CARLTON REESE On Interim And Lame Duck UF Coaches: Knox Is The New Leader In The Clubhouse

“Was it our best? No. But it’s a great win,” said Knox. “That senior class wanted it.”

Walking off a winner: Interim Greg Knox and escort: AD Scott Stricklin (Chris Spears photo)

By CARLTON REESE

GatorBait Columnist

Not since Anthony Hopkins took over for an ill Sir Laurence Olivier at the London National Theatre, has an understudy thrown into the limelight performed with such transcendence. That would be Greg Knox, who is now perfect while standing in for a departed Dan Mullen following the Gators’ inspiring win over a resurgent FSU football team Saturday at Florida Field.

Knox guided Mississippi State to a 31-27 victory over Louisville in the 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl after Mullen left that team to take the Florida job. He made it 2-0 as an interim head coach with the 24-21 victory over FSU and will have a chance to make it 3-0 with a likely bowl invitation on the way.

“We’re headed to a bowl game,” Knox said with glee and a broad smile after the win over the Seminoles.

Florida’s players clearly exuded passion and drive they hadn’t since the Crimson Tide visited The Swamp. Perhaps it was the spears on the opposing team’s helmets which ignited the fire within the Gators, or maybe it was the thought of winning one for Knox – either way, Florida fans saw emotion from the team it hadn’t seen and was likely the missing culprit in a string of embarrassing losses.

Knox’s foray into coaching a Gators’ program following an in-season coaching change is nothing new in Gainesville, where the “coachectomy” is a practice that could take place in a Shands operating theatre. His victory made UF 18-11 in games coached by either interims or lame duck head coaches following a mid-season dismissal.

“Was it our best? No. But it’s a great win,” said Knox. “That senior class wanted it.”

All coaching transitions in University of Florida football history were until recent times, conducted after the conclusion of the season. All tenures that would be terminated were not done so until after a season was completed until 1978 when days before the season finale against Miami, and after having just suffered a 38-21 loss at Florida State, head coach Doug Dickey and his entire staff was informed they would not return the next season. Doug Dickey became the first lame duck head coach in Florida football history.

1978: Doug Dickey, lame duck head coach (1 game) 0-1

In the season finale, Dickey’ Gators built a 21-3 halftime lead against the visiting Hurricanes which rallied behind running back Ottis Anderson to pull out a 22-21 victory.

1984: Galen Hall, interim head coach (8 games) 8-0

After the third game of the 1984 season, Charley Pell was fired amid an NCAA investigation, leaving offensive coordinator Galen Hall to take the reins for the remainder of the year. As interim, Hall was perfect as the Gators reeled off eight straight wins including the finale in Tallahassee, 27-17 over the Seminoles.

After the season’s conclusion, the interim tag was removed from Hall’s title as he was officially named head football coach. That would last until Hall would be forced out mid-season 1989 under a cloud of minor violations.

1989: Gary Darnell, interim head coach (7 games) 3-4

Following the Gators’ thrilling 16-13 win at LSU the fifth game of the season, head coach Galen Hall was dismissed amid some violations he had committed regarding his direction of a graduate assistant to drive a player to court to face child support charges and paying two Florida assistant coaches $22,000 out of his own pocket.

Hall’s dismissal put defensive coordinator Gary Darnell in charge the rest of the way. Darnell, with the large shadow of Steve Spurrier looming, saw the rest of the season as his tryout for the job.

After unimpressive victories over Vanderbilt and New Mexico, Darnell’s Gators dropped a 10-7 heartbreaker at 12th-ranked Auburn, starting a slide of four losses in the last five games including a 24-17 hard-fought defeat at home to 6th-ranked FSU. When the Gators were pounded by Washington 34-7 in the Freedom Bowl, the 1980s would be history and the Steve Spurrier era was about to take hold.

2004: Ron Zook, lame duck head coach (4 games) 3-1

Following his team’s 38-31 loss at 1-5 Mississippi State, head coach Ron Zook was informed he would not be the coach next season, but would finish out the current one. Zook proved better in a lame duck role than a permanent, nearly guiding the Gators to a huge upset of 7th-ranked Georgia before posting wins at Vanderbilt, at home against South Carolina, then in the famous 20-13 at 10th-ranked Florida State when the school was christening “Bobby Bowden Field.”

A figure lampooned during his tenure permanently endeared himself to the fanbase

2004: Charlie Strong, interim head coach (1 game) 0-1

Strong coached Florida’s Peach Bowl game against Miami, a 27-10 defeat.

2014: Will Muschamp, lame duck head coach (2 games) 1-1

After falling in overtime at home to South Carolina, Muschamp was relieved of his duties but would stay on with the team for the final two games. The Gators would crush Eastern Kentucky 52-3 before travelling to Tallahassee to face the top-ranked and defending national champion Seminoles. The game nearly turned into Muschamp’s re-make of Zook from 2004, guiding the Gators to a 9-0 lead and nearly pulling off a huge upset before eventually falling 24-19.

2014: D.J. Durkin, interim head coach (1 game) 1-0

Durkin took over the Gators for their Birmingham Bowl game, a 28-20 victory over East Carolina.

2017: Randy Shannon, interim head coach (4 games) 1-3

Following the Gators’ 42-7 humiliation at the hands of Georgia, Florida parted ways with Jim McElwain the final four games of the season. Florida would lose 45-16 at Missouri and 28-20 at South Carolina before returning home to beat UAB 36-7.

In a bizarre season finale, FSU scored two defensive touchdowns and scoring drives of 20 and 16 yards in beating Florida 38-22 despite the Seminoles managing just 216 yards offense.

2021: Greg Knox, interim head coach (1 game) 1-0

With Dan Mullen’s dismissal following the loss at Missouri, Knox coached the final regular season game against FSU and came away with a 24-21 win. Knox will now coach the Gators in their bowl game following a 6-6 regular-season record.