GAINESVILLE -- Urban Meyer skipped out on his weekly teleconference with reporters on Sunday. Maybe Florida's coach was busy. Maybe he was just sick and tired of defending his undefeated team. Maybe there is just nothing left to say.

The No. 1-ranked Gators (9-0, 7-0 SEC) defeated Vanderbilt 27-3 on Saturday.

On Sunday, UF was ranked atop the Bowl Championship Series standings for the fourth week in a row. Win out and Florida likely will play for the national championship on Jan. 7.

With a school-record 19 consecutive victories entering Saturday's road game against South Carolina, Meyer should be fully enjoying his team's unprecedented success. It doesn't seem that way though.

On Saturday night, Florida's coach responded critically to a reporter's comment about a possible perception from fans about the Gators' ``ho-hum'' winning streak.

``I don't care about that,'' Meyer said. ``Those people in that [locker room], it's not ho-hum, I assure you. Have you ever gone 19-0? I can answer that for you. You have not.

``It's not ho-hum. If it's ho-hum for somebody, you've got to really reflect and say, `Where am I headed in this life right now?' Because if 19-0 in the Southeastern Conference at the University of Florida is ho-hum, you have one exciting life. You have a lot of good stuff going for you because 19-0 -- I don't want to take away from what those cats have done.''

Meyer's sarcastic response -- certainly not ``ho-hum'' -- came near the end of his 20-minute news conference, which was dominated by questions about the Gators' perceived lack of offensive success against Vanderbilt. Florida gained 375 yards of total offense, but quarterback Tim Tebow was sacked four times -- a recurring problem -- and the offense reached the red zone just four times.

SCHEDULING CONFLICT

On Sunday morning, Meyer was not available during his regularly scheduled weekly teleconference, and a UF spokesperson explained to reporters that Meyer had a scheduling conflict. On Sunday night, Meyer did not speak with reporters after Florida's practice.

Florida is ranked No. 2 in the country in total defense (232.4 yards per game), but talk after Saturday's game -- in the news conference, on postgame radio shows and on fan message boards -- focused on the offense's struggles.

``Our offense still hasn't reached our potential,'' said tight end Aaron Hernandez, who led the Gators with 120 yards on seven receptions against Vanderbilt. ``I feel like we can put up a lot of points. We still struggle at times, but all we have to do is keep fighting and keep showing up in big games.''

Without question, Florida's offense had trouble finding a rhythm Saturday night. But when the Gators needed a touchdown to put the game away, Tebow and the offense delivered with a drive that iced the game. Vanderbilt cut Florida's lead to 10 points in the third quarter with a 32-yard field goal.

The Gators responded with a 24-yard kick return by Brandon James, and then a hard-earned scoring drive that spanned nine plays and 54 yards.

BREATHING ROOM

During the drive, Tebow went 3 of 3 for 35 yards and converted on fourth-and-1 from the Vanderbilt 34 with a 3-yard carry. UF's quarterback capped the drive with back-to-back runs inside the Vanderbilt 5 to give Florida a 20-3 lead.

``We're going to be happy to be 9-0,'' Tebow said. ``There aren't a lot of teams who are 9-0. What I'm proud of is that when we've needed to have a drive or when we've needed to put the ball in the end zone, we've done it.''

Florida enters the 11th week of the season with linebacker Brandon Spikes back on the field after sitting out the Vanderbilt game for attempting to gouge the eyes of Georgia running back Washaun Ealey. South Carolina (6-4, 3-4 SEC) is third in the SEC East after losing to Arkansas 33-16 last Saturday.

``We have to play hard every game,'' said linebacker Ryan Stamper, who moved from his weak-side position to middle linebacker against Vanderbilt.

``We're getting Brandon Spikes back this week, so it will be a good night for the Gator defense next week.''

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