As Jim McElwain walked into his postgame press conference following the Gators’ win against East Carolina on Saturday night, the look on his face said it all.
Even though Florida (2-0) won 31-24 over the Pirates (1-1), McElwain had a look of complete disgust because of the way UF performed against ECU.
It was a far cry from the satisfied demeanor he had after his debut win against New Mexico State.
"That was embarrassing. We didn’t deserve to win the ball game," McElwain said. "Thought (ECU head coach) Ruffin (McNeill) and his team came in here and took it to us. Our lack of playing with discipline and understanding how to play the game crept up and it was embarrassing."
After committing just one penalty for 10 yards against the Aggies, the Gators racked up 12 penalties for 105 yards in their second game.
But what really set McElwain off were the two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties that came after touchdowns. Following his lone score of the night, junior running back Kelvin Taylor was at the mercy of an infuriated McElwain on the sidelines.
Seconds earlier, Taylor made a throat-slash gesture after the score and was immediately reprimanded by McElwain in a moment captured on cameras across the country.
"We’ve got a long ways to go and it starts with understanding that selfish acts hurt the team and it will be dealt with and that’s not how it’s going to be around here anymore," McElwain said. "Over the last 10 years, most penalized team in the league, in the country. It’s not going to happen. We’ve got to learn."
Taylor did tweet out Sunday afternoon that he didn’t take offense when McElwain chewed him out on the sidelines and the situation is going to make him a better person.
McElwain also said he had a feeling things were going to go the way they did against East Carolina because of how the team prepared during the week. Linebacker Jarrad Davis couldn’t agree with him more.
"Monday was very weird for us. It was weird for us. It felt like old times. It felt like we kind of reverted back. We got comfortable. We were really lazy on Monday as a team," Davis said. "It showed in the game."
Now, the Gators find themselves in a situation similar to the one they were in two games into last season under previous head coach Will Muschamp.
After beating Eastern Michigan 65-0 in the 2014 season season-opener, Florida was inconsistent in its second game against the Kentucky Wildcats.
It took three overtime periods for UF to top the Wildcats 36-30, and inconsistencies plagued Florida throughout the game as they had eight penalties for 78 yards.
The Gators looked like a different team in their wins over Eastern Michigan and Kentucky when they went on the road to play their third game — a matchup against Alabama.
Florida hung around for most of the game, only down seven points heading into halftime. However, the Crimson Tide were able to pull away and win 42-21.
It’s identical to the 2014 season, as Florida looked like two different teams in its first two games heading into its first road game.
But instead of a road game against a top-25 team, the Gators will face Kentucky this weekend in Lexington to open up their Southeastern Conference schedule.
The Wildcats snapped a 20 game road conference losing streak on Saturday and won an SEC road game for the first time since 2009 when they went into Sanford Stadium and beat Georgia 34-27.
Now, as Florida gets into the heart of conference play, the team cannot make the same mistakes against SEC opponents.
The Gators will have to correct their mistakes as they head into the game against Kentucky.
It’s the start of a new week for the Gators. McElwain wants them to put the East Carolina game behind them and get ready for a Wildcat team that is confident after a big road win.
"Correct the mistakes. Bury it, tear out the rearview mirror and get ready to go play a very good Kentucky team on the road that arguably beat us a year ago here," McElwain said. "(They’re) going to have a lot of confidence. New stadium, new facilities, a lot of energy. I’m sure right now they’re going to look at this and say ‘you know what, we can beat these guys.’"
Follow Luis Torres on Twitter @LFTorresIII
UF football coach Jim McElwain reacts after a penalty during Florida's 31-24 win against East Carolina on Sept. 12, 2015, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
