I never considered him to replace McElwain until the recent uproar—had put him in the Gruden, Petrino, Kiffin category—famous coaches that would not coach again, coach at Florida, or be acceptable to UF. I don’t watch NFL studio shows, so I wasn’t even sure what he looked like anymore. When his name was mentioned here early on, I paid no attention.

Then came the the done deal insider posts here followed by video proving a clandestine flight to New Hampshire carrying our AD and university president. He was no longer an abstraction, but instead became a must hire in an instant. So, I went from a VS “meh“ about Kelly to following every post and linked article here mentioning him. My Google address bar even triggers “Chip Kelly to UF“ now whenever I type the letter C. 

That isn’t rational. I am caught up in mass hysteria. It‘s like a Cabbage Patch Doll or something. A product I never wanted now inspires me to wait in line six hours before the store opens. But Kelly isn’t a fad that will fade. He’s a coach. A very expensive one with no guarantee except how well he would be compensated for failure.

I hope we get him, because he appears to be our university‘s first choice. But if not, I will try to remember he wasn’t my first choice. Like Cabbage Patch Dolls, he wasn’t even on my list.