The disappointment on his face was as evident as his speed once was on the field.

Jason Mitchell seriously doubts he'll be able to play against Florida on Saturday.

"I feel good where the team is right now but me, personally, I don't know if I'm going to play or not," the senior weakside linebacker said Tuesday.

Mitchell injured his left knee during UT's 17-10 win over Alabama-Birmingham on Sept. 3. Before limping to the sideline, he forced a fumble on the Blazers' first play, finishing with five tackles and a quarterback hurry.

The highlight-reel plays were just what UT coaches expected. Defensive coordinator John Chavis said last season that Mitchell was the most talented linebacker he had ever coached.

Mitchell logged 57 tackles as he played out of position last season. The 6-foot-1, 225-pounder started UT's last 11 games at middle linebacker in place of injured Kevin Simon.

Finally, this season, Mitchell's speed would be on display on the weakside, where it should be, where he could run free.

Mitchell said the injury occurred when he was locked up with a UAB player and teammate Jesse Mahelona's leg swung into the side of his left knee.

"It's sore, it's stiff and I'm limited in some of the things I can do," Mitchell said. "I wish I could go home and wake up in the morning and be able to play. I've been rehabbing everyday."

Mitchell said he wasn't able to sprint on the sore leg as of Tuesday afternoon. He said he'll continue to test the knee this week in hopes of playing.

If Mitchell can't play, Jerod Mayo will step into the starting lineup. Mayo, playing with the second string, was one of the surprising stars during pre-season practice. Mayo redshirted last season.

"I feel good about him playing; I have for a long time," Chavis said of Mayo. "If you're truly a second-teamer here, you're only one play away from being a starter."

Vanilla Or Neapolitan: Chavis didn't seem concerned that Florida may have held back some of its playbook in wins against Wyoming and Louisiana Tech. The Gators beat the two by a combined score of 73-17.

"I looked at a bunch of Utah tape and saw the same plays the first two weeks (at Florida) that I saw at Utah," Chavis said. "There's a trick play here or there, (but) I haven't seen anything at Utah that I haven't seen at Florida.

"Maybe they've got some other stuff. I'm sure they do. Maybe we've got some other stuff. We might. We might not."

Chavis said Florida will rely on the veer option. He said he couldn't remember facing another veer option team during his 11 years as UT's coordinator. As a matter of fact, it goes back a lot longer than that.

"Probably when I played," said Chavis, who played at UT from 1976-78. "Most people don't want their quarterback getting hit and that's the thing that threw that offense out the window."

Dandy Gandy: Senior center Richie Gandy said he expected to start against Florida. Gandy was projected as the starting center before he injured his knee in preseason drills.

"The weekend off helped a lot," Gandy said. "I got into some full-contact kind of stuff (Monday). That was good to get me ready for this weekend. The coaches know best but I want to start. I feel I can start and there wouldn't be a letdown."

Gandy made a remarkable comeback after an ACL injury during an intramural basketball game in February before he suffered a partial dislocation of the left kneecap on Aug. 18.

"There's going to be some rust but I expect after the first series, it'll be gone and I'll be back to doing what I've done for the last eight years," said Gandy, who has started five games in his career.

Full Boat: UT running backs coach Trooper Taylor said five tailbacks could travel to Gainesville. Taylor said he expected junior walk-on David Yancey to continue to be the second-string tailback behind senior Gerald Riggs Jr. Yancey rushed for seven yards on two carries against UAB.

Taylor said freshman Arian Foster, who rushed for 23 yards on five carries against the Blazers, will also be one of the backs to ensure that Riggs is fresh in the fourth quarter.

Taylor said freshmen Montario Hardesty and LaMarcus Coker, if healthy, could also play. Coker has been slowed by a sore back. Neither played in the opener.

"It'll be by committee if that one goes down," Taylor said of Riggs. "So, hopefully he doesn't go down."

Freshman Ja'Kouri Williams is being considered for a hybrid role, which would include duties at receiver and running back.

Toss Up: Sophomore cornerback Roshaun Fellows said UT's and Florida's receivers are very similar.

"They look very athletic," Fellows said of the Gator wideouts. "They're some big guys. They weigh a lot. They're very tall. They're some playmakers and you've got to be ready to go out there and defend them.

"Personally, I think we go against the best receivers in the nation every day in practice. They remind me a lot of those receivers in Florida. I feel like I'll be playing against the same guys that I practice against every day."

Defensive backs coach Larry Slade was noncommittal when asked if freshman Demetrice Morley might have overtaken junior Antwan Stewart at one of the safety positions.

"You guys will see, but right now it's going to be Antwan," Slade said.