Murphy’s Law: 2014 Florida Gators
(Be warned, this column is a retrospective rant about how bad Florida has been this year. For you Georgia fans, you’ll be happy.)
Oh what a year it’s been for the Florida Gators. However, we’ve been witness to Murphy’s Law over and over. I started off feeling so great at halftime of the Alabama game. At a tailgate for the Atlanta Silverbacks game, I was finally putting the hate of Will Muschamp behind me as I watched the game on the flat-screen TV. I was so excited for a new chapter following the disastrous 2013 season. My irrational hatred of the head coach because he wasn’t Steve Spurrier was beginning to subside. Somehow, we were hanging with one of the best teams in the land. Somehow, we were capitalizing on mistakes. Yes, we were making some as well, but as the third quarter began, we were there.
Then, it all came crashing down to earth ever so quickly. Alabama remembered they were one of the best teams in the country, and Florida remembered that they were…a long, long way from that. Our ninth loss in eleven games, and Jeremy Foley wondered why people wanted his football coach gone. Most of you readers will remember my passionate plea for Muschamp’s firing before the Georgia fan. Much like I predicted on Twitter, we won that game and postponed the firing of Muschamp by a few days.
To this day, I still have zero idea why it was postponed. Muschamp tied his fate to Jeff Driskel. His mistakes and poor game management would continue to haunt us. Our self-immolation against South Carolina was a cruel, cruel joke. I followed the game on Twitter while at work, and I slowly watched myself getting more and more joyful that I still might be wrong about Muschamp. A few minutes later, I was cheering our loss to usher out the head coach that should have never been more than a coordinator.
Finally, the day of his firing came later that week, and I can’t lie to you all: I celebrated like no one else! I was so pumped. After another loss this season in a game that we can in our hands and pissed away due to poor coaching and decision making. Give the LSU and South Carolina losses back: we are a 8-3 team that’s ranked and bringing tradition back to Gainesville. Instead, we’re 6-5 with a lone win over those guys from Athens. Terrible losses and terribly poor decisions.
My oh my, it’s been a long year. Following Muschamp’s firing, most of us rejoiced, but to be honest, many of us found that was difficult as well. As terrible as he was a head coach, he was nothing but magnanimous and gracious in his departure from Gator Nation. He made it soooo difficult to enjoy his leaving. It was just another dagger in our hearts, as we couldn’t even fully appreciate the news with his attitude. Did the two decades of dominance demand some kind of penance?
Meanwhile, it had to get better, right? Couldn’t we experience some small measure of success following his departure? All we had to do was win one game and get to a bowl game, but if we won both of our remaining games, then we would have been the saviors of the country and beaten the nationally-reviled Florida State Seminoles. Jameis Winston’s sideshow of drama and idiocy could finally be sent to the backburner. We could be HEROES!
Alas, no. More questionable coaching and terrible quarterback play. Let’s just move on past this point., like those two missed field goals in the fourth quarter that moved well past the uprights.
In the grand scheme of Murphy’s Law, what else could go wrong? Let’s look at the inaugural College Football Playoff, shall we? Alabama gets in, much to our chagrin after a half of good football in which we actually hung with them. It’s tough to see Nick Saban continue to dominate the college football world, but we’ll return there one day. Florida State…the team that just don’t want lose. WE BEAT THEM FOR THAT WHOLE GAME! WE BEAT OURSELVES. One of our most hated rivals, and we had a chance to end it all for them. This just sucks. Oregon doesn’t bother us much. However, who just had to get in and break every last Florida fan’s resolve?
Urban friggin’ Meyer and “The” Ohio State University. I’m not salty that he left for Ohio State, because that was always his dream job. I just continue to hate that he left Florida because he wanted time with his family and for health reasons. It doesn’t matter that he went to Ohio State. It matters that he hid behind fake reasons to leave his job and put us in this predicament. That’s the kind of thing I really despise. Watching them jump my favored TCU in the polls for that last spot…that’s what made many of us cry a little tear. The only recompense is that Alabama or Oregon end Meyer’s dreams of winning the first playoff.
What a year. At least we got a new coach, right? Here’s to 2015…I guess. Celebrate while you can, Georgia fans, because we will be back soon. The SEC East needs us. We’re the Obi-Wan Kenobi of the division, destined to help strike down the evil Empire that is the Western division of the SEC.
And no, the bowl game with East Carolina doesn’t matter. We shouldn’t even be in a bowl game. Both UAB and Georgia Southern deserve it more than us. There’s no way any team that does this two years in a row deserves to be bowling anyway…
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUDrFq2gqiQ?rel=0&w=420&h=315]
Oh, I can’t wait for whatever cupcake we get to play in August. I need to get over this regime. I loved Ron Zook, despite him replacing Spurrier. Jim McElwain should be a great change of pace. I can look at all he’s done at both Alabama and Colorado State to know that he will bring an efficiency to the offense that hasn’t been seen for years at Florida. The Gators will come back stronger under him…I think.
