Kurt Roper walked into the South End Zone Meeting Room in black slacks, black shoes and a blue Florida Gators jacket. At 41, his glasses and bald head made him look like the cool, yet insightful, college professor.
He answered questions following Will Muschamp’s state of the program address in which the lights ironically went dark, a press conference with new offensive line coach Mike Summers and a session with new special teams coordinator Coleman Hutzler that included his preference for New Mexico chili peppers.
His first words at the press conference as offensive coordinator: “Surely there can’t be any questions left.” With all due respect, Mr. Roper, when the Gators finish 4-8 and have an offense that finishes last in the Southeastern Conference, there will be more questions, and lots of them.
Roper comes way of Durham, N.C., where he served as Duke’s offensive coordinator under quarterback messiah David Cutcliffe, who famously coached the Manning brothers at Tennessee and Ole Miss.
For a Florida fan base that hasn’t had a quarterback to worship since Tim Tebow, a coach like Roper may be the answer to its prayers.
“You lose a couple of guys in your system and you’re in trouble, so you’ve got to be able to shift gears and change to what fits your personnel,” Muschamp said.
“I think his background speaks for itself as far as being a two-back team at Ole Miss, and now you’re looking at Duke and a lot of the spread principles we need to look at.”
After seeing the high-octane attacks of Auburn and Florida State in Pasadena, Calif., Muschamp needed to make a philosophical shift from the run-dominated thinking of your father’s time to the spread offenses of your iPhone-wielding younger brother.
Times are changing, and now it appears Florida is, too.
Roper, who has worked with Cutcliffe in some capacity for 17 seasons, has run both a spread and pro-style system.
Brent Pease, UF’s former offensive coordinator, never rekindled the success he had at Boise State that made him a hot-shot coordinator even Nick Saban couldn’t wait to hire.
Moving to Gainesville did come with a cost for Roper.
He, his wife, Britt, daughter, Reese, and son, Luke, moved away from Roper’s brother Zac, who is the special teams coordinator for Duke. Zac has a wife and two kids as well.
A chance to revitalize a team a year removed from the BCS and a program with as many national championships as Heisman Trophy winners was too good to pass up.
“One of the obvious mainstays in college football,” Roper said about Florida. “This is a great university with a history and a lot of championships. The year before they went to the Sugar Bowl, so obviously there’s a lot of good football players on this team.
“It’s a chance to come and compete for championships.”
What Roper has to work with is uncertain, unproven and underperforming talent. Junior quarterback Jeff Driskel comes off a fractured right fibula he suffered against Tennessee on Sept. 21.
Freshman Will Grier, who worked with Roper at Duke quarterback camps, is an unknown commodity.
Sophomore running back Matt Jones is missing spring practice while recovering from a torn left meniscus. The search for a major contributor at receiver is ongoing.
The offensive line is missing parts, while the tight ends are missing altogether.
There’s much to figure out in 15 spring practices, a summer and fall training camp, but by all indications, the man who learned from one of the best is ready.
Follow Adam Pincus on Twitter @adamDpincus
Ed. Note: Kurt Roper is from Durham, N.C., not Raleigh, N.C., previously written.
Offensive coordinator Kurt Roper addresses the media during his introductory press conference on Jan. 13. Four-star quarterback Sheriron Jones, who was recruited by Roper, committed to Florida on Sunday.
