Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida State, Ohio State and Oklahoma. New Orleans, Glendale and Miami Gardens.

Probably not going to take most Florida fans long to connect those dots. Those are the opponents and locations the Gators reached the pinnacle by winning national championships in 1996, 2006 and 2008.

On Monday night in Tampa the 2016 national champion will be crowned at Raymond James Stadium, where just six days ago the Gators capped their season with a 30-3 win over Iowa in the Outback Bowl. It's Alabama against Clemson, a rematch of the 2015 national championship game won by the Crimson Tide.

Tickets are in high demand. Can you imagine if the Gators were in Tampa this week instead of last week? It would be one of the toughest tickets to get in Gators football history.
 

Florida head coach Jim McElwain, who is 19-8 in his two seasons, immediately recognized the importance of Tampa in recruiting. He is serving as an analyst for the SEC Network during Monday night's game.

Last spring on a speaking tour in Tampa, McElwain stressed the importance of recruiting the city and surrounding area to the program's success.

"It's arguably the closest major city,'' he said. "The ease of these people's friends, family being able to get to the Swamp, them being able to get home easily. Obviously for us it's first and foremost. We try to do as good a job as we can do to our surrounding areas, and try to get the ones that fit for us and fit for them."

While the Tampa sports scene is full of options with the Bucs, Lightning and Rays at the professional level, it's also a hotbed for college sports. The hometown USF Bulls are coming off an 11-2 season and now have a new coach in Charlie Strong, the former UF defensive coordinator and a longtime recruiter in the state.

There are also plenty of FSU and Miami who call Tampa home. However, the Gators have the deepest roots in the city. On each of Florida's national championship-winning teams, the Gators' roster featured several players from Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay Times columnist Tom Jones was a guest on the Paul Finebaum Show this week to discuss the national championship game. Finebaum asked what college program moves the needle the most in terms of fan and media interest.

"It's definitely a Gators town,'' said Jones, who has covered sports in the Tampa Bay market for more than 25 years.

Former Gators receiver Louis Murphy can attest to that. Murphy grew up in St. Petersburg across the bay from Tampa and was a member of Florida's 2006 and '08 national championship teams. He spent most of the season with the Bucs before an injury cost him a roster spot.

Murphy hosts a successful summer camp through his non-profit 1^st Downs 4 Life charitable organization that promotes opportunities and positive decision-making for the area's youth.
 
Many of Murphy's former teammates return each year to help with the camp, which also relies on Florida alums who are willing to donate time and money.

"There's a lot of people who are Gators and who love the Gators and appreciate we helped win two national championships,'' Murphy said. "It's amazing to be able to give back and help out, especially in the area that I'm from. The Gator connection, I didn't know how big it was. They are everywhere."

As someone who grew up in the area, Murphy was familiar with Florida's success. When the Gators were the first major program in the state to offer him a scholarship, he accepted. Another Tampa Bay product, receiver Andre Caldwell, hosted Murphy on his recruiting visit.

Both stopped by the team's practices for the Outback Bowl as did many other former Gators from the area.

Murphy participated in various meetings with city leaders as Tampa prepared to host the national championship game. The city has hosted four Super Bowls but Monday's game is its first time as host to the College Football Playoff Championship Game.

"I think it's great for the community and the economy,'' Murphy said. "There's been a lot of work to make it a great experience for fans."

Murphy was a teammate of Bucs rookie Vernon Hargreaves III this season, the latest Tampa Bay product who played for the Gators and is now in the NFL.

Murphy, who has played for four NFL teams, couldn't imagine starting his pro career in his hometown and the extra pressure that entails. But he can imagine the Tampa area continuing to produce players good enough to play for the Gators and perhaps, one day a national championship game in their backyard.

"This area loves football,'' he said. "Gator fans are everywhere."

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TAMPA BAY GATORS
Players from the Tampa Bay area to win national titles at Florida:
 
1996
Pat Browning
Eugene McCaslin
Jeff Mitchell – Clearwater
 
2006
Jim Barrie
Andre Caldwell
Telly Concepcion
Riley Cooper – Clearwater
Jarred Fayson
AJ Jones
Louis Murphy – St. Pete
Kyle Newell
Kyle Pupello
Trent Pupello
 
2008
Jim Barrie
Gary Beemer – Valrico
Riley Cooper – Clearwater
Torrey Davis – Seffner
Corey Henderson – St. Pete
AJ Jones
Louis Murphy – St. Pete
Kyle Newell
Matt Patchan
 
Research: Dustin Ciraco