Pressure? Expectations? Perfection? That's Florida

The expectations, the pressure, the demands. They have created an atmosphere that is relentless, that grows every day, that never goes away.

This is the lifestyle that comes with being No. 1 in the nation for all these weeks and months. This is the environment in which the Florida football team exists.

It may seem exhausting and unbearable, but the Gators seem comfortable with it.

They're 8-0, looking to go to 9-0 on Saturday night. The pressure to stay perfect intensifies. That's OK, they say. It's better than being 5-3 or 6-2 and having no pressure at all.

"It's why you come here," offensive coordinator Steve Addazio said. "You come here because it's big-time ball. There are high expectations, you can compete for championships, and that's part of it. That's why coaches come here, that's why players come here. We're in different territory right now.

"There's no better place in the world than being here. It's great that people care. I've been at places before where nobody really did."

They care here. They care in a big way. Therefore there is pressure, and a sense the Gators are always living on the edge.

Urban Meyer said that's the way it should be.

"If you want to coach at Florida, there is so much pressure on those guys to perform. ... You can go coach at other places," Meyer said. "God made it a free country. Whatever you want to do, you have the freedom of choice. Go somewhere (else) if you want to chill and relax."

Meyer sends the same message to his players and recruits.

"If you're a player, there are plenty of places to win, lose or draw, and hey, (play in) a half-empty stadium," Meyer said. "At Florida, you have to play at a very high level. That's been around here a long time.

"That stadium, you walk out there and it's a pretty imposing place. To walk in here and play at Florida, you have to be really good. You have to be a really good player. You have to be a really good coach. You have to work at a very high level."

And you have to be willing to work and grind your way through.

Meyer said throughout the season he's been getting advice that he needs to make sure his players are relaxing and having fun. Meyer's reply has been that the only way to do that is by winning, and winning takes work.

"It gets really good when you see Maurkice Pouncey stand on his chair, raise his helmet and sing the fight song (after a win)," Meyer said. "That's when it really gets good.

"Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, it's hard work. It's really hard. It's every day, but the rewards are phenomenal. ... We're blessed to have a football team that's kind of thriving on this right now."

As the season has unfolded, the pressure to be perfect, to stay perfect, has only grown.

Quarterback Tim Tebow said the players embrace that pressure.

"That's why you come to Florida," he said. "There is going to be a lot of pressure. That's Florida. It's going to be as much or more pressure than anywhere in the country.

"The fans are going to expect you to win every game. They should because this is the University of Florida. There is a lot of pride here, and a lot of people take pride in what we do. That's what makes this place so special."

The pressure and the expectations keep the Gators on edge, Meyer said. And that's where they need to be to continue their successful run this season.

"You have to work at a very high level and you have to be on edge," Meyer said. "The minute you lose your edge — I think Billy Donovan said it best when he spoke to our team — you are not a good team. You are not a good athlete the minute you lose your edge.

"That's why we're always on edge. I love that our players, the real ones, love it. Our players are kind of thriving on that right now."

Contact Robbie Andreu at 352-374-5022 or at andreur@gvillesun.com.