Coach Mac is a class act. He didn't bad mouth any of his players. He paid his respect to Alabama. He knows Saban and Alabama because he was the offensive coordinator there for four years. He wants the Gators to play with the same intensity of intensity on every play that Saban's teams are noted for. But Mac did not stand in awe of Saban and the Tide. He knows the Gators are good and just need a few pieces to be at the place where the Gators will be the SEC champion. A small incremental input can multiply itself and lead to a much greater output.
Muschamp did recruit some good players to Gainesville. And the type of player Muschamp recruited was for the most part a kid of good character. Coach Mac praised Antonio Calloway for his physical talent but also for his positive personality. Mac has to be careful and not fall into the trap Urban Meyer did by recruiting some great physical talents, but players who left something lacking in the character department. We saw what happened. The inmates started running the asylum and the program was "broken". I don't think Coach Mac will let this happen.
Coach Mac kept talking about how our players "bought in". Every team is going to have some disgruntled players. A coach needs to recruit good football players, but good football players are also coachable players.
I want to thank our coaches and players for not throwing in the towel in Atlanta. They came up there with one thing in mind -- win the game. When Alabama blocked the punt and went up 2 -0 they didn't fold but came right back with the big play Antonio Calloway punt return. When C. J. Worton made that great catch and Treon converted the two point conversion, you could feel a surge of emotion on our side. Even though the odds were long we lined up for the on-side kick and went after it.
Our team carried themselves well during the SEC championship game and throughout the season. We didn't, for the most part, look like a bunch of prima donnas out there, but we began to look like a real football team. If you are not a team player, you are not going to play long for Coach Mac. The foundation is there. Even though Coach was subdued in the press conference, you could just feel the confidence that McElwain just knows what needs to be done to build a championship team that we can be proud of.
