5 college football programs Bob Stoops could come back to coach
By Zach Bigalke
3. Florida Gators (Possible start: 2020)
Like Kansas State, Florida was another stop in Bob Stoops’ career where he found success as an assistant. After leaving Manhattan, Stoops arrived in Gainesville to work for Steve Spurrier.
More from College Football News
- Michigan State vs. Maryland: Location, time, prediction, and more
- Ranking college football’s top 10 quarterbacks after Week 3
- Things are going to get much darker for the Houston Cougars
- Biggest winners and losers from College Football Week 3
- #10 Alabama football: 3 takeaways from close road win against USF
That first season, the Gators defense finally matched up to the Fun ‘n’ Gun offense. The result was immediate, as Florida won the 1997 Sugar 52-20 over rival Florida State for the school’s first national title.
Jim McElwain appears plenty comfortable for now in Gainesville. The recent hire has won two straight SEC East titles in his first two seasons at the helm. He has also failed to produce the sort of offense that would offer a chance to actually win the SEC championship. He will have a few more seasons to see if the Gators truly turn things around. But any regression (or scandal?) could open the door for a buyout and a new coach.
Florida has always had the stigma as a school where offense is king, thanks to the national titles won by Spurrier and Urban Meyer. The knock against both Ron Zook and Will Muschamp was that they were defensive coaches that could never get the offense up to speed. But Stoops has proven capable of adjusting his offensive philosophy to the times, and has the benefit of already being a known quantity.