By Matt Smith
SouthernPigskin.com

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For Muschamp, the task would seem undoubtedly harder at South Carolina than at Florida.

It came as a shock to many that, on the night of 2010 Heisman Trophy ceremony, reports began to surface (my first cue was a tweet from Tim Tebow) that Will Muschamp, then-Texas defensive coordinator and head coach in-waiting (remember when that was a thing?), had been named as Urban Meyers replacement at Florida.

Given that athletic director Jeremy Foley had failed once before on a coach with no head coaching experience (Ron Zook), it seems crazy that he would again go the coordinator route for a job that most consider to be one of the five best jobs in college football.

A mediocre 7-6 debut was followed by an 11-2 season that saw Florida still in national title contention on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The Muschamp doubters were left scratching their heads.

It eroded after that, however. After winning just nine of his next 21 games, Muschamp was fired with two games remaining in the 2014 season. His defenses were great, but he never figured out how to score points.

Perhaps an even bigger surprise than that night in December 2010 came this past December, when Muschamp, finishing up his first season as Gus Malzahns defensive coordinator at Auburn, was given a second chance as an SEC head coach by South Carolina.

For Muschamp, the task would seem undoubtedly harder at South Carolina than at Florida. The Gamecocks have never won an SEC title, while Florida has won seven just since the Gamecocks joined the conference in 1992.

Theres growing in-state talent in the Palmetto State, but nowhere near that of Florida or Georgia, and the programs biggest rival is fresh off an appearance in the national title game and showing no signs of slowing down. South Carolina hasnt finished in the top half of the SEC in recruiting rankings, per the 247Composite, since 2012, and all thats left from that class are a handful of fifth-year seniors.

How can Muschamps second go-around be any better than his first given the inherent challenges in Columbia? He doesnt see that big of a difference between the two programs.

cCoach Spurrier and his staff brought this program to relevance nationally,d Muschamp said Thursday at SEC Media Days. cThats what we plan on building off. Within a five-hour radius of our campus, we can recruit good enough players to win the East every year.d

Muschamp hired Kurt Roper as offensive coordinator, who was with him at Florida during the 2014 season. His quarterback situation seems more perilous than the mucky one he had in Gainesville, with Brandon McIlwain potentially becoming the first true freshman quarterback in the SEC to start a season opener in a dozen years. Still, Muschamp believes Roper is the solution.

cI thought he did a really good job of giving us an opportunity,d Muschamp said of the 2014 Florida offense. cHes a really good play-caller on gameday. I thought he did a really good job. We averaged 30 points per game and played extremely well at times. Hes an easy guy to work with.d

Despite the trust in Roper, Muschamp is taking responsibility for the offense after it led to his downfall at Florida.

cIt comes back to offense,d Muschamp said. cWhether its staff, scheme, decision making, that falls on my shoulders. So Im taking full responsibility of that and making it better in this situation.d

While Muschamp takes ownership of the offense, he devotes most of his time to defense, special teams and recruiting 3 three areas that were rarely an issue at Florida.

cAt the end of the day, we played well on defense,d Muschamp recalled. cWe played well on special teams. We recruited very good players 3 four first-round draft picks.d

Its fair to doubt that Muschamp has gone through that significant of an overhaul. What hasnt changed is his belief in his ability to recruit and coach up a defense, and Ropers ability to run an offense. What must change is the results. 7-6, 4-8 and 6-5 seasons werent good enough at Florida, and probably wont be good enough at South Carolina.

Muschamp understands the skeptics. His predecessor at Florida won two national titles, and his successor won the SEC East in his first season. Hes following one of the most revered coaches in the history of the sport at South Carolina.

The only bigger surprise than Muschamp being hired by South Carolina would be if he actually does what he couldnt do at Florida and leads South Carolina to just its second appearance in the SEC Championship Game.