Thoughts of the Day: November 22, 2021

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

SO WHO’S NEXT FOR THE GATORS? In one respect, the University of Florida has become just like the University of Alabama. If you recall, Bama spent years looking for its next Bear Bryant with only one small pocket of success (Gene Stallings won a national title in 1992) before striking gold with Nick Saban, who has won six national titles, equaling the number Bryant won in Tuscaloosa.

Florida had its Bear Bryant in Steve Spurrier and with the exception of Urban Meyer (2005-10, national titles 2006, 2005) has been looking for the next Spurrier ever since. There was Ron Zook (2002-04), Will Muschamp (2011-14), Jim McElwain (2015-17) and the latest, Dan Mullen (2018-yesterday) all of whom went down in flames. Mullen’s firing was the official kickoff for the latest search for the next Steve Spurrier.

Connor O’Gara, the columnist for Saturday Down South, entitled his column regarding Mullen’s demise, “Good luck to Dan Mullen’s successor: Florida just chewed up and spit out another coach.”

Like it or not, that’s the reputation you get when you keep firing coaches while trying to recreate the good old days. We laughed when Tennessee went through every name on a Rolodex four times before settling in on the most recent HBC, Josh Heupel. They’re still looking for the next General Neyland and they have only one national championship (1998, won by Phil Fulmer) to show for a never-ending search. Ten coaches have come and gone since General Bob retired after the 1952 season. Heupel figures at some point to be the 11th.

The question is can Florida find its next Spurrier, the one who can sustain success? Stevie Wonder you might remember was 122-27-1 in 12 years, won six SEC championships, played for the 1995 national title and then won it in 1996. In his 12 years, the Gators never won fewer than nine games and never finished worse than 13th in the final Associated Press poll. He beat Georgia 11 out of 12 years. No one else has come close at UF.

The list of coaches out there who have track records of long term sustained success is very, very short. In the SEC there is Saban, who has been at Alabama since 2007. The next longest tenured SEC coach is Mark Stoops of Kentucky (since 2013) who has yet to win the SEC East. Dabo Swinney has two national titles to show for his 14 years on the job at Clemson. David Cutcliffe, who might get fired any day now at Duke, has also been on the job 14 years but he’s never won the conference title. Other than Kirk Ferentz at Iowa – 23 years on the job but no Big Ten Title since 2004 – Pat Fitzgerald of Northwestern (16 years) is the only coach who’s been on the job more than 10 years but he has yet to win a conference title. The Big 12 dean of coaches – Gary Patterson – was pink slipped a few weeks ago after 21 years, leaving Mike Gundy (17 years, 1 Big 12 title) of Oklahoma State as the only coach with 10 or more years. Out in the Pac-12, Kyle Whittingham (17 years) and David Shaw (11 years) have experience, but Whittingham has never won a Pac-12 title (1 in the MWC) and Shaw has three but has never made the College Football Playoff. Brian Kelly has been at Notre Dame since 2010 and has made the playoff twice and the national championship game once.

There you have it. Not many coaches have survived more than 10 years on the job and other than Saban and Dabo, none of them have won national championships.

So who will Florida go after in its relentless search to find the next Spurrier? Here’s a list of potential coaches that check some or most of the boxes for Scott Stricklin, who needs a replacement as soon as possible:

Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss: He’s grown up a lot since his Tennessee and Southern Cal days. He is a lightning rod for media attention which resonates with kids, understands social media and NIL, has a history of recruiting very well when he was at Tennessee, Southern Cal and Alabama, and he would crawl backwards from Oxford to Gainesville. His ex-wife is John Reaves’ daughter Layla. He is 75-41 as a head coach and has Ole Miss ranked No. 8 nationally.

Billy Napier, Louisiana: A lot of people want him like TCU and Arizona State. He’s 31-5 the last two years and 38-12 overall. He’s apprenticed under Dabo and Nick Saban. He’s a tremendous recruiter and understands the CEO aspect of a head job. Is he ready for an SEC job or does he need a next step up job? That seems to be the big question.

Hugh Freeze, Liberty: Forget past transgressions. That was then, this is now and we have NIL. And, if you want a Boy Scout, you won’t win. Not anymore. He’s 25-10 since being washed in the blood at Liberty. He beat Alabama twice (no one in the SEC has done it) when he was a bad boy at Ole Miss. He’s 94-42 as a head coach at four stops.

Mario Cristobal, Oregon: He was the coach at FIU before he was fired. Then he rehabbed under Nick Saban. He’s 34-12 at Oregon. On the plus side, relentless recruiter who will bring in guys who can win the line of scrimmage and he’s from Miami. Smart enough to leave playcalling to someone who knows how to do it. Mark Stoops, Kentucky: He’s 57-53 at Kentucky where you measure football wins like dog years. In dog years, his Kentucky wins would be like 125 at Alabama. Not very exciting but stays within his wheelhouse and doesn’t try to be someone he isn’t. Ground and pound type.

James Franklin (Penn State), Luke Fickell (Cincinnati) and Matt Campbell (Iowa State): They will get a lot of press from people who don’t know the SEC. In short, looks good on paper, not in reality so the answer is no, no and did I say no?

The Associated Press Top 25 poll: 1. Georgia 11-0; 2. Ohio State 10-1; 3. Alabama 10-1; 4. Cincinnati 11-0; 5. Notre Dame 10-1; 6. Michigan 10-1; 7. Oklahoma 10-1; 8. Ole Miss 9-2; 9. Baylor 9-2; 10. Oklahoma 10-1; 11. Oregon 9-2; 12. Michigan State 9-2; 13. BYU 9-2; 14. Texas A&M 8-3; 15. Texas A&M 8-3; 16. Utah 8-3; 17. Iowa 9-2; 18. Wisconsin 8-3; 19. Houston 10-1; 20. Pittsburgh 9-2; 21. Wake Forest 9-2; 23. Louisiana 10-1; 24. North Carolina State 8-3; 25. Arkansas 7-4

The Coaches Top 25 poll: 1. Georgia 11-0; 2. Alabama 10-1; 3. Ohio State 10-1; 4. Cincinnati 11-0; 5. Notre Dame 10-1; 6. Michigan 10-1; 7. Oklahoma State 10-1; 8. Ole Miss; 9. Oklahoma 10-1; 10. Baylor 9-2; 11. Oregon 9-2; 12. Iowa 9-2; 13. Michigan State 9-2; 14. Texas A&M 8-3; 15. BYU 9-2; 16. 16. Houston 10-1; 17. Pittsburgh 9-2; 18. Wisconsin 8-3; 19. Utah 8-3; 20. Texas-San Antonio 11-0; 21. Wake Forest 8-3; 22. San Diego State 10-1; 23. Louisiana 10-1; 24. North Carolina State 8-3; 25. Kentucky 8-3

FLORIDA (BASKETBALL) VS. CALIFORNIA

Former Georgia coach Mark Fox brings his Cal Bears (2-2) to face the 24th-ranked Gators (3-0) tonight in the Fort Myers Tip-Off (8:30, FS1 TV). This game will be a challenge for the Gators because the Bears go 6-9 across the front line and 6-9, 255-pound Andre Kelly (16.8 points, 10.8 rebounds) is an absolute beast inside.

The key for the Gators will be to apply enormous pressure on Cal guards Joel Brown and Jordan Shepherd to force the Bears to set up their offense well beyond the arc, forcing the bigs to leave the paint, thus protecting Colin Castleton (17.3/10.3/4.8 blocks) and Anthony Duruji (11.7/7.0) from foul trouble. The Bears shoot the 3-ball quite well (37 percent), particularly stretch four Grant Anticivech (6-9, 230), who is hitting 40 percent and coming off a 3-5 game against Southern Utah.

Win Monday night and the Gators face the winner of Ohio State-Seton Hall on Tuesday.

SEC FOOTBALL WEEK 11

Alabama (10-1, 6-1 SEC): Alabama’s defense gave up 35 points to Arkansas but Bryce Young saved the day by throwing for 559 yards and five TDs without an interception. Next week: at Auburn (6-5,

Arkansas (7-4, 3-4 SEC): Alabama had all sorts of trouble stopping the KJ Jefferson to Treylon Burks combination. Jefferson threw for 326 yards while Burks caught eight for 179 and two touchdowns. Next week: vs. Missouri (6-4, 3-4 SEC)

Auburn (6-5, 3-4 SEC): The Tigers dominated the stats but not the scoreboard as they lost to South Carolina in Columbia. Tank Bigsby ran for 164 yards and a TD.

No. 1 Georgia (11-0, 8-0 SEC): Georgia’s first touchdown in its 56-7 win over Charleston Southern was a 1-yard run by 6-6, 340-pound nose tackle. Next week: at Georgia Tech (3-8)

Kentucky (8-3, 5-3 SEC): Wan’Dale Robinson made eight catches for 181 yards against New Mexico State to break the 1,000-yard barrier (he has 1,067 yards on 85 catches). Next week: at Louisville (6-5)

LSU (5-6, 2-5 SEC): There is one week remaining in the Coach Oeaux era at LSU and there is no clearcut favorite to replace him. Everybody that was on the original short list – Jimbo Fisher, Mel Tucker and James Franklin – either has a raise and long term contract extension or is in the process of getting one. Next week: vs. Texas A&M (8-3, 4-3 SEC):

Mississippi State (7-4, 4-3 SEC): Will Rogers warmed up for the Egg Bowl by completing 28-34 passes for 391 yards and five touchdowns in the win over Tennessee State. Next week: vs. Ole Miss (9-2, 5-2 SEC)

Missouri (6-5, 3-4 SEC): Talking about the decision to go for two to win the Florida game, HBC Eli Drinkwitz tweeted out, “Go for 2! You play to WIN THE GAME!” Next week: vs. Arkansas (7-4, 3-4 SEC)

Ole Miss (9-2, 5-2 SEC): In his final home game in Oxford, Matt Corral threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns. Next week: at Mississippi State (7-4, 4-3 SEC):

South Carolina (6-5, 4-4 SEC): Shane Beamer should be SEC Coach of the Year now that the Gamecocks are bowl eligible thanks to their 21-17 win over Auburn. Next week: vs. Clemson (8-3)

Tennessee (6-5, 3-4 SEC): Hendon Hooker was 17-20 passing for 273 yards and two TDs while running for another as the Vols became bowl eligible. Next week: vs. Vanderbilt (2-9, 0-7 SEC)

Texas A&M (8-3, 4-3 SEC): The Aggies held Prairie View A&M to 154 yards of offense, only seven through the air. Offensively, the Aggies were efficient with no turnovers and 447 yards (279 on the ground). Next week at LSU

Vanderbilt (2-9, 0-7 SEC): The Commodores had a 100-yard rusher (Rocko Griffin 117) and a 100-yard receiver (Cam Pierce Jr. 113) in the same SEC game. That’s a first this season. Next week: at Tennessee (6-5, 3-4 SEC)

FOOTBALL IN THE MINOR LEAGUES ACC: What’s this? Clemson (8-3) has (a) found an O-line that can block and (b) ended the moratorium on decent offense. The Tigers racked up 543 yards (333 on the ground) and 48 points in their blowout win over Wake Forest Gump (9-2) … Pitt (9-2) won the Coastal Division by whacking Virginia (6-5).

Big Ten: Is Ohio State (10-1) that good or is Michigan State (9-2) that overrated? It was 49-0 at the half and by that time QB C.J. Stroud had thrown for 393 yards and six touchdowns. He’s a redshirt freshman. Expect Quinn Ewers to transfer to Texas any day now … It will be a winner takes all game for the Big Ten East title Saturday when Michigan (10-1) faces the Buckeyes. The Wolverines hung 59 points and 502 yards on Maryland (5-6) … Wisconsin (8-3) and Iowa (9-2) are tied for the West Division lead with 6-2 league records but Wisconsin owns the tiebreaker over Iowa should both win their games next Saturday.

Big 12: Regardless of what happens next week, Oklahoma State (10-1) will be in the Big 12 Championship Game because it owns the tiebreaker with Baylor (9-2). Oklahoma State shut out Texas Tech, 23-0, and held the Red Raiders to 108 total yards … Oklahoma (10-1) has to beat Oklahoma State to make the championship game, but if the Sooners lose, Baylor will be in since the Bears beat Oklahoma in their matchup a couple of weeks ago. Baylor beat Kansas State (7-4) 20-10 but may have lost QB Gerry Bohannon, who was in street clothes on the sideline in the second half after going down with a leg injury.

Pac-12: You can forget a Pac-12 team in the playoff after Utah (8-3) tossed Oregon (9-2) like a ragdoll in Salt Lake City, 38-7. They meet again in a couple of weeks in the Pac-12 Championship Game but it will be too little and too late for the playoff if the Ducks get revenge … Chip Kelly’s job is safe for another year as UCLA (7-4) smacked cross-town rival Southern Cal (4-7), 62-33.

Independents: It’s a longshot for Notre Dame (10-1) to make the playoff, but the Irish have a chance to move up. They should beat Stanford (3-8) in the regular season finale for their 11th win and then they don’t have a conference championship game ... BYU (9-2) is the second best team among independents, which has Cougar fans nervous that Washington might target HBC Kalani Sitake to fill its vacancy.

Group of Five: SMU (8-3) wasn’t the least bit challenging for Cincinnati (11-0), which has a chance to move into the top four in the College Football Playoff poll this week after its 48-14 blowout win. The Bearcats will play Houston (10-1) in the American Athletic Conference championship game in two weeks … Texas-San Antonio (11-0) drove 77 yards in 1:03, scoring the game winning touchdown with three seconds left to beat UAB (7-4), 34-31 … San Diego State (10-1) leads the West Division of the Mountain West Conference by a game over Fresno State (8-3) after squeezing by UNLV (2-9). The Mountain Division is a bit more complicated. Boise State (7-4), Utah State (8-3) and Air Force (8-3) all have 5-2 conference records. If Air Force beats UNLV Saturday, then the Falcons will win the Division no matter what Boise and Utah State do … Troy has let Chip Lindsey go. He is 15-19 in three seasons. Expect him to do rehab at St. Nick’s Home for Wayward Coaches.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: If you think Dan Mullen will stay unemployed long, then you are probably in for a surprise. If Dave Clawson leaves Wake Forest for Virginia Tech (expected) then Mullen is probably going to be the hot name in Winston-Salem. AD John Currie loves Mullen and that could be a great job for him. Expectations aren’t the same as Florida. It’s a lower ceiling where 7-9 wins a year will excite the fan base. If Mullen doesn’t resurface at a college job within three weeks, then best bet is that he’ll be an offensive coordinator in the NFL (say hellooooo Matt Rhule and the Carolina Panthers).