The Florida Gators had plenty of memorable moments in 2015, winning the SEC East with decisive victories in the division against Tennessee and Georgia during a largely successful campaign led by first-year head coach Jim McElwain.

While the results on paper look impressive, everyone knows that the back half of the season was anything but good. The offense stagnated, field goal attempts of any distance became a joke, and even the defense fell apart badly during Florida’s 41-7 bowl game loss to Michigan.

Florida has many areas that need improvement if it wants to again contend for the SEC East title. Here are the five most important areas that need improvement:

1. Quarterback play: First and foremost, Florida has to improve at this position because the Treon Harris experiment during the last half of the season was a disaster. There’s always a chance Harris could improve during the offseason, but McElwain will most likely spend time looking at other options. Luke Del Rio, Austin Appleby, Feleipe Franks, and Kyle Trask will all be competing with Harris for the role, and each bring something different to the table. Florida has depth at the position now, but it’s going to be interesting to see who emerges as the starter, and how productive they wind up being.  A successful season depends on it.

2. The offensive line: When McElwain arrived prior to the 2015 season,  the first position group that needed attention was the very-thin offensive line. He made quick fixes with some  transfers to plug the gaps, and  few freshmen stepped up. When Will Grier was around at quarterback, they looked good. But once they wore down and injuries set in, this group fell apart. Florida allowed the most sacks in the conference this year, and was second-to-last in preventing tackles for a loss. McElwain will need to do some more magic with this group.

3. The running game: Florida’s rushing offense was No. 13 in the 14-team conference, only  averaging 126.9 yards per game. This, in many ways, was the fault of the offensive line, but a lack of productivity from the running backs also contributed to the problem. Going forward, there are holes to fill. Kelvin Taylor – Florida’s primary running back in 2015 –   declared for the NFL draft. Florida’s top returning running back is Jordan Scarlett with only 181 yards. It’s going to be interesting to see if Scarlett can carry the load or if one of several four-star recruits steps up to be the primary ballcarrier.

4. The kicking game: Florida was so desperate for a placekicker in 2015 that they yanked a dental student out of an open tryout to put on the field. That experiment was a failure, as was the work of the scholarship guys, who missed more tries than they made. Thankfully top recruit Eddy Pineiro has committed to the Gators, which must thrill McElwain – and every Gator fan with a pulse. Hopefully the Gators will see a huge improvement in this area in 2016.

5. The defense: Surprised that this made the list? You shouldn’t be, and for several reasons. First and foremost, Florida is going to be losing some of the centerpieces that made the defense so elite in 2015. LB Antonio Morrison, S Keanu Neal, DL Jonathan Bullard, and CB Vernon Hargreaves III are all leaving for the NFL draft. Moreover, Florida’s disappointing showing on defense during the Citrus Bowl against Michigan ended the Gators’ season on a low note. The Florida defense should still be pretty good in 2016, but they’ve got a lot of bad film to watch on how this season ended. There is, without a doubt, plenty of work to be done.