Don't be fooled by the fact that Hawaii is listed before Miami on UF's schedule. The matchup with the Hurricanes on Saturday is the real season opener.
That 56-10 blowout against the Warriors was nothing more than a final preseason tuneup, and it's hard to draw any conclusions about the Gators from the performance.
The secondary was suffocating, the pass rush was tenacious and the running backs were electrifying, but there's no way to tell if any of that was real or an illusion.
Quarterback Tim Tebow wasn't asked to do much, and with receiver Percy Harvin, tight end Aaron Hernandez and linebacker Brandon Spikes on the sideline, the No. 5 UF squad we saw isn't the one we'll watch throughout the Southeastern Conference slate.
The game basically amounted to Urban Meyer digging through his toy chest to see what he had. Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps ripped off some big runs, Brandon James carved up Hawaii's special teams and safeties Major Wright and Ahmad Black looked like Warriors receivers with the ease of their interceptions.
But it won't be that way on Saturday.
Meyer called the 'Canes the most talented team in college football based on speed, size and individual talent, and there will be plenty of emotion on the field as players square off against childhood friends and high school teammates.
This is the game the Gators have been waiting for, with the Hawaii contest nothing but a detour en route to the collision with UM.
A month ago, The Miami Herald snapped a photo of a bulletin board in UF's new weight room. The board had a countdown to the Gators' first game, with large, orange-and-green, block-letter stickers proclaiming Miami as 30 days away.
Under that, Hawaii was written in smaller, dry-erase marker. Forget the politically correct statements from the team and coaches, Saturday's game was an afterthought during offseason workouts.
Their eyes were on the prize, and that was Miami.
Saturday night finally gave them a chance to talk about the 'Canes in the open, and the Gators didn't disappoint.
Receiver Louis Murphy, who once aspired to play his college ball in Coral Gables, let a little venom fly at Miami's nickname "The U," prompting Meyer to restrict his availability to the media this week.
"I don't refer to them as 'The U,' because 'U' stands for university, and we're the real university," Murphy said. "They are Miami, and that's what I call them."
No matter what you call either team, this is where the rubber meets the road for UF's hopes of a national or conference title.
Harvin and Spikes look like they'll be back, and this is the time to showcase all that talent.
The Gators can't have the slow start they had last weekend if they want to end UM's six-game win streak in the series and get their first victory since 1985.
The 'Canes may not be as reputable as in years past, but they're out for revenge.
UF has taken the state spotlight from them, and they're looking to restore their name in a big way.
