GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Last season the Gators didn’t know what to expect in the first year under Dan Mullen, but after a 9-3 regular season they found themselves in the Peach Bowl in a top-ten matchup to end the season against the Wolverines.
Following the 41-14 victory Florida is now turning the page to year two and the expectations are much bigger.
“Just not being comfortable with just winning the Peach Bowl,” Gators senior running back Lamical Perine said. “We want to win the national championship this year. That’s our goal. We don’t want to just win the Peach Bowl. Like, we want to go back to Atlanta but to play for the national championship.”
“Mullen drills that in your head. When you first get here, that gotta be your goal. When you see those three national championships that Florida have, that should be your goal. Everyday.”
Nothing is given though. A lot of practice and hard work goes into trying to achieve the ultimate goal and Florida understands that. As spring trudges on the Gators are not going to just sit back and talk about wanting a championship, they ae working everyday toward achieving it.
"I mean we've just got to come in and work hard, it's not going to be easy,” receiver Tyrie Cleveland said. “It's going to be a long jersey. We've just got to put our feet down and just continue to work, continue to get better."
Florida certainly has the potential to be a championship contender as they return nearly every big contributor on offense outside of running back Jordan Scarlett and eight starters on defense.
If the offensive line can reveal itself and come together there’s no reason the Gators cannot compete.
“I really think Florida is inching on winning a national championship, starting with the SEC,” Zach Carter said.
“If all our keys lock together and we all come together and trust each other, I mean, sky’s the limit,” Elijah Conliffe added. “We’re here to show the world. We’re the Florida Gators. You can’t walk around without talking about championships. It’s our standard.”
Whether Florida will be able to fulfill these expectations remains to be seen but they have certainly bought in and are ready to take on the challenge of raising their game to the next level.
“Last year going 10-3 and the big bowl game, New Year’s Six. Coming off of that, leading into the spring, it’s big momentum for us having trust within our coaches, our plan, our preparation,” Josh Hammond said. “That makes us want to grind hard, continue to work and move forward.”
The Gators will certainly have their chances throughout the season with games against Georgia, Auburn and LSU as well as in the season opener and they are going to simply take it day-by-day.
“I feel like we're going to take it game by game,” linebacker David Reese said. “Miami's up first, August 24. So I'm excited about that. That's a big stage, a big brand-name team. But that's far away. So we're just going to keep working, keep getting better during the spring."
