Last year, the Florida Gators needed only a win over FCS school Furman to become bowl eligible -- and nearly blew it. The Gainesville Sun says that game has served as motivation when the team is in line for a letdown, as could be the case when the No. 17 Gators face the Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday.
Despite the fact Florida is coming of back-to-back road SEC wins and that it's beaten Kentucky 25 straight times, the Gators know better than to look past this week's opponent. Against Furman in 2011, the Gators fell behind 22-7 before storming back to win. That game keeps the 2012 version of the Gators in line:
"Look at last year," senior safety Josh Evans said. "We kind of looked past Furman, and they came out a great team in the first half. That's something we've definitely been talking about. Staying focused. We're not taking Kentucky lightly.
"They're another SEC opponent and we've got to get past them to even think forward. It's not about LSU (in two-and-a-half weeks). It's about Kentucky this week. We're not looking past them at all. It's the SEC, and any given Saturday, somebody can go down."
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