Minutes after an ugly 9-7 victory over Vanderbilt, a win that clinched a berth in the Southeastern Conference title game for Florida, coach Jim McElwain uttered a phrase that summed up his thoughts on the day — and the season.
"Let’s call it what it is: We are on a championship run," McElwain said. "Sometimes there are games like this. And champions figure out ways to win."
He’s right — sort of.
I’m a firm believer that one game doesn’t define a team, and Saturday certainly doesn’t define a Gators season filled with performances much better than the one that took place in The Swamp on Saturday.
As we see weekly in college football, things change quickly.
A team can go from looking like a championship contender one game to looking like a team that would be lucky to get bowl eligible in the next, or vice versa.
It happens even to the best teams. But even if it isn’t pretty, those top teams find a way to get the job done.
All you need to do is be the best team in the stadium on that particular day in order to survive and advance.
In that regard, history proves McElwain’s point that you’ll need to win some close games when you don’t play your best.
In four of the last six seasons, the SEC champion has had at least two one-possession wins over teams that finished the year unranked.
The only exceptions in that span were the Alabama teams that won back-to-back national titles in 2011 and 2012, teams that won their games by 26 and 27 points per game, respectively.
The highest total came in 2013, when Auburn won a whopping four such games by one score, including a few miracles like the "Prayer in Jordan-Hare" when the Tigers took down Georgia on a Hail Mary with a fluke tipped pass.
So there is certainly precedent for title-contending teams winning tight games like Florida did against Vanderbilt.
The only problem with that theory is that it’s Vanderbilt.
If you’re a championship-caliber team, you don’t have a game like Florida had against a team that bad. Put simply, the Commodores stink.
They currently sit at 3-6, with their only wins coming against Austin Peay, Middle Tennessee State and Missouri. Those teams are a combined 8-20.
If Vanderbilt has any hope of making a bowl game, it will need to win its final three games against Kentucky, Texas A&M and at Tennessee.
Put even more simply, it's not going to happen. The Commodores will be lucky to get one win over that stretch.
And that’s significant as it relates to comparing close wins of previous SEC champions.
In the past six seasons, no SEC champion has played poorly enough to be involved in a one-possession win against a team that didn’t participate in a bowl game.
In all but three cases, the eventual champion’s opponent had seven wins or more.
Oddly enough, the three cases that involved a six-win opponent came against an SEC-winning Auburn team, either in 2010 or 2013.
So, while McElwain is correct that games like Saturday happen to great teams, they normally happen against much more formidable opponents.
Alabama, the team that Florida would face in the conference title game if the season were to end today, has one one-possession win over an unranked team this season — a five-point victory over Tennessee.
With Saturday’s victory, Florida already has four such wins.
One would think that favors the Crimson Tide.
But who knows — maybe Florida is the new Auburn.
Follow Graham Hack on Twitter @graham_hack24
UF football coach Jim McElwain receives the game ball following Florida's 9-7 win against Vanderbilt on Nov. 7, 2015, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
