Treat: Florida is back-ish
The Jim McElwain era for the Florida Gators left fans feeling pretty dejected and rightfully so. Historically one of the most powerful teams in college football, the Gators were decidedly mediocre under the previous coaching regime, which is one of many reasons why the Gators let McElwain go and brought in Dan Mullen, formerly of Mississippi State.
Early on in the 2018 season, it looked like it could be more of the same for the Gators. In the second week of the year, they saw the Kentucky Wildcats come to The Swamp and win, ending Florida’s long winning streak over the Wildcats in that capacity. However, that game seemingly lit a fire under the Gators as they’ve been quite impressive since — and let’s not forget that Kentucky is a top-10 team as well.
Since that loss to the Wildcats, Florida has dominated Tennessee, won on the road in a gritty matchup against Mullen’s former team, Mississippi State, and then picked up an impressive victory over the LSU Tigers. Of course, the last time that we saw the Gators, they were getting routed by Georgia, but that happens in the SEC.
What’s clear is that Mullen has Florida back in the national conversation. It’s crazy what actual head coaching can do for a team, and the Gators stand as a testament to that. Furthermore, having the Gators be relevant at this level again is good for college football. The sport is better off when Florida is doing big things.