The interesting aspect to me is how many of these young players are going to get into the game fairly early and gain their first significant playing time. I think Tim Tebow will retire to the bench before halftime, making this a John Brantley game. What I would like to see is Brantley getting playing time with the No. 1 line and some of the experienced receivers. All of his work so far this season has come with the second-team offense. This would be a chance to see what the offense is going to look like next season.

I know that some UF fans will be expecting some anxious moments early in this game, because that’s just the way every game seems to have gone this season. But those moments should pass quickly. The offense has had problems sustaining drive and scoring touchdowns in the red zone, but this is an FIU defense that likely will offer little resistance. The Golden Panthers are giving up more than 400 yards of total offense a game, and that’s been against some pretty weak competition.

Basically, this is going to be a tuneup for those final two games — Florida State on Nov. 28 and Alabama the following Saturday in the SEC Championship Game.

The goal against FIU is to keep everyone healthy (the Gators are finally close to full strength on defense) and get those young players as many reps as possible. Then move on to the games that will define this season.

Prediction: Florida 51, Florida International 10

But it’s going to happen at some point against a team that’s giving up more than 400 yards a game to opposing offenses.

With that in mind, here are some young guys to keep an eye out for Saturday in The Swamp:

Brantley — Meyer said earlier in the week that he’s been kicking himself at times for not giving Brantley more playing time this season. That time should come Saturday. Maybe Brantley will get a chance to work with the No. 1 offense, which would give us a more true gauge on some of the things he can do in the passing game. All of his other work this season has come with the backups. Before the start of the season, Meyer said Brantley had earned the right to see playing time. It should come in this game.

Mike Gillislee — The true freshman tailback has been impressive on special teams — and on the few occasions he’s gotten into games on offense. He appears very fast and explosive, and with Emmanuel Moody out of this game with a sprained ankle,Gillislee could end up getting more carries than Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey.

Omarius Hines — Like Gilleslee, the redshirt freshman wide receiver caught the attention of the coaches with his strong play on special teams. Now, he’s starting to emerge as an option in the passing game. He caught two passes at South Carolina last Saturday and should see plenty of playing time (and passes) in Saturday’s game.

Adrian Bushell — I know we’re sounding like a broken record here, but the redshirt freshman cornerback has earned the trust of the coaching staff with his play on special teams. If star cornerback Joe Haden leaves for the NFL after the season, Bushell is the heir apparent at that position. He’s got a lot of speed and ability, and he’s shown on special teams that he’s a player.

William Green — This true sophomore probably hasn’t seen as much playing time at defensive end as many expected heading into the season. But the coaches love his motor and he should see extensive playing time Saturday. He figures to be a starter next season.

Jonathan Bostic — This true freshman middle linebacker has really come on in special teams and has gained the confidence of the coaching staff. He’s a gifted athlete and a physical specimen, and the likely starting middle linebacker next season.

Here’s one guy not to look for: True freshman outside linebacker Jelani Jenkins has not played since injuring his ankle in the second game of the season, and it appears he will be redshirted this season. He’ll be back competing for significant playing time in the spring.

While others may be worrying about Tebow’s Heisman chances, he is not. He made it clear Monday that his focus is on something else. Like winning the next three games and having a chance to play for the national championship for the third time in his four seasons at UF.

“(The Heisman) is not something I really think about or care about,” Tebow said. “When (the Heisman talk) comes on TV, I usually turn the channel and don’t worry about it. Winning the Heisman Trophy is very special. It’s a huge award, very prestigious, very humbling. But it compares zero to winning a national championship or an SEC championship.

“That’s what you train for. That’s what you battle for every day in practice and in the weight room on your own or with your teammates for the last four years. That’s what you train for. You don’t train for winning the Heisman Trophy. That’s something that just comes from being blessed with a lot of guys on our team that help your out and make me look a lot better than I am. Winning a championship is what’s truly special.”

Tebow admitted that being the competitor he is, he was disappointed he didn’t win last year’s Heisman once he got to New York. But, he said it wouldn’t bother him even if he doesn’t even receive an invitation to this year’s ceremony.

“That’s not something I’m really worried about right now or thinking about,” Tebow said. “I get to play FIU and then FSU for my last game in The Swamp. Then the University of Alabama (in the SEC title game). I’m focused on those games.

“You know what, if we win those games, I won’t be too discouraged if I don’t go to New York for that. That’s my focus right now. It would be OK (if i didn’t go to New York).”

South Carolina has not been all that well offensively, but quarterback Stephen Garcia has improved dramatically. He’s got some talented young receivers who are making plays, and now, Steve Spurrier is going back to calling plays this week. If Spurrier opens things up a little and Garcia and those receivers perform at a high level, the Florida defense is going to have its hands full. If South Carolina scores early, especially a touchdown, this game could get really scary for the Gators.

The way the Florida offense is playing, the Gators are going to have trouble putting up a lot of points against a very good, very fast and athletic South Carolina defense. If Tim Tebow doesn’t get better protection, this could turn into a real meltdown game for the offense. Something tells me the Gators will be playing from behind at some point in this game. How they react to that will be huge.

One area where Florida appears to have a considerable edge is in special teams. UF’s are excellent; USC’s are very average at best (and very poor in kickoff coverage). If the Gators are a big winner in the battle for field position, it will take the pressure off of both the offense and the defense. And a relaxed Florida has been a more efficient Florida throughout the season.

If the Gators get past this game, it looks like they’ll be 12-0 heading into the SEC title game. UF will be a pretty heavy favorite against Florida International and Florida State, which will be without quarterback Christian Ponder. But now is not the time to look ahead. The Gators need to stay focused on this game and come out of it with a victory.

I’m sensing the upset. I can feel it, and I’m close to pulling the trigger on it. But I can’t. This Florida team will find a way to slug out another victory.

Prediction: Florida 17, South Carolina 16

But is the offense really all that bad? The numbers say it’s not. The numbers say the opposite.

Earlier this week, UF sports information Steve McClain passed along some statistics that are pretty startling, really.

Here they are:

In games vs. SEC opponents, Florida has:

• 1,506 net rushing yards (1st in SEC)
• 2,661 total net yards (1st)
• 21 touchdowns (tied for 1st with Georgia)
• 11 rushing touchdowns (tied for 1st with Auburn)
• 146 first downs (1st)
• 85 rushing first downs (1st)
• 144.5 passer rating (1st)
• 66.7 completion percent (1st)
• 32:56 time of possession (1st)
• 28.1 points per game (2nd — Georgia, 29.3)
• 4.8 yards per carry (tied for 2nd with Alabama — Auburn, 5.0)
• 380.1 ypg (3rd — Auburn, 388.7; Ark., 382.5)

Obviously, the Gators look a lot better on paper than one would imagine based on what we’ve seen on the field. In perhaps the best defensive conference in the nation, the Florida offense is doing some really impressive things. But the stats don’t hide the warts. The Gators certainly have some, something offensive coordinator Steve Addazio pointed out the other day. But then the 2008 offense also had some warts, Addazio said. Those weren’t noticed as much because the Gators were scoring a bunch of points and blowing out the opposition every week.

This year, the games are closer and the warts are more obvious. But this is an offense that’s very capable of living up to the high standards around here. That potential is obvious when you look at those statistics, which are pretty impressive.

How could one Florida Heisman-winning quarterback leave another Florida Heisman-winning quarterback off his ballot? Everyone pounced on the story.

It became a real controversy, with Spurrier standing up at the podium and apologizing when he arrived at the event the following day. Spurrier explained that someone else filled out his ballot and he failed to see that Jevan Snead got his vote at quarterback. Spurrier said when he realized the mistake, he called the SEC office and had it corrected, with Tebow getting his vote.

It was very surreal watching the former head ball coach stumble his way through all this.

At the time, many were figuring this would give Tebow great motivation when Florida played South Carolina this season.

But Tebow said Monday that’s not the case at all.

“I kind of just laughed that off when it happened,” Tebow said. “It was kind of funny. It blew up into a big deal, but I never looked at it like a big deal. It’s not going to give me any extra motivation this week.”

Tebow said he feels a kinship with Spurrier. The two both won the Heisman playing quarterback for the Gators, and Tebow grew up a huge fan of Spurrier’s UF teams in the 1990s.

“There is some sort of special relationship there,” Tebow said. “We don’t talk. We say, ‘Hey’ after the game. We talked a few times at the Heisman (ceremony the past two years). We have a lot of respect for each other. I think there is something that’s cool about what we’ve done, and our relationship.”

This has all the makings of a letdown game for Florida. But it’s so obvious that it won’t happen.

Yes, Vanderbilt has a pretty tough defense, and the Commodores are excited about what No. 2 quarterback Mackenzi Adams brings to the offense (the ability to move the ball through the air). The potential is there for a tough, grind it out game for the Gators. But that’s not going to happen. The Commodores simply don’t have enough talent to match up with Florida. If the Gators come ready to play, and they will, this game should be secured by halftime.

Why no letdown?

Because the Gators seem to have regained that same edge they had last season during their remarkable run down the stretch. The performance against Georgia a week ago is an obvious sign that this team is starting to get better, starting to play up to its potential. UF has started generating momentum, and it’s not going to be slowed by a 2-7 Vanderbilt team that lost to Army less than a month ago.

I think the offense is going to get on a roll in this game, and I look for the defense to pretty much shut down the Vandy offense, which has struggled to score throughout the season.

Letdown? Forget about it.

Prediction: Florida 45, Vanderbilt 10

Then, they disappeared. Hines caught a few passes early, then faded away. Hammond got some playing time, then he too disappeared. Lawrence got a handful of plays, but now is out for the season after injuring his knee.

The week before each game, Urban Meyer and wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales would say Hammond and Hines were getting close to being where the coaches wanted them to be and there was a chance they would play. Then they wouldn’t. It got to the point in recent weeks where everyone assumed those two would not been seen again until next spring.

Then, out of nowhere, Hammond and Hines showed up on the field in the first half of last Saturday’s Georgia game in Jacksonville.

Even though neither caught a pass, it was an obvious sign the two have made strides in practice and have finally earned the trust of the coaching staff. Offensive coordinator SteveAddazio said Hammond and Hines have earned the right to see more playing time in UF’s remaining games.

“We’re going to continue to try and do that, give guys a chance to get a blow,” Addazio said. “We needed to do that (against Georgia). So, that worked out pretty well.”

It’s working, so we’ll probably see more of it.

“It’s not the most thrilling, exciting style, but it’s a mindset,” UF coach Urban Meyer said Monday. “We need to be able to do that. With our personnel, we should be able to do that. I’m very pleased with what we’ve done (with Tebow under center). You might see more. I made the comment before the season, if it helps us win a game, we’re going to do it. We’re not in this for other reasons.

“Tim is getting more comfortable under center. The first thing is always ball security, and we’ve got two pretty trustworthy people (Tebow and center Maurkice Pouncey) managing that part of it.”

Tebow went under center in the opening seconds of the third quarter after linebacker A.J. Jones tipped and intercepted a pass, giving the Gators the ball on the Georgia 19. On first down, Demps gained 9 yards. He picked up 5 more on second. Tebow then lined up in the shotgun and scored on an option run.

Tebow said Monday he actually made a mistake by lining up under center when he did.

“I actually was supposed to be in the shotgun,” he said. “I thought the play was called for me to be under center, but it wasn’t. When I got back to the sideline, (the coaches) were saying they didn’t know what to do, should they call a timeout. But we got a 9-yard gain and it ended up being OK.”

Tebow said lining up under center has taken opposing defenses by surprise.

“I think it gives us a different look,” he said. “It’s something teams don’t prepare for a lot against us.”

In the few times Tebow has lined up under center, the Gators have looked like a very good power running team. So, it should be a regular part of the game plan from here on out.

Here’s the first one:

Florida’s red-zone woes continue, the Gators turn the ball over a few times on offense, give up a few plays on defense, and the Bulldogs spring the upset, dashingUF’s national title hopes. Part of this scenario would include Joe Cox having all kinds of time to throw and consistently moves the Georgia offense without the benefit of much of a running game. It also includes the Bulldogs stuffingUF’s usually reliable running game.

This could happen, but I’m just not feeling it.

What I am feeling is scenario two:

The Gators come out and avoid the red zone altogether by hitting some long scoring plays early in the game, including a TD bomb from TimTebow to Deonte Thompson. Once the Gators get the early lead, they’ll start playing with confidence and the red-zone problems will disappear, and then this team will start playing like everyone thought it would coming into the season. Defensively, I seeUF stifling the Georgia offense by shutting down the run, then harassing Cox all afternoon. A.J. Green will catch some passes, but the Florida defense is going to play one of its best games of the season.

This is a Florida team that is loaded with talent but hasn’t played up to its potential yet. It’s going to happen sometime. The Gators are going to put together a complete game and the results will be very impressive.

I just have a strong feeling that it’s going to happen in this game.

Prediction: Florida 34, Georgia 10