"Well, this TEARS it..."

[DRU2012]

Been in conference on the left coast and in-transit last couple of days (not to mention full-on drunk last night upon my return to "da ATX"--It's 5:15 am Sat. and I JUST finally made it home "on my way in from the airport" last night), so I'm not sure what y'all are hearing elsewhere in "the world at large", but the buzz here in Austin is that with Mack Brown's resignation, the "Number One Candidate" for LONGHORNS Head Coach is supposedly none other than the former "coach-in-waiting", our own "I'm a Gator, and plan to stay and see it thru'...", "loyal and true" (and backed by AD J. Foley, who just went WAY out on a limb for him) GATOR Head Coach Will Muschamp--and he is widely quoted HERE at least (in the papers and on the local news) as saying he's "very interested in the job"--which to ME at least is, like, the "Final STRAW", ya know? I mean, I was willing to accept giving him the "do-over" for this past injury-and-everything-ELSE-plagued past season, since he seemed so intent and determined, had Foley's "full confidence" and practical support, had fired Pease, was apparently FINALLY ready to change the offensive scheme and surrender control of the offense to a new OC with a wholly different approach etc. etc blah blah blah--but with the first wave of interest from the place he supposedly left to "take my dream job, the place I REALLY want to be, Gainesville, and Coach of the Florida Gators", he's suddenly so damn ready to go high-tailing back to be the Longhorns' Head Coach after ALL???!!!
Don't know 'bout anyone else, but MY "take" here is F*CK HIM, and "Buh-BYE!".
Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out, "Coach"...

('Course, this IS a weird town, especially when it comes to the 'Horns and football, so if it turns out to be ALL supposed bs, no matter what I may think about the likely truth behind it, as a GATOR I suppose it'll be time to just say "Never mind..." and move on, as if none of it happened, BUT: It won't change how I feel--and regardless, at THIS point I find myself wondering, "How much of this ARE they hearing back in Gainesville right now, ANYWAY?")

 

[awebbf5]

I think if he jets for the Texas job there won't be to many people that upset, but then who do we hire for the job? I wonder if Briles would consider?

 

[DRU2012]

I think if he jets for the Texas job there won't be to many people that upset, but then who do we hire for the job? I wonder if Briles would consider?

I'm with you, man: Now, word is that, contrary to first impressions, even just the Gator OC-job turns out to be a pretty attractive one among up'n-coming young offense-minded coaches--it's high profile, no doubt about it, and the pay-scale is above that of many "mid-level" HEAD Coaching positions (the only drawback being the possible "one year if Muschamp gets fired"-caveat, but there's also the outside chance that a big offensive turnaround then gets that OC the Head Coaching job here...If all that's true, then the Head Coaching job itself has to be considered one of THE "plum jobs" in coaching now, and the question really is NOT so much "Who can we get?" (as in "Who wants it?"), as much "Who do we WANT for our next Head Coach?!!"...We're likely one of the very few programs that can start from there and work thru' a LIST of such sought-after individuals.
OK, then: Granting that there ARE certain guys you can just forget about prying away from where they're at (although personally, off-hand I'm thinkin' there aren't many of those we'd want in the first place), gut-level, in "dreamland" OR "the real, hard world where money talks", what's YOUR "short list" of coaches (or maybe just "The One Guy") you'd really like to see here?
In fact, I throw that out there for all to answer: let's get it on the table, hash it out, maybe end up with our own viable "List of Acceptable, DOABLE First-Rate Candidates for The Gator Head Coaching Job".

 

[Escambia94]

I have already laid out not just my dream list, but the realistic list of who is out there. Call me crazy, but right now I want Jeremy Foley to do what is best for long-term stability at Florida--give the head coach a chance to turn things around, bring in a hot new hand at OC, and continue fixing the program.

One thing I do know is that we should not get worked up over rumors.

 

[Leakfan12]

If Muschamp goes to Texas then that would been the biggest slap in the face. More so than OBC and even Meyer. Maybe not as big as Woodard and Dickey but close. Though that's a big if because seriously would Texas hire a 4-8 coach? I seriously doubt it. There's a lot of coaches available with better records.

 

[Escambia94]

So far most of the rumors that I have heard have turned out to be false, so I will not hold my breath about Muschamp going to Texas. The only rumor that caught me by surprise and turned up to be true was the transfer of Tyler Murphy.

 

[Leakfan12]

So far most of the rumors that I have heard have turned out to be false, so I will not hold my breath about Muschamp going to Texas. The only rumor that caught me by surprise and turned up to be true was the transfer of Tyler Murphy.

Not the only QB to transfer, Max Starve is leaving as well along five others making the total of seven transferring.

 

[Escambia94]

Not the only QB to transfer, Max Starve is leaving as well along five others making the total of seven transferring.

True, but those were not crazy rumors. If you look here http://www.gatorenvy.com/threads/florida-gator-scholarship-roster-2014.16534/ you will see that transfers are normal. The Gator transfers get a lot of flak lately, but Muschamp's attrition rate is right on par with Meyer's at about 33%, with the big spike of 47% (during the Muschamp transition) that lines up with Meyer's 48% attrition spike during his transition. The transition from Spurrier to Zook did not lead to a big attrition spike because Zook came from Spurrier's coaching tree and they philosophically ran similar teams on both sides of the ball.

 

[Dale J. Rodriguez]

Yea the Tyler Transfer had me staring at the roof for a few.

 

[Escambia94]

Yea the Tyler Transfer had me staring at the roof for a few.

RUMOR: I heard that Tyler Murphy was a bit upset at something and decided to skip the awards banquet.

Unfortunately this rumor is plausible. Maybe he did not get accepted into grad school and had no reason to stay in Gainesville. Maybe he has family problems and wants to spend time closer to home. Maybe he thinks he has a shot as a starter elsewhere. Who knows what is going on.

Good luck to the young lad. I hate to se him go under strange circumstances.

 

[Dale J. Rodriguez]

Good luck to him as well.

 

[Escambia94]

Good luck to him as well.

It appears that Tyler Murphy did not leave in a huff, as has been reported. This interview with Gator Country clears the air http://www.gatorcountry.com/feature/tyler-murphy-talks-transfer/.

Basically, Tyler made a decision to go to grad school elsewhere so he can see how other programs run their sports programs. He wants to get into coaching and sports management. The confusion and appearance of dissatisfaction occurred because Tyler was focusing on his final exams, so he was not able to contact Coach Muschamp or the media. His family was only going to be in town for the graduation, so he elected to spend time with family rather than go to the awards banquet.

In summary, yet again the rumor mill has made many fans upset over nothing. Tyler is a true Gator, but he wants to see different things and we should wish him well.

 

[Ga8or22]

Boy with all I have been reading it sure seems like some of the Gator faithful have become a bunch of doom and gloom folks.

 

[Escambia94]

Boy with all I have been reading it sure seems like some of the Gator faithful have become a bunch of doom and gloom folks.

Personally I try to balance the "gloom and doom" with realism. I used to hate sunshine pumpers, but now I would take a sunshine pumper over a gloomy pessimist any day.

Yes, this is a down period for Florida football. Florida went 33 years without a losing season. We will be back. We were lucky to go this long with FSU right next to us stealing our thunder.

The next best streak in the SEC (since 1950) is 9 years, by LSU. In all of Division I football, Florida had the 8th longest streak of non-losing seasons.

1. Penn State: 49 seasons (1939-1987)
2. Nebraska: 42 (1962-2003)
3. Notre Dame: 42 (1889-1932)
4. Michigan: 40 (1968-2007)
5. Texas: 40 (1893-1932)
6. Alabama: 38 (1911-1950)
7. Florida State: 37 (1977-2013) Note: Streak is active
8. Florida: 33 (1980-2013)
9. Oklahoma: 29 (1966-1994)
10. Texas: 29 (1957-1985)
11. Boston College: 29 (1916-1944)
12. BYU: 28 (1974-2001)
13. Virginia: 28 (1888-1915)
14. Washington: 27 (1977-2003)
15. Michigan: 27 (1982-1918)

 

[DRU2012]

RUMOR: I heard that Tyler Murphy was a bit upset at something and decided to skip the awards banquet.

Unfortunately this rumor is plausible. Maybe he did not get accepted into grad school and had no reason to stay in Gainesville. Maybe he has family problems and wants to spend time closer to home. Maybe he thinks he has a shot as a starter elsewhere. Who knows what is going on.

Good luck to the young lad. I hate to se him go under strange circumstances.

So far most of the rumors that I have heard have turned out to be false, so I will not hold my breath about Muschamp going to Texas. The only rumor that caught me by surprise and turned up to be true was the transfer of Tyler Murphy.

Well, in this case it seems that Tyler's family, at least, was/is unhappy with Muschamp and the staff for continuing to play him with the injuries he had, risking his longterm health, AND lowering his appeal (based on resulting performance) to other schools should he eventually decide to transfer, as was apparently already being considered (by he and his fam)--and which he has indeed decided to do--but while there may well be some truth to some portion of those rumors to some degree, Tyler himself has put a mostly "for specific, positive reasons"-spin on it, so who really knows?
Anyway, as for "doom and gloom" and the "bigger picture" view of what this (and all the rest of the transfers) signifies, I tend to go with the combination of "not guys who'll be a part of future plans" and "more opportunities for 'em at non-SEC-level skilled conferences". Murphy himself has quietly but openly admitted this played a part in his move.
Finally, re Muschamp and the tales of his "interest" in the Longhorns' job: As things have evolved, I'm now ignoring ALL such silliness since hearing that supposedly "Steve Spurrier is 'interested' in the job" TOO! Now, if there's any truth to him expressing such interest at all, it is only to irritate his old target, former Texas-coach (and STILL to be "Special Advisor to the Program", or some damn thing) Mack Brown...You know, the guy that back when he was coach of the TarHeels, Spurrier would sarcastically prod and purposefully irritate from afar with lines like (one time, for example, to a national TV reporter), "Oh, he knows EVERYTHING about the college game, he's MISTER Football--just ASK him!". They really don't like each other...so how likely is it that SS either'd really wanna go there, or that Brown and/or his still "friendly, well-respected by all" image among the top-brass at UT would even make such overtures?

 

[Escambia94]

Well, in this case it seems that Tyler's family, at least, was/is unhappy with Muschamp and the staff for continuing to play him with the injuries he had, risking his longterm health, AND lowering his appeal (based on resulting performance) to other schools should he eventually decide to transfer, as was apparently already being considered (by he and his fam)--and which he has indeed decided to do--but while there may well be some truth to some portion of those rumors to some degree, Tyler himself has put a mostly "for specific, positive reasons"-spin on it, so who really knows?
Anyway, as for "doom and gloom" and the "bigger picture" view of what this (and all the rest of the transfers) signifies, I tend to go with the combination of "not guys who'll be a part of future plans" and "more opportunities for 'em at non-SEC-level skilled conferences". Murphy himself has quietly but openly admitted this played a part in his move.
Finally, re Muschamp and the tales of his "interest" in the Longhorns' job: As things have evolved, I'm now ignoring ALL such silliness since hearing that supposedly "Steve Spurrier is 'interested' in the job" TOO! Now, if there's any truth to him expressing such interest at all, it is only to irritate his old target, former Texas-coach (and STILL to be "Special Advisor to the Program", or some damn thing) Mack Brown...You know, the guy that back when he was coach of the TarHeels, Spurrier would sarcastically prod and purposefully irritate from afar with lines like (one time, for example, to a national TV reporter), "Oh, he knows EVERYTHING about the college game, he's MISTER Football--just ASK him!". They really don't like each other...so how likely is it that SS either'd really wanna go there, or that Brown and/or his still "friendly, well-respected by all" image among the top-brass at UT would even make such overtures?

Go up three posts. None of what you said about Tyler Murphy is true. Here is what Murphy said about his departure: https://www.gatorcountry.com/feature/tyler-murphy-talks-transfer/. He just wants to take advantage of that last year of eligibility to see something different. This jives with what his teammates said in his defense when people were lashing out at him on Twitter.

Same with Muschamp and the Texas job. Those are just rumors that Muschamp haters are spreading. There is a lot of disinformation going on about the Florida program.

 

[DRU2012]

@Escambia94,
Look, I'm simply repeating what is "out there" (the definition of "rumor", I think), in this case in print--and far as I know, that's what ALL of us are going on, unless someone commenting here has spoken to Tyler, his family, or WHOMEVER personally...
I don't know about the "haters"-claim: I suppose (also by definition) that by repeating it here I am "spreading" it too--but no matter what anyone might currently interpret of my own attitude and statements, I am NOT a "Muschamp-hater", by any means, in no way, shape or form!
In fact, now that this has come up, I'll take the opportunity to clarify my own position:
I have been--and though shaken by a number of decisions and the general emotional roller-coaster-ride (mostly downhill--Who knew that was possible? Guess we were sitting on the edge of a RAVINE!) that has been the 2013 season--REMAIN a Muschamp supporter and fan in a number of basic ways. The things I came to like and admire in him, as a man AND a Coach, are too numerous to get side-tracked listing here, but the reasons for my questions and at times unhappiness with him have to do with a certain seeming-stubbornness, even blindness, with respect to his continued determination to force a style-of-play on the offense ill-conceived and ill-suited to the personnel we had/have here--an inflexibility that, frankly, seemed futile and at best "impractical" (as in, "unlikely EVER to work in some idealized fashion at the college-level"--as I've said, we are NOT the 1960 Green Bay Packers, and never WILL be!) from the start, and experience/results have born out that estimate--and realized it seems by practically everyone BUT Muschamp pretty early on. The man is a leader, in general has all the earmarks of a GREAT Head Coach, a tireless and (by all accounts and measures) a charismatic recruiter: a BRILLIANT defensive mind and builder of the genuine on-field product...BUT: "Offense is not his forte", to say the least. Long PAST time to back off and hand the reins to someone who is more his "talented counterpart" in that oh-SO-important-in-the-SEC OFFENSIVE scheme (everywhere in college football, let's face it--offense isn't just "fun to watch", it is what marks the "great teams", as much or even more at times in the current college-game). He can have an overall "philosophy" that influences whom he chooses for that role, but that's about as far as the man's influence over the actual offense itself should go, clearly.
Fortunately, all the signs now point to the likelihood that he finally "GETS it", that even his "philosophy" has finally shifted focus, and more importantly he is (oh please, gods of football and all-things-Gator) now ready to find "the right guy", someone with his OWN ideas, vision and imagination, who will be given the trust and freedom to "do it HIS way". Imagine what we could be with Muschamp's "D" AND an innovative OC's dynamic offense , one that could move the ball and eat the clock, but also strike from anywhere at anytime, as well. That's the idea here, and I think/HOPE what Muschamp himself is consciously shooting for.

 

[Escambia94]

Good timing. I ran into a childhood friend of Will Muschamp today (in Los Angeles). Muschamp is a typical coach: stubborn and set in his ways. That has never changed.

Various sources have stated that he wanted to make the offense more multiple, as the fans wanted, but injuries killed that plan. That part was confirmed by Muschamp's friend (somewhat, if you believe a friend friend his is a better source than internet chatter). What he could not confirm was whether it was true that Pease and Davis disagreed on blocking schemes and formations.

 

[DRU2012]

@Escambia94, replying to the above note
I'm getting that impression (ie. the changed focus/outlook on offense) from both the NON-"inside" and the one close-to-the-source (ie. inside-the-athletic dept.) reports I have regular access to. I sure am hoping it is not just "true" in terms of "outlook", but of the practical steps being taken to (a la Jean Luc Picard) "make it so" (y'all got me goin' here with the film/TV references a few days back--and I'm gonna go w/it for a bit, even if it's a stretch even somewhat obscure at times--'cause it's fun!). Guess we'll have a better answer (and the most important one, in terms of our future) in Jan. with the naming of our new OC.

 

[Escambia94]

It's not as if Florida fans are the only ones suffering through turmoil with coaching changes, with the problem exacerbated by rumors.

Out here in LA every insider reported that Ed Orgeron was the hands-down lock to take over at USCw, maybe even if they lost to UCLA. Some say it was that loss that ushered in Steve Sarkisian, but I can guarantee that negotiations for Sark were nearly in place before the game and would have happened even if the Boys of Troy won 555-0.

All my buddies in Austin were certain they were getting Nick Satan. As their resident SEC expert I advised them that UTx is not as high and mighty as they thought and that Saban was staying in the best football program in America--Tuscaloosa, temporary capital of SEC country.

The rumor mill industry is a big deal, but remember that these "sources" are like tabloid newspapers. Elvis is not an alien, and Nick Saban ain't leaving Tuscaloosa this year. Michael Jackson's death was not a conspiracy, and Steve spurrier ain't coming Gainesville to be the Florida head coach or offensive coordinator.