After Saturday’s loss in the Southeastern Conference title game, Gator fans will be split into two camps.
In one group, there will be fans who believe this season was far better than they could have possibly hoped for.
No matter how it ended, this season was a success based on what was expected in the offseason and what the team had to deal with during the year.
In the other group, there will be fans whose expectations changed midway through the year when they saw what this team could be: a team capable of winning the SEC and getting into the College Football Playoff.
And after seeing that potential, the ensuing demise of the offense and the regression of the team as a whole is a bitter pill to swallow, no matter what the expectations originally were.
To save you all from having this debate over the dinner table at Christmas, I’m here to tell you both groups are right.
This season wasn’t just a success — it was far more than that. A success would have been anything more than seven wins.
If you had told any Gator fan that Florida would finish the season with 10 wins and a 29-15 loss to the No. 2 team in the country in the SEC title game, they would have snatched that up in a heartbeat after questioning your sanity.
In fact, most of the team probably would have taken that deal, too.
It’s OK to feel happy with what the Gators accomplished in McElwain’s first year.
But on the other hand, it’s also OK to lament what could have been.
Chances at conference and national titles only come every so often, and you can’t afford to waste them. There's no denying that this Gators team blew its opportunity.
After thumping then-No. 3 Ole Miss at home on Oct. 3, there was a shift of mentality for Florida. This was no longer a team that just had a chance to be better than expectations — this was a team poised for a title run.
The defense was, without question, championship caliber, and it remained so for the rest of the year. But at that point, you could see the offense finally figuring out McElwain’s scheme and beginning to flourish.
Quarterback Will Grier was developing alongside young playmakers, and the Gators could attack opposing defenses in various ways for the first time in years.
With the continued growth that unit would have undergone through the final months of the year, McElwain and Co. should have had a complete team capable of beating LSU on Oct. 17 and Alabama on Saturday, plus playing a close game at worst with Florida State on Nov. 28.
But instead, Grier got himself suspended and the rest of the offense slowly returned to its former self.
Any semblance of an offensive pulse would have given Florida a chance to win Saturday, but it couldn’t even muster that.
No matter the expectations, that should warrant frustration.
That encapsulates UF’s season — better than it should have been, but not what it could have been.
You can chose to dwell on one side or the other, but you can’t ignore the fact that the season had both.
Follow Graham Hack on Twitter @graham_hack24
