NEW ORLEANS — Florida said goodbye to the winningest class in school history, the greatest player in school history and its defensive coordinator with a 51-24 win against Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl.
With Tim Tebow, Brandon Spikes, Charlie Strong and others on their way out the door, a lot of uncertainty surrounds the future of UF’s program.
Coach Urban Meyer will take a leave of absence and hand the reins over — temporarily — to offensive coordinator Steve Addazio, whose only head coaching experience came at Cheshire (Conn.) High School.
“I feel a great obligation and an honor to be able to hold this thing together for coach until he gets back here,” Addazio said. “If we can give him this piece of stability, that he knows this program is in good shape and good hands and going well, then that’s what we’re gonna do. That’s what we owe him.”
Meyer said again after the game he feels he will be back in the fall for the start of the 2010 season to coach a brand new football team.
John Brantley will take over for Tebow at quarterback, but that may be the only certain thing about next season.
The defense loses starters Spikes, linebacker Ryan Stamper and end Jermaine Cunningham, and that’s if every junior decides to come back next year.
Cornerback Joe Haden has already announced he will forgo his senior season, and end Carlos Dunlap is expected to be a first-round pick if he declares for the NFL Draft. Safeties Ahmad Black and Major Wright have also submitted their papers to the advisory committee.
“I’ll talk to my coaches and if they think I’m ready, then I’ll go,” said Dunlap, who recorded two sacks against the Bearcats.
All of those departures leave one of the best defenses in the country in a transition period for next season.
Spikes said he thinks freshman Jon Bostic will take over his middle linebacker position, depending on who stays and the type of defense UF will run with a new coordinator.
“Those younger players, they know what we started, the legacy we have here, and they just want to keep it going,” Spikes said.
On offense, wide receivers David Nelson and Riley Cooper played their last games as Gators, and a few third-year players — offensive linemen Carl Johnson, Marcus Gilbert and Mike and Maurkice Pouncey, tight end Aaron Hernandez and running back Chris Rainey — still have NFL decisions to make.
“You hear a lot of guys around here talk about dynasty and taking the sport to a new level, and I think we’ve done that,” Nelson said.
Now, the challenge will be staying on top with a different nucleus of players, some of which have yet to sign with UF.
“I’m going to do everything I can to keep this train going in the right direction,” Meyer said when asked if he plans to recruit over the next month. “That all will be discussed in the next few days.”
