The new Florida Gator football coach was introduced to the Gator Nation via his first official press conference and he did not disappoint. Jim McElwain fielded a wide range of media questions with an “aw shucks” affability and wit that will play well with media, players and recruit parents alike. This presser was a pleasure to watch. Someone does need to get him some ties that are the correct color orange.
I live in the town where Will Muschamp was born. I was pulling for him as much as just about anyone and I really like him as a person but the difference between this presser and Muschamp’s was evident very early in the PC. Will always seemed a little uncomfortable like he hoped he would do well. At times his coaching had the same appearance. McElwain looked completely at home as the Gator coach and in front of the microphone. From comparing himself to a mutt dog at the pound to joking about stealing some of Steve Spurrier’s plays or that he could win with his dog at quarterback, Jim was at ease and in control of the event. At one point he even turned the thing around and began asking the questions about what would be served for lunch. This is a man who is comfortable in his own skin. He is confident that he will win at Florida. I am confident that he will win as well.
After researching McElwain’s coaching career it is apparent that the unit or units he was responsible for excelled everywhere he has been with the possible exception of the one year stint with the Oakland Raiders and well they are the Raiders. Could there even possibly be a better fit for the Florida Gators at this point? The two areas Jim has shown the ability over and over to master is quarterbacks and wide receivers. How convenient as these are the two areas where the Gators have struggled the most in recent years. One of the most concerning things for me with the previous regime has been the appearance of zero player development at quarterback and receiver. If anything, players at these positions seemed to regress year to year. Reading McElwain’s accomplishments with these two units has made me incredibly excited to see his work on the field next fall. This promises to be a long offseason wait for the Gator Nation and I truly believe it will be worth the wait.
There is little doubt in my mind that Jim will be successful at Florida. I fully expect the Gators to rise back to the top of the SEC East almost immediately. I realize that those expectations should be tempered but it is what I really believe here. I know that some fans feel that this wasn’t the “splash” hire that Florida needed right now or had longings for a certain coach like Bob Stoops or maybe Charlie Strong. After really digging into McElwain’s coaching history and seeing his press conference I honestly believe that he is a better hire than anyone mentioned other than perhaps Chip Kelly who wasn’t a realistic option to begin with. This is the guy folks. He will instill fun in the Gator offense again. This team will be fun to watch and it had stopped being fun a while back. I’m pretty sure it stopped being fun for the players as well. More importantly, I think the Gators are going to win a lot of football games.
While offense seems a given with McElwain, to be annual contenders the defense must remain strong as well. There is a great deal of defensive talent on this current roster and even more talent very interested in signing with the Gators in February. Perhaps the most critical item on the new coach’s agenda will be to put together the right defensive staff. That might mean keeping at least some of the current staff. Keeping coaches like Travaris Robinson, Brad Lawing and maybe even DJ Durkin would certainly help with this year’s recruiting. However, these decision must be made based on the long term and not one signing class. McElwain said in his press conference that the most important thing was to have the best possible staff and he is absolutely correct. I anxiously await the assembling of that staff.
As for recruiting, that will be Jim’s first real test. Florida lags far behind all of their rivals right now in recruiting. It was unavoidable with what played out on the field this season. For this turnaround to be immediate rather than a project, that must change and it must change fairly quickly. It should start with CeCe Jefferson and Byron Cowart. Nothing helps a defense more than bookend pass rushers. They shorten the field. McElwain will hit the recruiting trail right away and from what I saw at the press conference he should do extremely well with parents in living rooms around the state and country. If you want an early indication of how quickly this transition will pay dividends look no farther than this recruiting class. Check out the Gator Country recruiting page regularly and watch as things finally begin to happen there. If the Florida Gators are successful there it will be a very short path back to college football relevance. Perhaps as soon as 2015. What I’m looking for is a top 10 class on signing day. Accomplishing that with where the Gators are at this point would be a spectacular start for coach McElwain. Then the key is whether he filled Florida’s needs. Keep an eye out for linebackers. Florida needs them in a bad way.
All in all, I was underwhelmed with the initial announcement that a deal was imminent with Jim McElwain. That was not because Jim was a bad or even questionable hire it was because I was not educated on just how much he has accomplished in his career. Now that I have done my due diligence and seen the man’s press conference I could not be more excited about the future of Gator football. I can’t wait to sit in the Swamp and watch fun football again. Go Gators.
although we have Anzalone, McMillan and Rolin for next year, I agree.
The anticipation is killing me. I can’t wait to hear what he does on the recruiting trail. What coaches he chooses. After four pretty horrific years, we have hope again. We watched the same thing over and over expecting change and it never happened. Well, change has kicked in big-time now. Like you, Mark, I’m pleasantly surprised after reading up a bit on coach Mac. The best thing I think I heard him say at the presser was he liked pressure. Some people have stainless steel guts, maybe he’s one of them. Change is good. We’ll see the Swamp rocking again, people excited, players excited as a new man is out there doing his thing. Very cool. Go Gators.
Who knows if McElwain will be a good coach? The enthusiasm is the same as last year after the hire of Roper. If you look back, the same words were spoken. Jeff Driskel was going to become an outstanding quarterback now that Roper had arrived. It’s just words. That’s not to say that a dramatic turnaround can’t happen immediately, we saw it happen at Auburn, I’m just saying that it might be prudent to temper expectations until more than words are spoken. To start with, it might be a little deflating and cause consternation if you are really expecting the current train wreck of a class to suddenly become a top ten one. Like Dirty Harry said: ” A mans got to know his limitations.”
Who knows if McElwain will be a good coach? The enthusiasm is the same as last year after the hire of Roper. If you look back, the same words were spoken. Jeff Driskel was going to become an outstanding quarterback now that Roper had arrived. It’s just words. That’s not to say that a dramatic turnaround can’t happen immediately, we saw it happen at Auburn, I’m just saying that it might be prudent to temper expectations until more than words are spoken. To start with, it might be a little deflating and cause consternation if you are really expecting the current train wreck of a class to suddenly become a top ten one. Like Dirty Harry said: ” A mans got to know his limitations.”
I feel the need to clarify a few things. Some of you may be wondering why I would compare an OC hiring to a HC hiring in my latest glass-is-always-half-empty version of the verbal diarrhea I like to spray all over these web pages. Why do I make this comparison? Well, the answer is simple. A new OC is the exact same thing as a new HC, morons. I don’t think I need to say much else, really. I know you will probably say that an OC is sometimes hindered by what his HC wants to do, but I do not feel Muschamp did that to Roper, so basically my analogy is bullet proof in this instance. Never mind that no OCs actually worked under Muschamp. I also want to point out that I am not saying McElwain is a bad coach just that I don’t think he will be a good one. See the distinction? I love to speak in absolutes usually (like when I said UF never had a 22 game winning streak…or that Foley screwed up this hiring – oops, btw, guys), but I could be way wrong here so being vague is a good option for me because I can always come back later and claim that I knew it right from the time that I posted this comment, so be ready for that, guys. As Dirty Harry would say “Oh, he’s hanging around back there.” (and by that I mean me…but not actually ‘hanging around’ anywhere, Nope this is what we call an idiom. I will seriously just sit here at my computer waiting to attack an article written by a Gator Country writer or splash some water on any hope you Gator fans might have….er “we” Gator fans).