Nearly 24 hours from now, the Florida Gators will take the field to kick off their 2014 season against the Idaho Vandals.

After an eventful offseason, the Gators set out to prove last year’s disappointing season was not truly indicative of who they are as a team. Heading into the game, a number of intriguing storylines have emerged on defense as Florida fans wait and see if 2014 will be a season to believe in.

Untested freshman in secondary make Gators debut

The Florida Gators secondary has the likes of Vernon Hargreaves and upperclassmen Brian Poole and Jabari Gorman starting at three of four positions in the secondary, but several underclassmen fill the backup roles. True freshman defensive backs Jalen Tabor, Duke Dawson, JC Jackson and Quincy Wilson are all expected to see the field on Saturday night, both in the secondary and on special teams. Redshirt freshmen defensive backs Nick Washington and Marcell Harris will backup Keanu Neal and Jabari Gorman at the safety positions. There’s no question this Gators secondary has a ton of talent, but for a majority of the key backups, this will be their first game-day experience and how they handle the moment remains to be seen.

Staying healthy

Injuries can strike at any time and every team has to deal with them throughout the season, but the Gators last season were bit by the injury bug hard. According to Chris Harry of GatorZone.com, the Gators suffered a total of 15 season-ending injuries, including 10 starters. It will be important for the Gators to escape injuries on both sides of the ball, but especially on defense. Until the offense has proven it can put points on the board, Florida will rely on the defense for victories. Any significant injury on defense will severely hamper the Gators’ chances of competing in the SEC East.

Defense needs to force turnovers

Perhaps one of the larger reasons for the Gators’ struggles last season was the turnover margin. The Gators’ margin was -2 last year, as opposed to a TO margin of +15 in 2012 when they went 11-2.

“My three years at Florida, we’ve been 19-3 when we won or tied the turnover margin. We’ve been 3-13 when we’ve lost the turnover margin,” head coach Will Muschamp said. “That’s a team status. Not just about the offense, taking care of the ball. Defensively, getting the ball of people.”

One of the biggest keys to a Gators victory will be the turnover battle. An opportunistic defense should be able to take advantage of Idaho’s inferior talent on offense.