When I heard the news that Will Muschamp would be the new head coach of the University of Florida, I was shocked. Not because Florida had hired a Georgia grad who was the coach in waiting at Texas, but because Jeremy Foley hired a coach with no previous head coaching experience to lead one of the most successful programs in the country.
Florida has been a national power in college football over the last 20 years. That began with the hiring of Steve Spurrier, who was a Florida graduate. However, Spurrier was experienced having coached in the USFL before helping lead Duke University to a share of the ACC Championship in 1989. After Spurrier's run, the Gators promoted assistant Ron Zook, who had no previous head coaching experience. The Gators struggled over the next 3 seasons and Zook was fired. This time, the Gators went back to their old formula, finding a young but experienced coach to come in. Urban Meyer had been coach at Bowling Green and later Utah, who he lead to a BCS bowl victory over Pittsburgh. Meyer would win two national championships over the next six seasons.
But the hiring of Muschamp goes against the method that has brought the Gators success. Does that mean that Muschamp will be a bust like Zook? Certainly not. But before Dawg fans freak out about Florida hiring the man who many considered to be a future Georgia coach, let's see how he performs.
As a Georgia fan, it always hurts to see one of your own join the enemy. But the anger that some have expressed towards Muschamp in recent days is ridiculous. The head coaching position at a major university is the pinnacle for any collegiate coach. Will Muschamp has been given the opportunity to take over a program that is less than two years away from its last national title. Anyone who says they would turn down this offer (and the $2.7 million starting salary) because they root for another school is an idiot.
I certainly do not want to see Muschamp continue the success of Urban Meyer and it will be painful to watch him wear the blue and orange. But does it mean I want to disown him as a member of the Bulldog Nation? No. He has been given an amazing opportunity and I wish him the best, just as long as that means a loss to the Dawgs in Jacksonville each fall. Will Muschamp is the new coach of the Florida Gators, not the Georgia Bulldogs, and I am perfectly happy with that.
8 comments:
I am perfectly happy with it too. I would rather he be at florida than UGA. I don't think he is much of a coach, but time will tell. Also, I don't wish him the best, I hope Florida never wins another game. The same way I felt before he was hired. If you hope they win all their games except in Jacksonville, then...you are the idiot.
I am also happy he is not at GA. I want him to win just enough games to keep his job at Fla but lose every game to us.
No true dawg fan that really bleeds red and black can say what you just said. That's a pathetic stance on an issue that is clearly black and white. Either you're for Georgia or for Florida.
Muschump isn't a dawg. He's a gator. YOU get over it.
I hate Florida with a passion but to villify Muschamp for taking advantage of an amazing career opportunity is idiotic.
Only idiots would harp on a guy for taking one of the top jobs in his field. Period.
Good for Muschamp. Not so sure it is a good career choice though. What do you think will happen if a former Dawg loses two in a row to UGA?
Florida fans yelling "CONSPIRACY!"
I agree. I mean, what was he supposed to do? If Georgia fans expected him to wait around for CMR to get fired or just take any job but this one, they're being a bit irrational. The man has a family to feed and, last I checked, 2.7 mil will buy a lot of groceries.
Good luck to him at Florida. I hope he does well, except on that last Saturday in October.
Go Dawgs!!!
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