John Brantley watched from the sideline a year ago.

So did just about every Alabama defensive back he’ll be throwing against Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Yes, it’s Alabama vs. Florida, the two unquestioned heavyweights in this conference.

But it’s not the same Florida offense or the same Alabama defense that we’ve seen in either of the past two epic showdowns between these clubs.

Brantley, the Gators’ first-year starting quarterback, gets his first taste of the Alabama defense after watching the Crimson Tide clamp down on Tim Tebow and the Gators last season in the SEC championship game.

Sure, nine of the Alabama starters will be different, including every defensive back in the rotation with the exception of safety Mark Barron, but Brantley knows exactly what’s coming from the Crimson Tide.

Pressure from all sorts of angles, a steady dose of disguised coverages and more pressure.

“It’s a big challenge because coach [Nick] Saban is definitely going to have them ready, and they’re so disciplined,” Brantley said. “We’ve got to do what we do each week and take what the defense gives us.

“If we can’t stretch that ball downfield, we’ve got to dump it off and know that’s a positive play for us, move on and try not to put ourselves in bad situations.”

That’s easier said than done against any Alabama defense.

The Crimson Tide looked vulnerable in the first half last week against Arkansas. The Hogs rolled up 301 yards of total offense, had receivers running free and took advantage of Alabama missed assignments.

But in the second half, the Hogs didn’t convert a single third down, in large part because they found themselves in third-and-long the rest of the way. Three of their four third downs in the second half were third-and-11 or longer.

One of those resulted in a Ryan Mallett interception that Alabama safety Robert Lester returned 33 yards to the Arkansas 12, setting up the Crimson Tide’s game-winning touchdown.

Lester, a sophomore, is one of several new faces in the Alabama secondary. But he had two interceptions last week. Sophomore cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick, another first-year starter, had the third. The fourth starter is junior college newcomer DeQuan Menzie at the other cornerback.

The Crimson Tide are also playing true freshman DeMarcus Milliner and sophomore walk-on Will Lowery when they go to five and six defensive backs, which is often.

Saban knew in the preseason that the struggle with this group of defensive backs would be getting through the first part of the season while they took their lumps and learned on the job.

But if they made it through that first stretch, Saban also felt like they had a chance to be very good.

The second half last week in Fayetteville was a big step in that direction.

Likewise, Brantley thinks the Gators may have found themselves offensively last week in the 48-14 win over Kentucky after three shaky outings to start the season.

“I think it’s starting to get back to where we were last year,” said Brantley, who had his first 200-yard passing game against the Wildcats. “We came out firing. You see Trey Burton back there running the Wildcat, kind of doing what we did last year. We’re just starting to click as a team and want to build off that and get better this week.”

What grabbed Florida coach Urban Meyer’s attention about the way Brantley played last week was how in sync he was with the Gators’ receivers.

That timing will be critical this Saturday if Florida’s going to end Alabama’s 18-game winning streak, not to mention everybody around Brantley playing well, including the Gators’ veteran offensive line.

“To get on a plane and go play in this kind of environment, it’s not just John,” Meyer said. “John is one part of the machine. If the machine operates at a high level, John will do just fine. If one of the five [doesn’t] play well up front, Johnny is not going to be fine. If some receiver doesn’t perform at a very high level, they’re not going to be fine.

“So it’s all in, and that’s going to be how we’re going to have to practice Tuesday and Wednesday.”