Florida Remains "Un-Perfect"

Sure, the Gators of the past five years have been the best of the best in college football. This is especially impressive, given the landscape of college football, where more teams than ever have the funds, facilities, and fan base to compete on a very high level. They've also had one of the greatest players of all time at QB for the past four years (starting for three). The two National Championships, two SEC Championships, and three SEC East Championships since 2006 are simply remarkable. Having said all that, and given credit where credit is due, Gator-haters will be able to take comfort in the fact that Florida has still never had a perfect season. Obviously, a small bit of comfort in an otherwise tough pill to swallow for Dawg fans.

Searels Proves His Worth

For much of the season, Georgia's offensive line struggled to open up holes for Georgia's young running backs. When starting offensive tackle Trinton Sturdivant was lost for the year, Searels was forced to play musical chairs in an attempt to find a lineup that would function as a cohesive unit. The line's ineffectiveness had some instant-analysis Georgia fans wondering if Searels was all he was cracked up to be. In its last four games, however, Georgia averaged 252 yds on the ground. Granted, that included a game against lowly Tennessee Tech, but clearly there was a marked improvement from Georgia's first 8 games, during which Georgia topped the 125 yard mark only once.

Timing Of Martinez Firing Good From Personnel Standpoint

Putting all the specific reasons why defensive coordinator Willie Martinez was let go, the timing of it could work out nicely from the viewpoint that Georgia's defense is going to lose several starters after this year. If you assume that both Rennie Curran and Reshad Jones will leave for the NFL, the Dawgs will lose 6 starters on defense. A good time for a new coordinator and new position coaches to not have to break the colts, so to speak.

Every Program Has Its Down Years

Just take a look at USC. The mighty Trojans, with their consistently ridiculous recruiting classes, and playing in a traditionally weak conference, finished 5th in the Pac-10 this year, and showed no improvement over the course of the season, losing three out of their last five games. You never want to "accept" a down cycle, and coaches/athletic departments need to be mindful of any trends and changes that may need to be made, but the bottom line is that it happens. The really good programs can get it turned around. Florida was average under Zook, and Bama was below average during the coaching merry-go-round of the late 90's/early 00's. With the Dawgs bringing in a new defensive coordinator, starting a reshirt freshman QB next year, and boasting a solid base of young talent at other skill positions, there is reason for optimism. Changes are a'coming, and hopefully they'll turn out for the better.