Florida State Seminoles

FSU Football: 3 Reasons 'Noles Fans Hope McElwain Stays At Florida

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 1:21 p.m. ET

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Nov 26, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher meets with Florida Gators head coach Jim McElwain before the game at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

FSU football has a good friend in head coach Jim McElwain over at the University of Florida. Here are three reasons FSU fans hope he stays for a long time.

FSU football coach Jimbo Fisher whipped up on Jim McElwain and his Florida Gators for the second consecutive year Saturday night.

There are some rumblings that McElwain could leave Florida for the Oregon job if Oregon decides to fire their coach.

Dan Wolken of USA Today wrote on Tuesday:

There also are whispers that Florida’s Jim McElwain could be intrigued by the opportunity to return to the Pacific Northwest, close to where he went to college and started his coaching career at Eastern Washington. Despite winning SEC East titles in his first two years, McElwain has been a bit under-appreciated by the Florida fan base and just got a new athletics director in Gainesville.

FSU fans should root for that NOT to happen.

Dec 5, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Florida Gators defensive back Keanu Neal (42) reacts as Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Richard Mullaney (16) celebrates a touchdown during the fourth quarter of the 2015 SEC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Recruiting

This is one of the main reasons FSU fans should root for Jim McElwain to stay at Florida. It was telling that Florida didn’t receive a recruiting bump when McElwain was hired to replace Will Muschamp.

The 2016 recruiting class finished at No. 12 in the 247 Sports Composite rankings. However, those rankings are a bit deceiving as it was more quantity instead of quality.

Their 2016 class consisted of 25 total recruits, but 64 percent (16) of them were three stars. On the flipside, 72 percent of (18 of 25) FSU football’s recruiting class was four-star or better.

The Florida 2017 class isn’t any better.

The Gators check in at No.18 nationally at the moment with 50 percent (7 of 14) of the class consisting of three-star players.

Nov 19, 2016; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; Florida Gators head coach Jim McElwain celebrates the win over the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium. The Gators defeat the Tigers 16-10. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

McElwain’s Offenses

It’s no secret that Will Muschamp was a defensive minded coach and his offenses at Florida were trash. McElwain inherited that mess but came in as a coach with a good offensive mind.

However, that hasn’t translated to offensive success during his tenure at Florida.

The 2015 season saw Florida finish with the No. 56 offense in the nation according to S&P+ advanced metrics.

This season has seen those stats get worse. Florida currently has the No. 96 offense in the nation according to the same metrics.

How can an offense at a school like Florida be that terrible? FSU, Miami, South Florida, Florida Atlantic, and Florida International all have better offenses than Florida in the state of Florida!

FSU held Florida to 3.2 yards per play Saturday night, which his two yards less than their seasonal average. Please stay McElwain!

Nov 26, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles defensive end Demarcus Walker (44) chases down Florida Gators quarterback Austin Appleby (12) during the second half of the game at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Just Good Enough

McElwain is the worst type of coach to have at a school like Florida. He wins just enough, however, just enough may not be enough for Florida for much longer.

McElwain has won the SEC East in his first two seasons as head coach. That doesn’t say much about the SEC East now does it?

In fact, FSU claims the last two SEC East titles as Florida hasn’t scored an offensive touchdown against the ‘Noles since McElwain has been coach. FSU has beaten Florida by an average of three touchdowns in the last two games.

Is it enough to win a weak SEC East title, get smoked by FSU and smoked by the SEC West champion every year?

FSU fans should certainly hope so.

Nov 26, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Florida State Seminoles Chief Osceola holds his spear above his head before the game against the Florida Gators at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

Conclusion

If I had to bet money on it, I’d bet that McElwain isn’t leaving Florida on his own terms any time soon.

Especially not for the Oregon job.

He was the SEC Coach of the Year in 2015, and again, has won back-to-back SEC east titles with a bunch of players he didn’t recruit.

He does have ties to the Pacific Northwest, but Florida is a better job than Oregon. Not to mention being in the heart of arguably the most fertile state when it comes to producing elite talent.

However, it doesn’t mean much if McElwain can’t get his fair share of that talent.

Florida has been competitive largely due to the defensive studs that Will Muschamp recruited. Those players will be exiting the program sooner rather than later.

If he can’t get that offense on the right track next year, they might drive him to Oregon themselves.