If it feels like every game the Gators have played this season has been against a rival, you're not alone.
Defensive line coach Dan McCarney, who is in his first season with UF, has had similar thoughts.
But while each game has brought different expectations, this one against Florida State feels a little bit different. When the Gators square off against the Seminoles on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in Tallahassee, McCarney will finally be a part of a rivalry he's enjoyed from afar for several years now.
"There's just so many big games," he said. "And there are so many rivals, but this one I've been waiting for a long time."
UF didn't wait long to veer its focus away from The Citadel onto the Seminoles. In fact, the Gators didn't even wait until the end of the game.
"The focus shifted to Florida State at halftime," coach Urban Meyer said after Saturday's 70-19 win.
But the one player who may be looking forward to the matchup more than any other is Percy Harvin.
The junior has a history of big games against the Seminoles and used the 2006 matchup to help introduce himself to the country.
"We had a lot of good receivers, and he was kind of coming in as a changeup for us," offensive coordinator Dan Mullen said of Harvin's freshman season. "We had four pretty good wide receivers on that team, and he would come in and be a changeup and do some different things. He makes big plays."
Harvin broke off runs of 17, 28 and 41 yards in the first half of that game before a concussion sidelined him in the second half.
In 2007, Harvin continued his dominance over Florida State in finishing with a then-career high 157 rushing yards on 16 attempts and 67 yards receiving on five receptions.
Speculation is that this will be Harvin's last game against the Seminoles, as most expect him to enter next April's NFL Draft, in which he is projected to be a first-round selection.
"If there's a better player in the country, then he's in the top two," Meyer said of Harvin. "He's tremendous as far as skill level. We're going to need him the next two weeks. Everyone knows how I feel about Percy. I've done this a long time, and he's done stuff I've never seen anyone else do. He's going to go down as one of the best players in Florida football history and deservedly so."
Harvin may or may not have another monster game, but either way, the Gators don't expect anything to come easily against the Seminoles on Bobby Bowden Field. The rivalry between the two programs is as heated as any.
"Growing up, it was always Florida State," quarterback Tim Tebow said. "They were usually better than Georgia and Tennessee, and that made it fun."
Meyer and his players remember how difficult it was to play there two years ago and expect nothing less this time.
"Two years ago, it took the field over. On the list of concerns, it's the personnel we're playing against and the environment. We're going to try to prepare them, but you have to bring your toughness, and you have to bring your defense on the road."
