...but we are not; the Gators are 10 - 1 and Jim McElwain is enjoying the best first year than any of the 22 previous head coaches at UF. The Gators have had 10+ wins this point in the season in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2012 in the past 10 seasons.

How would this team rate?

To me, it does not matter. We could easily have been 5-6 with losses to East Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Florida Atlantic. Even if you split the difference and say 8-3 or 7-4, it does not matter because of what this team inherited.

The Gators are a team with massive weaknesses on the offensive line. It will take 2-3 seasons for that to get fixed. The "line" is five positions that requires 7-8 good players with some degree of seasoning. Right now, we have maybe 2 who will eventually grow into pretty good offensive linemen. Seriously, we only have 2 guys on our line who other coaches would want on their roster.

The Gators are a team with huge question marks at QB. Treon Harris would struggle at UCF, much less a team playing in the SEC. Hell, as bad as UCF is, Treon would probably not even start there. And I am probably going to ruffle some feathers, but Grier does not appear to be a stable option to me. Hiring a personal injury lawyer because he ordered dried rhino penis or whatever it was on the webs to improve his stamina? Not attending practices since the suspension? Going to class via the Internets? I mean "WOW", this kid could easily turn into a head case.

Side Note: does Taylor think he's a first-round running back? Is he expecting first-round money this year? No disrespect, but he's not better than Matt Jones (3rd round), Mike Gillislee (5th round) or Ciatrick Fason (4th round). He's starting to make the great cuts that great running backs make, but he still goes east-west too much. If he leaves, that's another hole this team has to fill next year and they cannot afford to fill that many holes on offense.

That's why our record does not really matter to me. We're a team with holes. We could very easily finish next year at 8-4 or 9-5 for the same reason we could have been 5-6 this year. We inherited a team that was getting buried in the kitty litter box. Our record could vary from 2 losses to 6 losses in the next 2 seasons and that's not a mark against McElwain at all.

I am not as worried about the record or the playoff as I would be with a loaded team.

What I focus on, and what I find really neat, is that this year, which is great in its own right, is putting the Gators back into the national conversation. The high school sophomores, juniors, seniors watching college football this year... the future Derrick Henrys, Deshaun Watsons, Joey Bosas, they're seriously looking at the Gators now instead of laughing at the Muschamp dumpster fire.

This 10+ season accelerates us to having more 10+ win seasons with a roster filled with the guys you see playing at Alabama now. I think Jim McElwain is the next great coach and he's proven it this year.