn't score each drive, the defensive line looked pretty clueless while Warriors players were blowing past them. We'll give them the benefit of the doubt and say it was shell-shock.
Don't judge Tim Tebow by this game: It seems virtually impossible for QB Tim Tebow to match last year's 55 touchdowns. But it's also not time to overreact after his quiet 137 yards passing with one touchdown and 37 yards rushing. Even Tebow admitted he didn't strain himself too much in this game because he didn't have to.
We know absolutely nothing more about the backup QB position: Cam Newton rushed for 10 yards and a 1-yard score, but that's to be expected. Newton is the perfect Tebow complement in the running game. But both players got scrap time throwing the ball. John Brantley threw one pass for an incompletion. Newton finished 1-of-2 for 14 yards. With tougher games looming, don't expect to see either of these two throwing much, which is too bad. We all want to see who emerges as the future of UF.
Strong safety should no longer be a joke: Yeah, Ahmad Black's two picks were impressive. So was his 80-yard touchdown return on the second pick. But Black really knows how to tackle, which couldn't be said about more than half of UF's defense last year. Black and CB Joe Haden led the team with five tackles, including a couple of swift wrap-arounds that showcased great instincts.
