Florida-Tennessee: Gators' Chomp Trumps Lane Kiffin's Mouth Every Time in SEC

Ah, Lane Kiffin. Gotta love the chutzpah of the guy. His first act as Vols coach was to say he was going to enjoy singing "Rocky Top" after the Vols won in Gainesville this season.

He then accused Florida coach Urban Meyer of improprieties in recruiting while getting in some trouble himself.

The best thing Kiffin has done for Tennessee is make them relevant again.

For the past few years, the once rival Vols were no different than any other SEC opponent on the schedule. Same as Kentucky or Vanderbilt—another speed bump on the road to the SEC East title.

Heck, South Carolina with the ole ball coach, Steve Spurrier, became a bigger game for a lot of Gator fans than the Tennessee game.

Kiffin changed all that, restoring the passion to a rivalry that wasn't very competitive since the arrival of Meyer.

All week long, Florida's football players have been asked about Kiffin's antics, and they've responded in unison, "No comment."

"I said it earlier, this game is about the Tennessee football players versus the Florida football players. There are a bunch of great athletes on both sides of the ball," Meyer told the St. Petersburg Times. "The thing that we'll never let happen around here is that (a game) is about a coach or coaches. And I told the players that. This is about preparation and playing the game. Period."

Riiiiiiiiight, Urban. I'm sure Kiffin's antics weren't discussed at all this week. Just like Georgia's team-wide celebration wasn't talked about at length the next year.

I think the Gators are still calling timeouts to prolong Georgia's embarrassment.

If we do what Meyer has said and keep it on the field, the question is how do these two teams match up?

Offensively, it's going to be a challenge for the Vols against the Gators' skilled defense. Jonathan Crompton hasn't made anyone forget Peyton Manning by tossing as many interceptions (five) as he has touchdowns.

He was downright dreadful in last week's home loss to UCLA.

Their running game is powered by Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown, but neither was really a factor against the Bruins.

Quentin Hancock is their most reliable receiver, but his 12.3 yards-per-catch average doesn't send shivers down Gator DBs' spines.

The likes of Carlos Dunlap, Janoris Jenkins, Brandon Spikes, and Major Wright can't wait to get their hands on some of these Volunteer offensive players.

No, the strength of the Vols is their defense and their coordinator, Monte Kiffin, who is known around Tampa as "the Mad Scientist."

The most intriguing part of this ball game is how Kiffin will try to defend Florida's galaxy of stars.

Tim Tebow, of course, is a weapon in the running game, but he's not the only weapon, as both Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps are averaging double figures in yardage per carry.

If the Vols focus to stop the Gators' running attack, they'll have to contend with Tebow's aerial attack.

He has weapons there too in wide receivers Riley Cooper, Deonte Thompson, and tight end Aaron Hernandez. Demps, Rainey, and Brandon James are all factors in the passing game as well.

Even if they stop Florida's offense, they'll have to deal with the return skills of James, who seems to save his best for the Vols.

We haven't even talked about the Swamp—where there will be nearly 100,000 crazed fans losing their minds.

It's a heck of a challenge for Kiffin's crew, and it makes the young coach look mighty foolish to put it all on this game. If Tennessee gets trounced, their call for victory in Gainesville not only will go unanswered, but it may also completely deflate the team.

But think if the Vols could pull off the shocking upset...the shock waves it would send around the nation. It's a disaster scenario the Gator fans don't even want to consider possible.

I don't expect this game to be close. In fact, I have it Florida 42, Tennessee 7. Still, that's why they play the games.

We'll see if Lane Kiffin's team can cash the checks his mouth has been writing.