Florida

Muschamp Still Hanging on at Florida

University of Florida head coach Will Muschamp’s has been on the hot seat all season with calls for his firing growing each week. After Saturday night’s implosion against Missouri, Muschamp’s seat is now on fire.

The Missouri Tigers, despite a completely anemic offensive performance, destroyed the Gators 42-13on Saturday. The debacle saw Florida commit six turnovers, give up a kickoff return for a touchdown, a punt return for a touchdown, an interception return for a touchdown, and a fumble return for a touchdown.

Monday, Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley did nothing to quash the calls for Muschamp’s termination when he released a brief statement saying the school will evaluate the head coach’s future as “it plays out.”

“At the beginning of the season we said we would evaluate the season as it plays out,” Foley said. “We will continue to do so. Our sole focus right now is supporting our coaching staff and players as they prepare for Georgia.”

Florida’s loss against Missouri’s was the team’s second straight homecoming loss and things aren’t getting any easier for Muschamp as the Gators next play the ninth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs on November 1.

One number that illustrates how far the Gators’ program has fallen in the last two years is 38.9 percent. The Gators have won just 38.9 percent of the teams’ games since the start of the 2013 season. Going deeper, the Gators have lost eight of their last 13 games against the SEC.

Inside the confines of the Gators’ stadium in Gainesville, the Gators are just 3-3 in SEC play since the beginning of the 2013 season. Florida’s offense is averaging just 28.7 points per game this season and just 368 yards of total offense through last weekend’s game.

Foley voiced strong support for Muschamp late last year, backing him during the team's seven-game losing streak that led to the program's first losing record since 1979.

Muschamp responded by firing two offensive coaches, a move that got him another year to change the team's direction.

Muschamp opened this season by telling anyone and everyone that this was the most talented offensive team he's had in four years. He changed his tune somewhat Saturday, saying the offensive line isn't good enough to protect for quarterback Jeff Driskel.

"We've got to identify some things that we can be consistent with offensively," Muschamp said on his weekly television show Sunday. "In our first six games, we have not done anything offensively. We did against Kentucky a little bit, got some ball movement. We did against LSU at times. But against Tennessee, against Alabama and (Saturday), we couldn't get anything going."

Driskel has 12 turnovers in his last four games and has clearly lost confidence. The Gators used a two-quarterback system with Driskel and freshman Treon Harris, who fumbled and threw an interception.

The Gators have a bye this week, and it's unclear what they will do before facing Georgia. The Bulldogs have won three in a row in the series.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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