The Mess for the Florida Football Program Will Become Much Worse
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The inevitable transpired after Florida’s embarrassing 40-17 loss at South Carolina. Two assistant coaches, Offensive Line Coach John Hevesy, and Defensive Coordinator Todd Grantham, were reportedly relieved of their duties on Sunday.
Now come the comments and questions.
First, this is not a surprise. These are but two of Head Coach Dan Mullen’s assistants that have been under pressure for multiple seasons from Florida fans, and more importantly, Florida boosters.
The well known Florida boosters known as the Bull Gator Club will not accept (nor should they) the 4-5 record that the Gators currently reside with, and now the administration has taken steps to possibly alleviate some of the pressure. A couple of notes about how that attempt to relieve pressure will go.
Next, it’s a drop in the bucket; it’s similar to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. The players are not on the same page with the coaching staff, stating the obvious based off of the on-field performance by Florida players. For those in the know, there's more to it than general concern over coaching and techniques, etc.
Coach Hevesy and Coach Grantham being removed will not amend all the animosity and discomfort coming from players towards the two now departed Florida coaches, and possibly some of the remaining Florida coaches as well (some very touchy subjects). These issues, among many, are why being in the shoes of Coach Mullen or many other college coaches can be messy, and why coaches typically stay clear of across the board statements about players, coaches, recruiting, boosters, and the like.
To that end, did anyone see a public announcement from Coach Mullen in support of these two decisions to get rid of Coach Hevesy and Coach Grantham? Coach Mullen is not going to win a war or words with fans, Florida administrators, media members, or boosters no matter what he states at this point. That makes his job almost impossible right now. Still, he needs to make a statement sooner than later, right?
It's been a turbulent past few seasons for Coach Grantham, seen here receiving an earful from Coach Mullen (picture from the 2020 season).
Gainesville Sun-USA TODAY NETWORK
Okay, perhaps he's not yet allowed to comment because of legal issues regarding the final paperwork. Still, anyone believe Coach Mullen will openly admit he wanted both of the coaches dismissed from his staff?
Coach Mullen has continuously stated that he wanted to evaluate at the end of the season before making coaching decisions. He even referenced that point earlier last week. Now, suddenly, he’s firing two coaches?
Do not believe that for one second. The two coaches coming off the University of Florida payroll came from further up the food chain, influenced heavily by the possibility of substantial donation losses without the firings taking place post-haste.
There’s obvious dissension within the ranks in Gainesville, and people should not be surprised if Coach Mullen and/or other Florida coaches decide to part ways with being a part of the Florida Football program at any point during the next few months.
Somebody was leaving the Gators coaching staff, but that does not mean Coach Mullen agrees with the decision to fire two of his assistants. With that in mind, let’s see what Coach Mullen says at his weekly press conference. Will he openly admit that he wanted the two coaches fired? He wears his emotions on his sleeves. He will not be able to hide behind a lie.
To that end, Coach Mullen will be in a tough spot for the rest of the season. He’s going to be nagged endlessly by reporters and fans alike. While that’s unfortunate, he may not be done with dealing with issues regarding his staff.
Maybe there are even more coaches that will be canned before the end of November?
This is big-business college football, and when boosters are unhappy, that’s when administrators and/or coaches receive their walking papers. Timing be damned, this is a mess that’s building to a crescendo.
The only question now, when does that crescendo become reality? That’s why this mess will carry on beyond this season even if there’s a total overhaul of the Florida coaching staff, Coach Mullen included.
There are current Gators’ players that will likely enter the transfer portal, recruits currently committed to Florida could and will likely decide to go elsewhere, and of course there’s no telling how new coaches would perform for the orange and blue.
Indeed, this is a mess that is truly rare at a place like Florida, and it’s going to take multiple years to completely fix the issues in Gainesville.
For more information about what's happening to the Florida coaching staff, check out two articles, one regarding Coach Grantham and the other regarding Coach Hevesy, from All Gators on FanNation.
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