The Florida Gators opened the season against the Hawaii Warriors. This was the first meeting between the two teams, but the two programs had become familiar with one another at the end of the 2007 college football regular season. 2007 Florida starting quarterback Tim Tebow and 2007 Hawaii starting quarterback Colt Brennan were both finalists for the Heisman Trophy where the two met in New York for the award ceremony. In the time leading up to the award presentation, the then-Hawaii head coach June Jones made comments regarding Tim Tebow and how he would fare against his own quarterback Colt Brennan in their respective offensive systems, referring to Tebow as a "system quarterback." His comments "infuriated Gators fans, who expressed their displeasure in Internet chat rooms and blogs." At the conclusion of the 2007–2008 bowl season, June Jones left Hawaii to become the head coach of SMU, leaving the opening game against Hawaii without Brennan or Jones.