Thank God For Rich Alumni; We Get to Keep Our "New" Old Ball Coach

     If you are a Gator Alumni as am I, it should be no surprise that today the University of Florida offered and Urban Meyer accepted a deal worth 24 million over 6 years. After all, the amount of  money that flows down 441/25 onto University Ave and into Ben Hill Griffin Stadium from Florida Alum Boosters is absolutely insane. Hell, I have even thought about giving up some of my hard earned cash to my beloved Gators this year.

    How did we get here though. Just a few short years ago, we had good old Ron Zook who replaced Steve "The Old Ball Coach" Spurrier and then all of sudden, there was a buzz about a guy from Utah that was better than Spurrier and the next thing you know Zook was out the door and moving to Illinois. Now I think that Zook really got a raw deal. He may have not been a great coach but he sure could recruit some talent ie. the players that won the National Championship two of the last three years. I also was not a huge fan of the way the school treated Spurrier when they announced they were releasing Zook and said that they were "looking" for a new football coach. So for those of you who may have missed the article a few years back by Michael A. Bianchi, Gator Alum and Sportswriter for the Orlando Sentinel, let me enlighten you as to how we got Urban Meyer.

     When Dr. Charles Young left the University of Florida in 2003, he was succeeded by Dr. Bernie Machen who was the president of the University of Utah. Ron Zook was let go in 2004 a mere year after Dr. Machen took the presidency. The school held open interviews for new coaches, but they were merely a formality to make it look fair. Dr. Machen knew who he wanted and this was evident when Spurrier expressed interest in coming back to the school that he had played for and coached at (bringing the school it first National Championship) and having them say that he needed to interview. I am pretty sure his answer to the interview request was "Go look in the Trophy Case, that's where my damn resume is!". When he refused the interview, along came Urban Meyer who had coached a virtually unheard of UTAH in the world of college football to an 11-0 record and a Fiesta Bowl Championship win. Meyer was hired and the rest is history. When Dr. Machen came to UF, he was going to bring his friend Meyer. Meyer has been very good for the school though. He has held his players to a high standard and it shows with his and the teams record.

    So, that is the story if you didn't know it and after today's news, it is safe to say that the Notre Dame rumor and Urban Meyer going to coach there has been squashed. I look forward to the next six years, hopefully watching more victorious Saturdays and of course listening to the litany of "the Gators don't deserve the success they have" and "The SEC isn't the most difficult conference in college football". Oh, and one more thing...keep those dollars comin' boosters: they equal championship programs. Go Gators!