The University of Florida will be opening up their 2011 season in Ben Hill Griffin stadium against Florida Atlantic University (FAU) at 7pm. And the first game under a brand new coach.

With a few new coaches and a new pro-style offense, the 22nd ranked Gators are looking to send out a message tomorrow to the entire country. Senior quarterback John Brantley (Sr.) will be in action using the new offense. Gator fans around the country are curious to see how it will work out. The reason I say this, is because he struggled a little bit last year but shifting to a pro-style offense might solve the problems he had with the spread style offense and hopefully he will feel a bit more comfortable. Brantley though has been battling a back injury throughout the past few weeks which has kept him sidelined but hopefully it will have no affect on his performance. If so, Jeff Driskel, the freshman beast will have to take over.

Looking on the defensive side for the Gators, they look pretty young this year. They have only two seniors starting on defense. Look for the young defense to be carried by their defensive line, which may be one of the best in the Southeastern Conferences (SEC). I mean look at who they have on the line: Jaye Howard (Sr.), Shariff Floyd (So.), Dominique Easley (So.) and Ronald Powell (So.), that’s brutal for their opponents.

College football fans are going to be in for such a surprise this season. Coach Mushcamp closed the spring practice for the first time so little information is floating around on how good the Gators wll actually be. Under former coach Urban Meyer and when Tim Tebow played, you could predict, but now its very different.

Lets take a look at FAU. They entire offensive line returns this year, however they lost their starting quarterback for the second consecutive season in a row. A plus is that Alfred Morris returns in the backfield for the Owls. Morris was the first back to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season. Last year they were ranked 107th in the Nation averaging 16 points per game.

Just because its FAU and its the first game of the season, it doesn’t mean its going to be easy. Florida will have their hands full if they do not come out and act like they want to play. I don’t think Muschamp will let that happen though.

The Matchup: Florida Atlantic vs. No. 22 Florida

When: September 3, 2011

Where: Gainesville, Florida – Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Game Time: 7:00 PM

TV: ESPNU