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Florida Football: 5 most gut-wrenching Gator losses of past decade

By Briley Hughes

GAINESVILLE, FL - AUGUST 30: Head coach Will Muschamp of the Florida Gators looks on prior to the game against the Idaho Vandals on August 30, 2014 in Gainesville, Florida. The game was terminated for weather and unsafe playing conditions. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images)
GAINESVILLE, FL - AUGUST 30: Head coach Will Muschamp of the Florida Gators looks on prior to the game against the Idaho Vandals on August 30, 2014 in Gainesville, Florida. The game was terminated for weather and unsafe playing conditions. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images) /
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JACKSONVILLE, FL – OCTOBER 29: Head coaches Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs and Jim McElwain of the Florida Gators shake hands after the game at EverBank Field on October 29, 2016 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FL – OCTOBER 29: Head coaches Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs and Jim McElwain of the Florida Gators shake hands after the game at EverBank Field on October 29, 2016 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images) /

3. Georgia essentially ends Jim McElwain era (2017)

If the SEC Championship loss in 2016 was the beginning of the end for Jim McElwain, Georgia routing Florida in 2017 is cake topper for one of the most bitter cakes in Florida Gator history. This game marked the end of one of the wilder stories in Gator history.

This loss produced a unique hurt because of the off-the-field connotations. Though the game wasn’t much fun either.

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The Gators found themselves down by 21 points before the end of the first quarter and never showed much fight the rest of the game. Before finally getting the donut off their side of the scoreboard late in the fourth quarter, Georgia had piled up 42 unanswered points and secured the rout.

After the game McElwain was fired in large part because of his unsubstantiated statements that he had received death threats. In a matter of a week, a safe coach was mercifully shown the exit.

The strange McElwain exit saga placed a fitting stamp on an era that saw weakening talent pools, worsening offensive problems and overall program decline. The juxtaposition of a rising Kirby Smart-led Georgia and a stagnant Florida was a painful realization for the brass and fans in Gainesville.

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