Published December 12, 2010 - 3:00pm
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By now, you know it’s not Bob Stoops nor Chris Petersen nor Dan Mullen. Gator fans, meet your new head coach Will Muschamp. Muschamp comes from being the head coach in waiting and defensive coordinator at Texas to returning to where he spent some of his youth in Gainesville, Florida. He is known for his relentless ability to fire up a football team, being a great recruiter and his excellent defenses he has put on the field over his short career.
Muschamp started his collegiate football career on the gridiron at the University of Georgia, where he walked on and played safety from 1991-1994 for Ray Goff.
Muschamp’s coaching career is as follows:
- 1995-1996 Auburn (GA)
- 1998 West Georgia (DB)
- 1999 Eastern Kentucky (DB)
- 2000 Valdosta State (DC)
- 2001-2004 Louisiana State (LB/DC)
- 2005 Miami Dolphins (AHC/DC)
- 2006-2007 Auburn (DC)
- 2008-2010 Texas (HCIW/LB/DC)
His most noteworthy tenure, aside from Texas, is where he coached under Nick Saban and was the defensive coordinator at LSU. His LSU defenses led the nation in both scoring defense (11.0 points per game) and total defense (252.0 yards per game) in 2003. Not to mention, they won the National Title that year.
When he resigned from Auburn in 2007, Muschamp signed with Texas and quickly became the highest paid assistant in the Big 12, making $425,000 per year. Texas announced that Muschamp would succeed Mack Brown when he decided to retire, but there was no timetable on Brown’s decision. Texas then increased Muschamp’s salary after the announcement to $900,000 per year and guaranteed he would get a five-year deal upon Brown’s retirement. Obviously, that never happened.
What is Florida Getting?
The Gators Athletic Director Jeremy Foley said Will Muschamp was and has been their guy from the get-go. Whether or not that is true, I’ll let you determine that. However, Florida is getting a brilliant, young defensive mind who is a relentless recruiter and has produced great defenses during his short career. Muschamp is a Saban protégé, so it’s safe to say he learned from one of the best.
Florida might not come out like gangbusters next year, but you can bet they will be in it to win it with this young innovator. Unlike the 2010 season, Muschamp will have this team showing fire and signs of life, and Gator fans will be proud of the package that is put on the field in 2011.
