Florida coach Jim McElwain was probably only half joking when he responded to the question during Monday’s weekly press conference with reporters.

“What are you doing today?” he shot back when asked if he planned to continue re-evaluating his team’s struggling kicking game.

It’s understandable that McElwain felt the need to make light jokes about the predicament in which the SEC East champion Gators find themselves as they prepare for rival Florida State at The Swamp on Saturday and a date in the SEC Championship Game, likely with Alabama, the following week with a struggling offense and a subpar kicking game.

Florida is 10-1, but has hardly looked impressive in recent weeks because of the ongoing issues. The Gators had to rally late to beat hapless Vanderbilt a few weeks ago and needed overtime to outlast a bad Florida Atlantic team 23-17 last weekend.

Their margin for error is significantly smaller as Florida will face what the two best teams it has seen in its next two games.

The Gators, who fell four spots to No. 12 in the playoff poll, had best get better in a hurry or things could get ugly heading into the bowl season.

“We’re a 10-win football team that’s still got a long ways to go in a lot of areas,” McElwain said this week.

Florida enters Saturday’s date with No. 14 FSU ranked a paltry 100th nationally in total offense out of 128 FBS team at 360.1 yards per game.

Problems along the offensive line have been crippling, as evidenced by the meager 130 yards rushing on 44 carries and five sacks surrendered to Florida Atlantic this past weekend. The Gators managed just 252 total yards against a suspect Owls defense that hasn’t exactly kept opposing offensive coaches awake at night.

Florida’s line was a major concern at the season’s outset, but the unit came together early and had played well until the past few weeks. However, the line’s lack of depth, experience and overall talent have manifested themselves in recent weeks and the results haven’t been pretty: blown protections and little push up front to open holes for the running game.

The timing couldn’t be worse for the Gators.

Things don’t figure to get any easier against an FSU defense loaded with athletes far superior to anything Florida Atlantic had. The Seminoles rank 20th nationally in total defense with an average of 333.6 yards allowed per game.

A possible matchup against Alabama and its bruising defense in the SEC Championship Game the following week could be even more problematic.

As if that weren’t enough already, McElwain must also try to find some kind of remedy for an unreliable kicking game. Struggling junior kicker Austin Hardin has missed more field goals (6) than he’s made (5). He blew two field goals against Florida Atlantic and had an extra point blocked.

With no real options at this point, McElwain will stick with Hardin in the hopes that he will emerge from his funk now that his team needs him more than ever this season.

The Gators may be the most flawed 10-win team in college football history, and they’re likely set to square off against the two most talented teams they’ve faced all year.

It could get ugly if things continue as they have as of late.

Senior nickel back Brian Poole said winning ugly is just fine, too, as long as they continue to win.

“At the end of the day, that’s really all that matters,” he said during Monday’s press conference with reporters. “They aren’t all going to be blowouts. There are going to be some close games. At the end of the day, we just have to find a way to win.”