GAINESVILLE, Fla. — To say some things have changed since Florida and Eastern Washington announced the schools had agreed to play in football would be an understatement the size of, well, to play off current events, Hurricane Ian.
The long-awaited game between the Gators and Eagles finally kicks off Sunday at noon, delayed a day by Hurricane Ian's impact on the Sunshine State.
Of course, for longtime observers of all-things Gators, you know this game was
initially announced in September 2016. At the time,
Jeremy Foley was in his final weeks as UF's athletic director, Jim McElwain was the head coach, and nobody had heard of COVID-19.
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In the original agreement between the schools, the game was scheduled to be played Sept. 5, 2020. The primary storyline at the time of the announcement centered around McElwain, in his second season as UF's head coach.
He led the Gators to an appearance in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game in his first season. He served as a natural bridge to a game against the FCS-classified Eagles, who call the Big Sky Conference home.
McElwain played quarterback at Eastern Washington from 1980-83 and spent the first 10 years of his coaching career at his alma mater. He graduated from EWU in 1984 with a degree in education. The school (enrollment of about 13,000) is located in Cheney, Wash., about 20 miles south of Spokane.Â
"This is pretty cool to be able to add Eastern Washington to the schedule," McElwain said in 2016. "I spent 15 years at Eastern and it is such a huge part of my life. I met my wife, Karen, there and all of my children were born there. I have so many great memories of my time at Eastern and I still have friends there to this day."
Jim McElwain at EWU.
Following another trip to the SEC Championship Game in 2016, McElwain's tenure at Florida imploded in 2017, resulting in his departure late in the season. Meanwhile, Dan Mullen took over the program in 2018 and, following back-to-back trips to New Year's Six bowl games his first two seasons, expected to open his third season against Eastern Washington.
That was before the coronavirus pandemic swept across the globe and disrupted everything. To best ensure a season, the SEC played a 10-game all-conference schedule. Instead of hosting the Eagles in the opener, the Gators won at Ole Miss.
So, six years after the official announcement, five years after McElwain's exit, four years after Mullen's arrival, three years since quarterback Feleipe Franks last played for UF, two years after COVID-19 dominated the headlines, one year after Mullen's tumultuous last season, and in the first year of the
Billy Napier era, the Florida-Eastern Washington game is here.
It's been a long, strange trip to get here, for sure.
Now in his fourth season at Central Michigan, McElwain at least has an opportunity to watch the game if he chooses Sunday. The Chippewas play at Toledo on Saturday.
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