Florida would just settle for normal right now. Dan Mullen is gone after four seasons, and the lineage of whacko now extends back a few years. Jim McElwain won two SEC East titles until the faux death threats undid him.
The Gators were ranked in the top 10 less than two months ago. Mullen’s fall from grace is unprecedented. Florida looked like the team that had cracked the code on Alabama. Now, there is a major overhaul to be done. It makes one long for the days of Will Muschamp.
There is a list of solid candidates to replace Mullen but no absolute home runs as almost all of them come with questions. Lane Kiffin is hot, but can he stay consistent? Bob Stoops has been out of the game since 2017. Louisiana’s Billy Napier is going to get something from this latest silly season. Florida might be his dream opening.
The three top 20 openings (Florida along with LSU and USC) are the most in FBS since 2017. Mullen also became the 13th coach to be fired during this season. That has to be some sort of record.
The Gators will be looking for an offensive mind first, but they will want normalcy more than anything else. For some reason, Mullen just could not hold it together this season in Gainesville, Florida. This from a guy who was at least being mentioned in NFL circles last year.
Let’s take a look at some of the top candidates for the Florida job, in no particular order.
Bob Stoops, Fox analyst, former Oklahoma coach: You have to make the call. Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin has to make Stoops say no on the odd chance he says yes. Stoopsie is just sitting there breaking down Iowa games for Fox. Why not see if he has any interest in coming back? Given the history of vacancies at Florida, Stoops is doubtful. He was mentioned many times…
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