They may not know him now, but they soon will have no alternative if Florida coach Jim McElwain and his surprising Gators keep winning like they have so far.

The first-year coach made the most of last weekend’s bye week to hit the road recruiting and discovered on a visit to at least one high school that he still has some work to do on his own personal national brand.

“They thought I was kidding when I said I was the head coach at Florida,” McElwain recalled during Monday’s weekly teleconference. “Now there’s a couple of more people that know, which is a good thing for us.”

McElwain can further cement his name and burgeoning national reputation with a win over Georgia in this Saturday’s matchup in Jacksonville.

The much-anticipated annual contest between the 11th-ranked Gators and the Bulldogs is one of the most storied rivalries in the nation. So much so that McElwain, who grew up in Montana, was no stranger to the game himself.

“I’m excited to be a part of something that carries as much history and nostalgia,” he said. “It’s what college football is all about. It doesn’t matter what part of the country you grew up in. You knew the Florida/Georgia game was going to be a nationally televised game and you kind of set your calendar by it.”

McElwain will get a closer look at everything the storied rivalry entails when the two teams meet with a lot at stake, including supremacy at atop the SEC East and a potential berth in the SEC Championship.

The two teams will be very familiar with one another as a number of the coaches from both staffs have previously worked together.

Florida won last year’s meeting 38-20 when it upset then-No. 9 Georgia by rushing for 418 yards. The Bulldogs are unranked after losing two of their previous three games, but McElwain said he expects another great chapter to the rivalry.

The series between Florida and Georgia dates back to 1915, according to UF, with the Bulldogs holding a 49-41-2 all-time edge. In Jacksonville, Georgia holds a 43-38-1 lead in the series over the Gators. Since 1990, Florida is 19-6 against the Dawgs, listing wins in six of the last 10 meetings.

“Rivalries, that’s what makes college football what it’s all about,” McElwain said.

In other press conference news:
• McElwain said that the Gators will enter this week’s game with rival Georgia largely healthy with almost all injured players again available. Some of those included nose tackle Joey Ivie (stomach muscles) and tight end C’yontai Lewis (hand).
• McElwain said that three potential kickers emerged from more than 200 would-be walk-ons who tried out last week, but added that he was unsure how many would actually remain with the team following today’s additional workout.