There comes a time when a program experiences a seminal moment, a transforming event that propels the program from its long-held position into another sphere, up or down. It generally becomes apparent in hindsight, when we can look back and circle a monumental achievement as the springboard toward a new future.

Solomon Patton was one on a handful of offensive players to contribute (photo by Steve Johnson)

But sometimes the feeling envelops you at the time, the idea you just witnessed a critical victory or devastating defeat that will carry far more clout than usual. Steve Spurrier knew it after the second game he coached at Florida, a road win at Alabama in 1990. The significance was more symbolic than actual, since this was a crummy Crimson Tide team that finished a mediocre 7-5. Yet at that juncture in history, this was still the type of contest Florida rarely won, and it proved to be the barrier-buster Spurrier often referred to as one of the key pavers on the road to ultimate success.

Perhaps it’s a tad premature, because there is still a long, long path for Florida to travel back to the elite of college football. Yet Saturday’s resounding triumph over Tennessee in Knoxville only reinforced the magnitude and importance of the previous week’s second-half performance in the comeback win at Texas A&M.

Florida had not secured a victory in that manner in Will Muschamp’s first year at the helm. Falling behind in hostile territory generally meant an eventual defeat, but the Gators showed some newfound resolve in College Station. There were plenty of ugly aspects, but the Gators parlayed a dominating final 37 minutes into a victory over the Aggies, a win that may ultimately be the one we look back on and say, “Yep, that was the day it all changed.”

That notion was reinforced after the Gators blasted Tennessee out of the stadium in the second half on Saturday night, a forceful showing that left no doubt which program was on the way “back” and which one still can simply dream about past glory. The rivalry remains dormant after the flickering embers were poked a bit this week, especially with Vols staring down the barrel of a schedule that still has road games at Georgia, South Carolina and Mississippi State and a home game with Alabama, plus Missouri. With eight consecutive victories in the series and the Vols’ balloon just about completely deflated, it might be a long time before CBS decides to tab Florida-Tennessee again to kick off its SEC coverage.

Like last week, when the Gators trailed by 10 midway through the second quarter at Texas A&M, they remained poised and never cracked on the road. Everything came together during a brilliant second half, as once again the defense clamped down after intermission and the ever-improving offense simply exploded. For the second straight week, the offense did not commit a turnover and even the penalties – a problem in the first half – were kept to just two in the second half, an egregious personal foul call on Dominique Easley and a procedural issue resulting in having 12 men break the huddle on offense, deemed a substitution infraction.

The Gators simply steamrolled the Vols in the final 18-plus minutes of the contest, scoring 24 unanswered points on a variety of huge plays – an 80-yard touchdown gallop by Trey Burton, followed by a 45-yard burst from Mike Gillislee, an exquisite connection between Driskel and Jordan Reed for the go-ahead 23-yard touchdown, a pretty 75-yard TD catch-and-run by Frankie Hammond and finally another 33-yard jaunt by Gillislee to set up a Caleb Sturgis field goal and complete the rubout.

When it was all over, Florida had put up 555 yards of offense, 380 in the final 30 minutes after another relatively slow, feeling-out type of first half. The defense became sturdy as well, allowing just 118 yards in the second half and only 37 in the Vols’ final six possessions.

The special teams certainly played a vital role as well, with sophomore punter Kyle Christy turning into a legitimate weapon. Christy cranked five punts for a 48.6-yard average, and only one was returned, for just eight yards. Kicker Caleb Sturgis was typically outstanding, nailing all three field goal attempts and hammering touchbacks on six of his seven kickoffs.

Heck, even the Wildcat worked with such precision that I am officially self-imposing a moratorium on bashing the formation. I’m still not a big fan and when utilized in the midst of a successful possession, it often stifles the progress. But Trey Burton turned in a pair of touchdowns out of the Wildcat including a scintillating 80-yard romp that tied the score late in the third quarter after a near two-quarter stretch where the Gators trailed.

And there lies the rub, the ability to withstand adversity within the framework of a game, a trait that came to the forefront a week earlier against Texas A&M. Talking about confidence is not the same as owning the feeling. When we need to be convinced about confidence, well, that’s when players who high-strut in the endzone after an early touchdown (what happened to the celebration penalties we foolishly saw the last couple of seasons?) only put up one hand to try and catch a critical deep throw on the first play of the fourth quarter.

For the second straight week, on the road, the Gators displayed that inner confidence despite again trailing at halftime. They stayed within the plan, cleaned things up and then made a bevy of plays on both sides of the ball to bury their quiet hosts.

What we are witnessing is the greening of a program, a group of players and coaches rising off the mat when we weren’t completely convinced it could happen. The quarterback quandary everyone fretted over for so long has nicely played itself out, and no longer appears to be an issue. The new offensive coordinator seems to be getting more comfortable with his personnel, and as his young quarterback rapidly develops, the elements within the game plan will likely expand accordingly.

There is no denying that Florida is in sensational shape coming out of the treacherous early two-game road deal with a pair of victories. The Gators have only one road game left in conference play at Vanderbilt, the most tepid house in the league. Six of the next eight games are in what should be a re-energized Swamp, now that some folks can re-claim their previous spots on the bandwagon. Any goals that might have seemed a pipedream at the outset are certainly attainable just three weeks into the 2012 season.

But let’s not dance too far ahead of ourselves, because there is still a lot to clean up for this team. To begin with, it’s getting to the point where Florida should perhaps consider taking a delay of game and backing up five yards anytime a third-and-short arises, because as well as the offensive line has played, short-yardage situations have been a disaster. Somehow that difficulty has to get corrected – it’s the type of struggle that can cost a team a victory. And again the spate of early penalties was a tad frustrating, given the team’s penchant for committing infractions last fall.

There are other concerns as well, areas where considerable improvement can still be achieved, which presents the perfect coaching paradigm – winning while providing plenty of areas for growth. Hopefully Florida felt pretty good about itself upon leaving Rocky Top (doesn’t everybody?). Yes I know, there’s another game coming up and you have to flush the joy of victory before beginning preparations for the next foe. But this team has earned the right to feel good about itself, at least for a few fleeting moments, before getting back to work.

Surely this is no time to let up off the gas, but at least for the moment, the suffocating weight of past glory has been replaced by genuine optimism. As Spurrier used to say, the Gators “have a chance,” which was all that could be expected out of this road swing. Should that opportunity blossom into something grand down the road, we can look back at that sturdy second half performance against Texas A&M as the defining signal of a new era.