The shock Florida fans felt after former coach Mike White spurned the Gators to work for the Georgia Bulldogs on Sunday is finally starting to wear off. Like Gators Wire staff mentioned in the roundtable on Monday, it wasn’t necessarily a surprise he left but more for who he departed for.
Now looking toward the future, it’s time to examine who athletic director Scott Stricklin should replace White with. The Florida job without a doubt still remains the second-best job in the SEC behind Kentucky because the Gators have two national championships, gone to eight Elite Eights and four Final Fours, and won more NCAA Tournament games than any other team in the SEC this century.
However, the SEC is much tougher than it was seven years ago when the Gators needed to replace the legendary Billy Donovan. It’s important Stricklin nails this hire, so Florida doesn’t fall further behind other SEC programs in men’s college basketball.
Here is my list of five coaches Stricklin should pursue.