With all kinds of new players in the starting lineup, and lots of true freshmen playing key roles, the Florida Gators have gotten off to a little bit of a shaky and nervous start this season.
Now, they have to take this show on the road Saturday, to one of the biggest and most hostile environments in college football.
And it's not just the 106,000-plus fans at Neyland Stadium that concern UF coach Urban Meyer about taking this young team on the road for the first time. It's, well, everything, from boarding the plane, to checking into the hotel, to lining up in the right spot during warm-ups.
"We have a bunch of new players who will get on that plane and head to Knoxville and so much of what we do around here is routine," Meyer said. "That is a major concern. I am trying to fight myself on how to get that done and not take away from preparation time.
"The worst thing that happens is someone walks in late and forgets their tie, someone doesn't show up, someone forgets their ID on the plane and goes to the room when we are not supposed to go to the room. That just messes everything up as far as routine, and we take that real serious."
Meyer strongly believes in Florida's road routine, and he's made it a priority that his players and coaches follow it to the letter - even if this is a new team with four new assistant coaches.
Meyer did not have a set plan for road games when he arrived at UF in 2005. He (with a big assist from then-defensive coordinator and long-time UF assistant Charlie Strong) developed one after the Gators lost three of four road games in that initial season.
