Click here for linkTUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dont'a Hightower isn't quite sure what to make of this new Florida offense, where the Gators are leading the league in rushing and have the tailbacks to thank for it.
"These last couple of years, you haven't seen too many guys come out and put up big numbers like that that's not Tim Tebow or Percy Harvin from Florida," said Hightower, a linebacker for No. 3 Alabama.
As Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban says, that's the "old Florida." Now, the 12th-ranked Gators are running a pro-style offense under new offensive coordinator Charlie Weis going into Saturday's meeting in Gainesville with the staple being handoffs to tailbacks Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps.
Some things haven't changed. They still confound defenses with speed. Still dart through holes in a flash. And they're still racking up big chunks of yardage.
But now Florida's methods more closely resemble the offense Alabama defenders are used to seeing: Their own. Both have two running backs in the Top 10 in the Southeastern Conference, with quarterbacks ranked fifth (Alabama's AJ McCarron) and sixth (Florida's John Brantley) in passing.
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