Florida’s 27-2 loss to FSU in the team’s regular-season finale temporarily erased the memories of a promising season in Gainesville under first-year UF coach Jim McElwain.
The Gators were unable to move the ball effectively against Florida State, the defense couldn’t force turnovers, and the special teams failed to put points on the board.
Now with two losses, the harsh reality is that UF’s College Football Playoff hopes have vanished.
But with a 7-1 record in the Southeastern Conference, Florida’s season is far from finished.
McElwain and the Gators have a date with coach Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday in the SEC Championship Game.
Now in its 108th season, Florida has won eight SEC Championships since joining the conference in 1933, with seven of those coming in a championship game, which is the most of any team.
UF technically won its first SEC title in 1984 under coach Charley Pell, but it was later vacated after the coaching staff was found to have committed multiple NCAA infractions.
Former coach Will Muschamp and the Gators didn’t win the SEC Eastern division in his tenure, leaving an Urban Meyer-led team as the last Florida squad to compete for the conference title.
That was in 2009, and Meyer and senior quarterback Tim Tebow had the Gators undefeated heading into Atlanta with their sights set on the national championship game.
Jim McElwain was there, too.
But he was with Saban helping the Crimson Tide smother the Gators 32-13 and end their hopes of a second title in three seasons heading to Gainesville.
That loss at the hands of McElwain and Saban ignited the fuse of dynamite that eventually blew up Florida’s prized mini-dynasty.
The ensuing month is well-known football lore.
Meyer briefly retired less than three weeks later, Alabama won the first of three national championships in four years, and the Gators hired Muschamp.
A lot has changed in six years for Florida, but not as much for Alabama.
McElwain is now in Gainesville working to build the program he helped bury, and he’s set to face the coach who helped propel him up the coaching ranks. He remembers working at Fresno State in 2007 and getting that initial call from Saban.
"I think when he first called, I actually might have hung up thinking it was one of my buddies busting my chops, not knowing he had a job opening," McElwain said of when Saban first offered him the job. "I owe a ton to coach Saban and what he gave me an opportunity to do."
Saban hadn’t heard of McElwain until Pat Hill, who was in the midst of a 15-year head coaching tenure with Fresno State with McElwain as his offensive coordinator, recommended his oft-sockless colleague to Saban.
"Pat Hill … told me that Jim was a really good coach and did a good job and when we had an opening, I sort of always did a pretty thorough job of trying to look around to see who’s available and who we might be able to get to come here to be our offensive coordinator," Saban recalled.
"Jim was one of those guys, but because Pat Hill thought so much of him, I trusted him. That went a long way, and then when I met Jim and talked to him, worked with him, I was certainly happy with the decision to have him on our staff."
McElwain joked and said Alabama’s offense has gotten better under offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin, but he took a serious approach when it came to discussing how to stop Alabama’s star running back Derrick Henry.
Arguably the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy, Henry has rushed for 1,797 yards and 22 touchdowns while claiming the Crimson Tide all-time single-season rushing record.
After LSU’s Leonard Fournette torched the Gators for 180 yards and two touchdowns and FSU’s Dalvin Cook gashed them for 183 yards and a pair of scores as well, UF knows it must make a statement when they meet Henry on the field in the Georgia Dome.
"All I can say is wow," McElwain said when asked about his thoughts on Henry. "In a long line of great running backs that were there, I think it’s a testament to Coach Saban and what they’re committing to doing year in and year out. ... We’ve got our work cut out for trying to jump on his back and slow him down."
UF may be heading into Atlanta lacking momentum and without consistent quarterback play, but McElwain’s familiarity with Saban gives the Gators an intangible to prepare with: leadership that is well-versed in the inner workings of the Crimson Tide’s program.
It’s something Florida will prepare to capitalize on with the hopes of re-establishing an identity that is unsatisfied with being successful solely in the regular season.
Follow Graham Hall on Twitter @Graham311
UF Jim McElwain walks off the field following Florida's 27-2 loss to Florida State on Nov. 28, 2015, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
