Scott Stricklin: Expectations at Florida not too high

Three years have passed, and so have two different head football coaches at the University of Florida. Tough crowd.

Athletic director Scott Stricklin doesn’t think so.

“If your expectation is can we compete with the very best teams in the country, stand on the same field and have a legitimate chance to beat the best teams in the country, we do that in every other sport at the University of Florida,” Stricklin said. “I don’t know why this football program, which has done it before, I mentioned the three national championships in the last 21 years. I don’t think that’s unfair.”

Still, with Sunday’s mutual agreement for Jim McElwain to depart after only two and a half seasons, numerous questions have come up about the expectations at Florida.

McElwain took the Gators to back-to-back SEC East Championships in his first two seasons, which had never been done before in conference history. He led the team to a 22-12 overall record in that time, and although Florida holds a 3-4 record so far in 2017, most schools around the country would not have a leash that short.

Maybe Florida wouldn’t have either had there not been internal issues caused by McElwain’s death threat comments last Monday and other things going on behind the scenes. Stricklin made it clear on Sunday that the decision was not solely based on football.

“This is more than just wins and losses,” he said. “And I’ll just leave it at that.”

Even if the decision was purely based on what McElwain’s teams did between the lines, it would likely still be an acceptable one for those around the Florida program.

Despite making it to the SEC Championship Game twice, Florida has still only had average seasons compared to its standards. This season, the Gators will have to fight to at least win three of the last four games to even make a bowl game, and that should be unacceptable at any marquee program.

All coaches need time to develop and mold a team, but some kind of progress has to be made to indicate that a change is happening. Instead, Florida has regressed.

The people who know the history of this program, and the fans who come out every Saturday in the fall to show their support, are not okay with getting used to being mediocre. That plays a big part. While they do not have a vote in any kind of administrative decision, their expectations are acknowledged.

“I worked at a school that wasn’t a Power 5 and it was a struggle to draw 15,000 people to a game, and there weren’t many people to get upset when we lost a game,” Stricklin said. “I would much rather have a situation where you have 90,000 people filling your stadium and they’re more than a little disappointed when they go home on the losing end of the game. That’s just the nature of fandom. I don’t think the expectations at the University of Florida, to create a championship experience with integrity, is unrealistic.”

With every season that passes without a championship, that Gator logo loses a little bit of its luster. Players know what it means to wear “Florida” across their chests, but that could begin to fade.

That is not something this administration wanted to wait around to possibly let happen.

“Being in this league for 25 years, when Florida has been really good, from a distance it has looked really fun, and I want it to be really fun,” Stricklin said. “Our fans, they deserve it to be really fun. I want our players and student-athletes to have a lot of fun. This is a rewarding experience to come here and get a degree from a top-10 public university and to play at one of the storied football programs in the country. That’s got to be rewarding and fun.”

In order to bring that fun back and start meeting the standard set at Florida, the right coaching hire must be made.

The pressure to be great may scare some coaches away from taking this job, but right person will take those challenges head on. Stricklin feels confident in his connections and his ability to find the coach who will do just that.

“I think if you want to work in the best athletic department in the country and have access to some of the best talent in the country and have some of the best support in the country and play and coach for the best fans in the country, you want to be at the University of Florida,” he said. “We have 21 sports. 17 of them, either now or will be in the spring when their seasons start, will be nationally ranked. A lot of those, as you guys know, are not just top 20. They’re top 10, they’re top five, they’re No. 1 in the country. This is a place where you can compete for championships at the highest level … I think this is a dream job for somebody.”

 

 

Bailiegh Carlton
A lifelong sports fan, Bailiegh Carlton knew from a young age that she wanted to work in sports in some capacity. Before transferring to the University of Florida to study journalism, she played softball at Gulf Coast State College. She then interned for Gator Country for three years as she worked toward her degree. After graduation, Bailiegh decided to explore other opportunities in the world of sports, but all roads led her right back here. In her time away, she and her husband welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the world. When she isn't working, she can almost always be found snuggled up with sweet baby Ridley, Cody and her four fur babies.