After Saturday's game against Florida State, UF coach Urban Meyer called his kickoff teams "a joke."
This weekend, that performance will have to be improved.
The Gators will be kicking off and punting to Alabama's Javier Arenas, who leads the Southeastern Conference in punt return yards (557) and is eighth in the conference in kick return average (22.6 yards per return).
"I think he's electric," Meyer said at Monday's teleconference. "The area where he's ridiculous is punt returns. We're pretty good at that phase, but I'm not sure we've faced a challenge like this one."
The Gators allowed Seminoles returner Michael Ray Garvin to get 172 yards on five kickoff returns.
Meyer is aware of the importance of field position and knows his team cannot succeed if Alabama racks up the yards on kickoffs.
"That's going to have a big impact on the game," Meyer said. "Every yard, every 10-yard increment is going to be critical."
DEFENSIVE TACKLE INJURIES: With Brandon Antwine (sprained knee) doubtful for the SEC Championship Game and Matt Patchan out for sure, Meyer is toying with the idea of using defensive end Carlos Dunlap as an interior lineman.
"We're going to take a peek at (Dunlap) inside," Meyer said. "He does that in our odd package."
The Gators' healthy defensive tackles are Jaye Howard, Lawrence Marsh, Terron Sanders and Torrey Davis. Marsh will be 100 percent for Alabama after recovering from a sprained MCL, Meyer said.
