It’s a game where UF wins, no matter what. It’s the prelude to a season. The results have no effect on our championships, no matter what.

Welcome to the Spring Game, that fun intermission that comes right after basketball, right around the start of baseball, and several months before real football.

UF is one of the favorites to win the national championship; that much we know. In all likelihood, the Gators will have to beat Georgia to do so, also trite. But we don’t know what to expect in mere weeks.

Here’s what I want to see in order to feel comfy about our chances in the fall:

1. Quality rushing

I need to see one or two every-down types taking the ball 12-15 times during a standard full-length football game; which sounds more than reasonable. For my mental health, please don’t carry the ball more than five to ten times a game, Tim Tebow. And hold on for dear life, Kestahn Moore! Even if you don’t get 4-5 yards a game, at least protect that pigskin!

2. Balanced passing

If Tim has worked on the two-minute drill like Coach Meyer said he would, we should see a nice mixture of short-yard passes and long bombs. It’ll be interesting to see how the offense fares without Percy Harvin in this one. In that case, Carl Moore will be the primary target. Who knows, maybe Jeff Demps will step in and provide that extra dimension of speed? In the fall, with the mess at the tailback position and Harvin’s potential injury problems, freshmen Jeff Demps will have an opportunity to step in and be the new speedster.

3. How the defense will react

Will we see low rushing numbers for the second-team offense? Will there be some pass breakups? What about tackles and sacks? Here’s a prime opportunity for Florida’s defense to show us what they’ve got after a demanding offseason.

That’s why scheduling Hawaii for the season opener was actually a prudent decision. With the offensive system June Jones has left over there, the Gator defense will be the X-factor. If they manage to rip down 2 or 3 balls in August, it could be a positive sign for the team’s season.

Grrrr. Got some stuff that’s bugging me today…

*These language lab computers won’t let me upload images.

*It just dawned on me that I graduated from former FSU quarterback Danny Kanell’s high school - the same DK who coordinated the Noles to the infamous “Choke at Doak” tie.

*I’m getting rumors that Tim Tebow is getting pressured by defensive backs in practice. Oh wait, that happens in real football games all the time.

But the latest press leaks have Florida’s front four pressuring Superman even more so than last year.

Has the man lost his touch? I doubt it, given that he’s had to masterfully evade pressure in the past. C’mon Vince, he’s doesn’t just turn into a college football flop overnight.

Or maybe the big uglies on D have gotten their act together? Why not? The Gators had a bumper crop of youth and inexperience last year; the underclassmen MUST have packed in some extra pounds.

Either way, a major leap in the football learning curve has just taken place on both sides of the ball. Tebow’s going to have to learn how to evade all the blitz packages defensive coordinators throw at him. And it’s not like he can just, ahem, walk out of the situation, shall we say? This will also be a good test for the lucky every-down halfback chosen to start for the Gators.

On defense, they’re starting to crank it up. Granted, the blitz can only compensate for the secondary so much, but getting better is what it is. I wouldn’t be surprised if the improvement in the rushing attack was complemented by growth in the linebacking corps.

Which brings us to a significant wildcard: the offensive line. Are they going to play up to their potential? I hope so; there’s only so many hits mere mortals like #15 can take. With Trautwein coming back, Maurkice Pouncey guaranteed a starting role *somewhere*, and Mike Pouncey (or whoever it is) snapping the ball at center, I think they’re just fine. If the sack numbers start to drop, as I think they will, then everybody will be A O.K.

Let’s just hope that the cornerbacks will learn from all this…

In the fall of 2005, I had high hopes for Kestahn Moore. Moore brought a blue collar work ethic with him to Florida which outshone DeShawn Wynn, Marcus Manson and Skyler Thornton on the practice fields. (”He taught those kids how to work,” said running backs coach Stan Drayton at the time.) And I liked Moore’s ability to travel north and south without D. Wynn’s stutter-stepping and Marcus Manson’s trippability. But during his two years in Gainesville, Moore has seen only limited action at tailback, carrying for less than 280 yards in both ‘05 and ‘06. He’s rarely been exciting to watch, and most would agree that he’s yet to give any indication that he’s potentially a feature back.

In 2007, DeShawn Wynn has graduated, Skyler Thornton has transferred and Marcus Manson is now playing cornerback. A new crop of young players are competing with Moore, now a junior, for touches at the position: Mon Williams (out with an ACL injury this year), Chevon Walker (great spring scrimmage), Chris Rainey (fast, but short and thin) and even our beloved midget punt returner, the 4′ 3″ Brandon James.

But I look at all of those players and want to like Moore the most. He outworks the field. He’s a sinewy mass of muscle. Although he’s not a 230+ lb. bowling ball like DeShawn Wynn, he’s by far the biggest and toughest of the current corps. He has handled two moderately disappointing years with nary a complaint. He’s done well as a lead blocker for B. James on punt returns and is definitely the best backfield blocker among the RB corps, good at picking up the blitz as well and gluing himself to his guy. And of course, in his third year as a Gator, he brings the most experience to the position.

Season’s almost here. Where does he stand?

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