Pay attention, recruits. Will Muschamp isn’t playing games.
When the new Florida football coach was hired, he made a grandiose proclamation that, under his leadership, the Gators would strive to keep their noses clean and thrive as student-athletes living the “Florida Way.”
“There’s a certain thing that I’m going to refer to as the Florida Way, and that’s the way they need to act and that’s the way they need to represent our university,” Muschamp said at his introductory press conference. “I’m going to demand that and I think that you’ll understand in time that that’s something that’s very important to me.”
While the statement was a necessity at the time, many wondered exactly what it meant and how Muschamp would respond when the inevitable finally occurred under his watch.
We didn’t have to wait long.
Janoris Jenkins was dismissed from the team in April following his second marijuana arrest in less than a three-month span.
The official release from the team made it seem like the decision was mutual, that Jenkins and Muschamp agreed to part ways. But three arrests in 23 months actually handcuffed Muschamp, and dismissing the troubled Jenkins was his only choice.
Back in December, the fiery head coach talked about wanting his athletes to be better human beings because they attended Florida.
“And I’m not just talking from a football standpoint,” Muschamp said. “I’m talking about the off-the-field things.”
Urban Meyer’s six-year tenure at UF featured 30-plus arrests, and, many times, players saw little or no repercussions for their missteps. Star players like Jenkins and Carlos Dunlap received even more leeway for misconduct.
While a down has yet to be played in the Muschamp era, it appears those days are no more. Show a shred of submerged issues and chances are you’re out the door.
Freshman receiver Chris Dunkley was suspended during spring practice for academic reasons (read: he was flunking) and was forced to sit out of the Orange and Blue Debut in April. He filed his transfer papers days later.
Redshirt freshman Chris Martin, a five-star DE/LB transfer from Cal, also made a name for himself when he was cited for possession of marijuana in January while sitting in his car downtown — days after Jenkins’ first cannabis charge.
And, according to police reports, Jenkins was in the same vehicle during his April citation for smoking inside a car in a downtown parking lot.
Martin transferred Friday.
While the departures of Dunkley and Martin are definitively labeled, one can’t help but think they were scooted out the door — much like Jenkins —under the auspices of the soon-to-be infamous Florida Way.
Muschamp knows there’s little benefit in recruiting when labeled an enforcer, but any endeavor toward changing the criminal culture encompassing Florida football should be applauded.