Florida kicks off its home slate Saturday night when Tennessee-Martin visits The Swamp (7:30 PM, ESPNU).

Home openers are always special, and Florida has made reclaiming The Swamp a priority in year two under Dan Mullen. The Gators dropped 2 home games in Dan Mullen’s first season in Gainesville, which can’t happen again if they are to consistently compete for SEC championships.

That process begins Saturday, and while an FCS opponent like the Skyhawks doesn’t necessarily move the needle, it’s also an important game for Florida from a tuneup standpoint ahead of a tough SEC opener at Kentucky the following weekend.

Here are 10 things we’d like to see from the Gators Saturday night.

1. A sharp 1st half from Feleipe Franks

Look, I think many in the media were a bit tough on Feleipe Franks for his performance against Miami. Maybe that’s a product of (albeit late) preseason hype, including a piece we wrote at this website. Maybe it’s just that — for whatever reason — people took umbrage with his displays of emotion on the sideline.

Whatever the reason, Franks’ numbers against a salty Miami defense weren’t bad:17-for-27, 254 yards, 3 touchdowns (2 passing). But most the focus postgame was either on his displays of sideline emotion or his 3 turnovers.

I think the reality is somewhere in between.

That said, there were obviously rough moments against the Canes, most notably the 2 late interceptions that resulted from poor throws and decisions. But in the end, Franks led a game-winning touchdown drive and the Gators won a hard-fought rivalry game.

Dan Mullen said there was obviously room for improvement, and Saturday night would be a good place to gain confidence, especially with a tough trip to Kentucky looming. I don’t expect Franks to play 4 quarters, but a hot start and improved accuracy on intermediate throws would be a great sign.

2. A whole lot of Emory Jones in the 2nd half

In Tennessee-Martin’s previous 2 trips to SEC venues, the Skyhawks have been beaten soundly, dropping a 45-23 decision to Ole Miss in 2017 and a 51-14 contest to Missouri last season.

It’s fair to expect the same Saturday, which should give Gators fans plenty of time to look at the progress of redshirt freshman quarterback Emory Jones. Mullen was pleased with Jones’ progress in fall camp and the redshirt freshman was noticeably bigger and stronger in warmups against Miami.

Jones should have plenty of windows to show off his arm — the Skyhawks surrendered nearly 400 yards passing in their 42-20 week one victory over Northwestern State.

3. 10 touches for Kadarius Toney

Warning: We are going to include this every week until it happens. Because it makes sense.

Toney took a screen pass 66 yards to the house on Florida’s first possession against Miami and then mystifyingly only touched the ball 3 more times the remainder of the game.

Mullen cited issues with playcalling rhythm after the game — noting that turnovers and the choppiness of the game limited Florida’s number of plays and ability to establish any flow on offense. Mullen is widely considered to be one of the best rhythm playcallers in the country, and the thinking is Toney will be more involved when the offense has a better flow.

Then again, one of the benefits of having a dazzling playmaker like Toney is he can make something out of nothing when the offense seems stuck in neutral.

Toney was the first Gator since Percy Harvin to average a 1st down per touch with a minimum of 40 touches in 2018. Florida needs to make sure he sees the ball more in 2019, beginning Saturday.

4. Better tackling

Numbers limited Florida’s ability to get too physical with tackling during summer ball, and even with the likely return of some players from suspension, Florida is thin in the secondary, which likely means Florida’s ability to practice tackling extensively will be limited in some respect all season.

Still, Florida missed 20 tackles against the Hurricanes, which would have been their 2nd-worst total in any game in 2018 (23 in a loss to Kentucky). Todd Grantham’s defense prides itself on sealing the edge in the run game and cleaning up with fundamental tackling — the Gators improved dramatically in that area late last season and will look to clean that up immediately come Saturday night.

5. CJ Henderson interception

Henderson was very good against the Hurricanes, as usual, making 2 vital red zone pass breakups late with the game on the line. But the preseason All-American wasn’t perfect. He badly missed a tackle on DeeJay Dallas’ long touchdown run in the 4th quarter and picked up a cheap pass interference penalty when he jumped a route on a throw well short of a 1st down. A cleaner game should be expected against the Skyhawks, and given Tennessee-Martin starts a freshman quarterback, perhaps Henderson can grab career interception No. 7.

6. 250 yards on the ground

Mullen’s offense is a run-dominant spread, which in simple terms means it relies heavily on establishing the run to sustain mismatches across the field. By spreading the field, defenses have to defend the whole field. But if Florida attacks with the downhill run game, defenses might adjust, giving Florida favorable matchups on the perimeter. Mullen explains it much better in what remains one of the better nerdy football videos of the past 20 years:

Against Miami, Florida failed to gain much traction in the run game, gaining only 50 yards on 28 attempts. That’s not going to cut it in SEC play, and Florida knows it: They’ll want to come out and get an inexperienced offensive line confidence Saturday night, and should be able to pile up the yardage on the ground against a FCS opponent.

7. Better safety and smarter secondary play

Some of this is about tackling, especially second level run support tackling, where Florida was outright abysmal against the Hurricanes.

The potential return of starter Brad Stewart should help, but the Gators need to focus on fundamentals, taking good angles and wrapping up against the Skyhawks.

They’ll also need to limit silly penalties, especially the preventable pass interference errors that bail out offenses and turn stops into first downs.

8. At least 5 big plays (2o yards or more) on offense

Florida showed modest offensive improvement in Year 1 under Mullen, finishing in the top 50 in total offense for the first time since 2012.

The next step was and is to become a more explosive unit. We saw some flashes of that potential against Miami, with the long Toney TD run and the 65-yard strike to Josh Hammond that set up the winning Florida touchdown.

But the Gators need more 20+ yard “big plays” if they are going to constantly stress defenses, and while producing big plays against Tennessee-Martin wouldn’t show Florida can consistently hit explosive on an opponent on Florida’s level, you have to start somewhere.

9. Continued special teams excellence

Florida’s special teams were terrific against the Canes, producing Florida’s only turnover and converting a momentum-shifting 1st down on a great Tommy Townsend fake punt run.

Townsend also excelled in the punting game, surrendering 0 return yards and consistently pinning the Canes deep in their own territory. (That’s another reason Mullen’s decision to have Franks throw on 1st down, up 4, late, at their 36 made so little sense. Even if 3 runs resulted in nothing other than eating the clock, Townsend would have flipped the field.)

The Gators continue to also be excellent in the return and kicking game, with Freddie Swain a dangerous punt return man and sophomore kicker Evan McPherson picking up right where he left off last season, drilling field goals dead center with distance to spare.

This is an area of strength for the Gators and maintaining that standard of excellence against an inferior opponent is important from a confidence and repetition standpoint.

10. An electric Swamp

After a thrilling neutral site win over rival Miami and a bye week, the Gators must be chomping at the bit to take the field at The Swamp, and they get a primetime TV opportunity Saturday night.

Those don’t come often. Steve Spurrier has challenged Florida’s students to “fill The Swamp” the way students did in the 1990s, and while that can be challenging against FCS opposition, a great crowd should be on hand to welcome the Gators home. Reclaiming the mystique of The Swamp is a process, and for the 2019 team, it begins Saturday night in Gainesville.