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UF linebacker Brandon Hicks had one start this season coming into Saturday's game against South Carolina.

He made his second one count.

Beginning the game at weakside linebacker in place of A.J. Jones (sprained PCL in his knee), Hicks was key on UF's two first-quarter interceptions and a catalyst for the No. 3 Gators' 56-6 win over No. 24 South Carolina.

For starters, Hicks applied pressure to South Carolina quarterback Chris Smelley and forced him to float a pass that linebacker Brandon Spikes returned for the Gators' first touchdown.

"He was trying to throw it off his back foot, trying to run away from the rush," Hicks said. "I was just hoping in my head, I was like, 'I know somebody's there.'"

Two South Carolina plays later, Hicks leaped up at the line, batting a Smelley pass into the arms of strong safety Ahmad Black and setting up UF's next score.

And that's not all. He sacked Smelley for a loss of 7 late in the quarter on the play immediately after his deflection.

Hicks said it was the best day in his career.

UF coach Urban Meyer recognizes the depth of his defense, and said competition for playing time in practice will increase in intensity.

"I got a feeling A.J. Jones is going to practice real hard if he wants to play," Meyer said. "You want to play on this team right now. There are guys fighting."

The Gators defense and special teams stymied the Gamecocks throughout the game.

No matter what South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier threw at UF, the Gators were up to the challenge.

Spurrier switched quarterbacks on almost every play during the first half. South Carolina had 74 passing yards in the half.

Spurrier tried a tricky backward lateral on the kickoff after UF's second touchdown, and his team fumbled the ball to set up a 1-yard scoring drive for the Gators.

Spurrier attempted a play from his "Emory & Henry" formation - where he has three down lineman in front of the quarterback and five receivers wide left - and the play resulted in an incompletion after being defended perfectly by the Gators' cornerbacks.

It was an especially impressive performance for the UF defense because it outshined the South Carolina defense that Meyer spent the entire week praising. Meyer's defense wound up scoring as many points (6) as the Gamecocks' offense.

"We heard about that all week," Hicks said. "We felt like we had to show … America we're the best defense."

The Gators forced the Gamecocks' offense into 10 punts, intercepted the ball three times and allowed a grand total of 53 yards on the ground.

One of the few things this defense has not added to its resume is an elusive shutout.

"I'm trying to block every (field goal) so we can keep zero points," cornerback Joe Haden said.