Maybe Florida hired Bob Stoops after all
Published: 12/15/2010 1:16 PM
Last Modified: 12/15/2010 9:40 PM
You hear what they're calling Will Muschamp down in Gainesville?
The Ghost of Stoopsy Past.
At least, that's what Orlando Sentinel Mike Bianchi called him in a column entitled "Will Muschamp may become Florida Gators version of Bob Stoops."
He also called Muschamp "a hot, young assistant who many in the profession believe is destined for coaching greatness."
The comparison to Stoops circa his hiring at Oklahoma wasn't just implied, either.
"I see a lot of the same things in Will that I saw in a young Bobby Stoops," Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley told Bianchi. "… Let me tell you something, this guy is ready to be a head coach. He is not a gamble."
No doubt Joe Castiglione felt the same way 12 years ago when he hired a 39-year-old defensive coordinator who had never been a head coach.
Muschamp is also 39. His background, like Stoops', is in defense, relentlessly positive thinking and Red Bulls of energy (Stoops may seem relatively calm now, but that was never the case when he was at Florida and Kansas State).
The difference? There's more pressure on Muschamp.
Stoops took over an OU program coming off the Gary Gibbs lull, the Howard Schnellenberger accident and the John Blake disaster. Stoops has said it himself – the program had a terrible self-image. Basically, there was nowhere to go but forward.
The Gators are two years removed from a national championship. They slipped to 7-5 in Urban Meyer's last season, and endured Ron Zook between Meyer and Steve Spurrier.
But make no mistake, there is no grace period. Muschamp would be advised to repeat Stoops' feat of winning a national championship in two years.
"What will become of Will Muschamp?" Bianchi writes "Only time will tell. Check back in three years. Only then will we know if this is a Stoops hire or a stupid hire."
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
