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What if Dalvin Cook had chosen UF?

 
Dalvin Cook has already set a Florida State single-season record for rushing yards. He initially committed to Florida.
Dalvin Cook has already set a Florida State single-season record for rushing yards. He initially committed to Florida.
Published Nov. 24, 2015

GAINESVILLE — As No. 10 Florida prepares to face No. 14 Florida State, Gators coach Jim McElwain is gushing about star RB Dalvin Cook.

"That guy is special now," McElwain said Monday. "Somebody told me he was committed here or something. Wonder how he ended up there."

The more interesting question heading into Saturday's game in Gainesville is this: What would the rivalry game look like if Cook had signed with the Gators instead of the Seminoles?

Cook was committed to UF for almost nine months before he flipped to the Seminoles in December 2013. He made an immediate impact last year as a freshman, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. The rest of the 'Noles averaged 3.3.

If Cook gave a similar boost to UF's ground game, he would have averaged almost 7.9 yards per attempt under Will Muschamp's run-reliant philosophy. Would Cook's big-play ability have been enough to rescue UF's offense and save Muschamp's job?

It's no secret that the Gators' run game is struggling. Thanks in part to an inexperienced and injured offensive line, UF ranks outside the top 100 in yards per game and per attempt.

FSU's offensive line is similarly raw and banged up. But Cook has found a way to set FSU's single-season rushing record with 1,475 yards. Cook's 18 rushes of at least 20 yards double UF's team total.

In UF's only loss, the Gators ran for only 55 yards at LSU. Cook has passed that total in every game but one this season.

"I mean, this guy has it," McElwain said.

If Cook would have jolted the Gators' offense, consider what his absence would have meant to FSU. Despite missing seven quarters due to injury, Cook has accounted for 35 percent of FSU's total yards. A collapsed lung has limited Cook's top backup, Mario Pender, to only three games. The Seminoles' next two options, Johnathan Vickers and Jacques Patrick, combined for one career carry entering the season.

The fickle nature of recruiting fills college football with what-if scenarios. But had Cook not made what he called a business decision to flip to FSU 23 months ago, it's fun to wonder how different Saturday's outcome and stakes would be.

COACHING CAROUSEL: As rumors intensify that LSU might fire coach Les Miles, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and Sports Illustrated peg FSU's Jimbo Fisher as perhaps the Tigers' top target.

The speculation makes sense. Fisher coached the 'Noles to the 2013 national title and is a strong recruiter (four top-six recruiting classes in the past five years). He spent seven seasons as LSU's offensive coordinator and helped the Tigers win the 2003 national championship.

Fisher followed his policy by declining to comment on LSU and a coaching job that isn't open. Fisher did say that when such speculation comes up on the recruiting trail, he tries to take it as a compliment.

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"Tell me when you don't hear it," Fisher said Monday. "I mean, it's just part of life."

INJURY UPDATES: UF will have a depleted defensive line when it tries to slow Cook. DE Alex McCalister (foot) and DL Jordan Sherit (hamstring) are both expected to miss Saturday's game. McElwain said star DT Jon Bullard (knee) is "probably out," and Joey Ivie (leg) is among the three other tackles who might not play. OL Antonio Riles, a former defensive lineman, will likely have to play defense for the second game in a row.

MISCELLANY: McElwain will continue to assess UF's kicking game; Austin Hardin has missed two of his past 10 extra points and three of his past five field goals. "It's beyond me," McElwain said. … McElwain said UF did "everything we could" to support QB Will Grier during his appeal over a year-long drug suspension. The NCAA denied that appeal last week.

Contact Matt Baker at mbaker@tampabay.com. Follow @MBakerTBTimes.