GAINESVILLE, Fla. — As the Hawai'i football players walked from the locker room to the sidewalk, where the charter buses were idling, each received rousing applause of encouragement from Warrior supporters.

It was a gesture of appreciation for fighting the good fight, and that lessons are to be learned from seasons that do not have happy beginnings, such as yesterday's 56-10 thumping from fifth-ranked Florida.

But the hopefulness is for another day, not when the wounds are fresh.

Not from a game in which the Warriors were intercepted four times, with two raced back for touchdowns.

Not after their usually reliable special teams were burned for a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown and, later, frozen by a fake that resulted in punter Chas Henry's 17-yard run on fourth-and-16.

Not when last year's highest-scoring offense fired blanks until the fourth quarter, or when the defense relinquishes scoring plays of 62, 48 and 33 yards.

"You can't give up big plays like that — and scoring plays," said Greg McMackin, who was making his debut as UH's head coach. Three non-offensive "touchdowns? Give me a break. You're not going to win that game. We have to clean that up. That's what coaching's all about. There are only six or seven plays that decide a game, and they got all of them, and we didn't get any of them."

Linebacker Solomon Elimimian, one of four newly named captains, said: "It's disappointing. No matter what happens, you don't ever want to see a score like that. ... I wanted us to at least compete out there. We did, but we didn't compete the whole game. We played a good first quarter. We played a good fourth. We didn't play consistently the whole game, like we should have. We let them get the momentum."

The outcome would prove to be painful in more than a symbolic way. Starting left tackle Laupepa Letuli's arm was in a sling in the second half. He said he suffered an injury to the AC joint in his left shoulder.

Left wideout Greg Salas said he suffered a fracture in his left hand during the opening possession. He continued to play, with a splint on his left hand, and caught a 13-yard scoring pass from Inoke Funaki, the third UH quarterback, with 1:37 to play.

"I didn't really notice it," Salas said of the pain.

After the game, running back Daniel Libre was on crutches, his right ankle wrapped with an ice pack. He said he suffered a high-ankle sprain.

The Gators, to be sure, were not at full health. Hybrid back Percy Harvin, who led the nation with a yards-per-rush average of 9.2 last year, did not play because of a heel injury. Last year's leading tackler, middle linebacker Brandon Spikes, also was held out because of an injury.

But the Gators are rich with talent. Example No. 1: Last year, Harvin, who can run 40 yards in under 4.4 seconds, was the fastest Gator; this season, he is the eighth-fastest. Example No. 2: Last year, quarterback Tim Tebow was the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. The 6-foot-2, 240-pound Tebow, who can squat-lift 660 pounds and run 40 yards in 4.6 seconds, was deemed the most physically fit Gator.

"They're a tough team," kicker Dan Kelly said. "That's why they're ranked No. 5."

After reviewing the videotapes of the Warriors' implosion in the Sugar Bowl, the Gators crafted this defensive plan: Pass-rush with three defensive linemen and align five defensive backs in tight pass coverage. Joe Haden, their best cover defender, was moved from right cornerback to nickelback to defend left slotback Michael Washington, UH's quickest inside receiver.

The Warriors devised a firewall plan for the Gators' aggressive pass rush. When the Gators aligned with three defensive linemen, the Warriors called for shovel passes, quick screens, draws, and stretch runs off trap blocks. Starting quarterback Greg Alexander varied the tempo of the silent count. Four times the Gators were assessed off-sides penalties.

"All we wanted to do in the first quarter was soften the (pass) rush, keep them honest," offensive coordinator Ron Lee said. "We controlled that. We made yardage."

The scoreless first quarter, from the Warriors' perspective, was considered to be a success.

But it was a two-part strategy, and the Warriors knew they could not rely on the short game for long.

"Eventually, you've got to throw," Lee said. "We moved the ball well, exactly what we wanted to do, but when we started to throw, we didn't convert. We didn't make a throw early, and that got us out of our rhythm."

On their second possession, their last of the first quarter, the Warriors advanced to the Florida 17. With the Gators in a two-deep coverage, slotback Aaron Bain ran a post route to the face of the end zone. But Alexander's pass sailed, and safety Ahmad Black, playing a few yards behind Bain, made a diving interception.

"It was the right read," quarterbacks coach Nick Rolovich said, but the pass "was an overshot."

At the least, McMackin noted, it cost the Warriors a field-goal attempt.

"That first pick in the red zone set us back," Alexander said. "From then on, I had a piss-poor game. That happens."

Indeed, it changed the tone of the game. Tebow took charge on the ensuing possession. He pump-faked, rolled to his left and completed a 34-yard pass to tight end Tate Casey. Later, it appeared Tebow was cornered on an option play to his right. He then broke to the left before stepping out of bounds at the UH 1. From there, Brandon James — Harvin's replacement — dashed the final yard for a touchdown.

"We had everybody sitting on their hands in the first quarter," McMackin said, "and then they picked it up."

Two plays into UH's next possession, Alexander tried to laser a pass into the right flat. The quarterbacks are taught to throw to the outside of a receiver. But the cornerback was shaded to that side.

"I tried to put it inside (of the receiver), to protect him, but I put it right in the (free safety's) gut," Alexander said.

Major Wright's 32-yard interception return made it 14-0.

Later, the Warriors were forced to punt. The plan was to place the punt between the return team's left hashmark and sideline. But Tim Grasso's punt bounced, and it was fielded near the middle by James. James broke to his right, eluding long-snapper Jake Ingram who was defending the wide side, and sped the rest of the way for a score.

"We tried to keep the ball away from him," said Ikaika Malloe, who coordinates UH's special teams. "Obviously, he got the ball. We didn't execute well on our part to contain him. With a returner like that, we wanted to give him less field. But he's a great returner. What can you do? We have to correct the mistakes and hopefully contain the next returner we face."

That came in the second half, and the runner was punter Henry, who has been timed at 4.9 seconds in the 40. On fourth-and-16, the Gators overloaded the left side. Henry took the snap on the left hash, then galloped to the far side for the first down.

That kept the drive alive and, two plays later, speedy Jeff Demps took a handoff on a draw play, and sprinted around the left side for a 62-yard touchdown.

And so it went.

"We played the worst possible game we could play," right wideout Malcolm Lane said. "You're not going to win games with four or five turnovers. You can't."

Even when the trap was set, the Gators escaped.

"I don't have any excuses," McMackin said. "I'm responsible for everything. We lost contain on a (punt return) for a touchdown. We lost contain on a punter for a first down. We have one rule: Don't put the defense back on the field. Everybody has to do (his) job. If they don't do their job, then we get hurt for it. We, as coaches, have to work with them. I still believe in this football team. I believe in the coaches. The thing is, I was glad they didn't quit in the fourth quarter. They came back and scored 10 points."

After the game, McMackin emphasized he is not opening up the competition at quarterback. Alexander completed 11 of 21 passes for 57 yards. Brent Rausch was 2 of 7 for 14 yards and an interception. Funaki, who played against the Gator reserves, was 8 of 11 for 110 yards and the lone UH touchdown pass.

"I'm proud Inoke went in there and played well, played like a Warrior," Rolovich said. "He knew how much this meant to Hawai'i. He didn't quit. It showed a lot to the people of Hawai'i, that we are still warriors. I appreciate him doing that.

"I'm a firm believer (the quarterbacks) are going to be so much better every game that goes on. It's hard for them to believe right now, but in six months or a year, they'll look back and laugh at how far they've come with the offense."