Biggest challenges facing Jim McElwain at Florida in 2015
Despite Florida being one of the premier jobs in college football, new head coach Jim McElwain has a number of challenges facing him in his first season.
Aside from the offensive deficiencies, the Gators have a small recruiting class for 2015 with only eight current commits and it’s a team that’s struggled to be consistent. Florida’s earned just a 6-5 record in 2014 after finishing 4-8 in 2013.
McElwain is preparing to really take over the team following the Gators’ Birmingham Bowl matchup on Jan. 3, so let’s take a look at the biggest challenges ahead of him.
- Identify a capable starting quarterback — One problem that’s plagued the Gators since the days of Tim Tebow is finding a quarterback capable of making plays. There’s been zero consistency at this position. Consequently, Florida has started eight different quarterbacks since Tebow left the program in 2009. Offense is McElwain’s speciality and he’s coached up some great quarterbacks in his day. Frankly, this McElwain’s No. 1 priority this offseason. Whether it’s Treon Harris, Will Grier or even Jeff Driskel, McElwain will need to figure out who is capable of leading his offense.
- Hiring a dynamic coaching staff — This is a challenge for any incoming head coach, but for McElwain it’s especially important on the defensive side of the ball. Will Muschamp got the defense to play at a high-level, but with some expected attrition amongst the coaches, it’s crucial that McElwain gets the right coaches to keep momentum going on defense. One huge aspect of this will be keeping defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson at UF and away from Muschamp at Auburn. McElwain is an offensive-minded coach, so it’s important that he doesn’t create the opposite problem of Muschamp and develop an inconsistent defense. That problem will be avoided with the right hires on defense.
- Regain recruiting momentum — Fortunately for McElwain, the Florida Gator brand speaks for itself. It’s a school all prominent high school recruits will know and respect. However, the Gators are falling behind other SEC teams as of late. McElwain will have to compete with the likes of several coaches who have been entrenched in the SEC for quite some time. Going against Nick Saban, Les Miles, Mark Richt and the rising profiles of guys like Gus Malzahn and Kevin Sumlin will be tough for McElwain. He’s had experience in the SEC before and he’s recruited the Southeast, but as the new guy on the block, he’ll have to really work to get Florida back to the top of the recruiting world.
- Recapture home-field advantage — The Swamp was arguably the toughest place to play in all of college football for opposing teams. But once was an intimidating environment has become quite hospitable to Florida opponents. The Gators have lost 12 home games since 2010, which is completely unacceptable in the SEC. McElwain will get his opportunity to reverse this trend quickly. Florida welcomes in rivals Tennessee and Florida State back into the Swamp in 2015, along with Ole Miss and Vanderbilt.