It wasn’t enough for Florida to have one of college football’s most polarizing figures in recent memory.

No, the Gators boast two in Steve Spurrier and Tim Tebow, both of whom immediately stir the passions among fans for as much what they accomplished on the field as well as off it.

But Spurrier, now the head coach at South Carolina, and Tebow, trying to make an NFL return, always will remain revered among Florida fans and have come to be legends synonymous with Gators football.

Maybe not so much everywhere else.

Here’s my take on Florida’s Mount Rushmore for football.

Who’s In?

STEVE SPURRIER

Spurrier, the 1966 Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, earned All-America honors in both 1965 and 1966 (unanimous) after passing for 4,848 yards and 36 touchdowns en route to shattering virtually every school record.

As the head coach of his alma mater, he brought a new life to the Gators program, going 122-27-1 from 1990-2001 while claiming six SEC titles and the 1996 national championship. A three-time SEC Coach of the Year, Spurrier was the only coach in conference annals and one of just two ever in major college football history to lead a team to six consecutive (1993-1998) seasons of 10 or more victories. He became the first person to have won a Heisman Trophy and coached a Heisman Trophy winner (Danny Wuerffel).

But impact of the Head Ball Coach, as he came to be affectionately known, was far more reaching than just numbers. He revolutionized the SEC with a sophisticated passing attack that had never previously been seen in the traditional, run-first SEC. Spurrier’s willingness to take occasional cracks at conference rivals (“You can’t spell Citrus without U-T”) made the Visored One a refreshing favorite among the media.

TIM TEBOW

The winner of the 2007 Heisman Trophy, Tebow also played a key backup role on the team that won the national title the year before that. A first-team All-American in 2007 and the first sophomore to claim the Heisman Trophy, Tebow became the first player to ever pass and run for 20 or more touchdowns in the same season when he tossed 32 touchdown passes and rushed for 23 more scores.

At the conclusion of his collegiate career, held the SEC career records for most touchdowns responsible (145), most rushing touchdowns (57), most total offense (12,232 yards) and lowest pass attempt to interception ratio (62.2:1).

But it’s what Tebow stood for away from the field that most ingrained him to Gators faithful. He always spoke proudly of his strong faith and how it guided him every day. It was Tebow’s strong sense of responsibility that prompted his now-famous postgame speech following his team’s stunning 31-30 loss to visiting Ole Miss on Sept. 27, 2008. It’s now immortalized with a plaque in the southwest corner of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. In what is now known as “The Promise,” an emotional Tebow apologized for the unexpected loss and pledged to not only play as hard as he possibly could the rest of the season, but to see to it that his teammates did as well.

The Gators went on to claim the 2008 national championship, their second national title within three years.

DANNY WUERFFEL

Wuerffel won the 1996 Heisman Trophy while quarterbacking the Gators to the national championship. It was one of the two national championship appearances and four SEC Championships that he directed. A first-team All-American in both 1995 and 1996, Wuerffel was a two-time recipient of the Davey O’Brien Award that is annually awarded to the nation’s top quarterback.

He completed his Gators career having completed 708 of 1,170 pass attempts for 10,875 yards and 114 touchdowns, tops in SEC history and second-most in major college annals. Wuerrfel is the only Heisman Trophy winner to receive the Draddy Scholarship Trophy, which is presented by the National Football Foundation and the College Hall of Fame to the nation’s top scholar-athlete.

EMMITT SMITH

A unanimous first-team All-American selection, Smith finished seventh in the 1989 Heisman Trophy voting. He was a three-time all-conference pick, including SEC Player of the Year in 1989 and broke 39 school records en route to rushing for 3,928 yards and 36 touchdowns in just three collegiate seasons.

Smith rushed for 1,599 yards and 16 touchdowns as a junior and became a first-round draft pick by the Dallas Cowboys in 1990, winning three Super Bowls and four league rushing titles during a brilliant 15-year NFL career. He was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2010 and remains the league’s all-time leading rusher with 18,355 yards.