JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Jim McElwain's third game against Georgia as the football coach of the Florida Gators may have been his last in the series.
It may have been his last contest at Florida altogether.
Multiple media outlets reported Saturday that Florida administrators are discussing whether they can fire McElwain with cause after claims McElwain made last Monday about his family and players receiving death threats. McElwain never offered specifics on the threats and admitted after Wednesday's practice that he was wrong to bring up the threats, which he said had happened in the past.
Saturday's 42-7 loss to Georgia was Florida's worst since the Gators were spanked by the Bulldogs 44-0 in 1982 and dropped them to 3-4 this season.
"At the end of the day, we all were brought here to win, and we haven't done it," McElwain said. "My concern isn't about my job. My concern is about these players and our staff. We've got a fantastic staff - the coaches, support staff and their families."
McElwain led Florida to Southeastern Conference Eastern Division titles in 2015 and 2016, but the Gators were routed by Alabama in those two league championship games by an average score of 42-16. Despite McElwain's offensive background, Florida has continued to struggle on that side of the ball and managed just 249 yards against the Bulldogs.
ESPN reported that an imminent move could result in defensive coordinator and former Miami coach Randy Shannon taking over on an interim basis. Should Florida successfully fire McElwain with cause, the university would bypass his current buyout of $12.9 million.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart was asked after the game about McElwain, who was Alabama's offensive coordinator from 2008 to 2011, when Smart was defensive coordinator of the Crimson Tide.
"I've got a lot of respect for Jim and his family," Smart said. "We're very close to him and his family, and I think a lot of him. I think he's a really good football coach. As far as anything else, I'm not concerned with it."
After McElwain's comments last Monday, the university sent out a statement that afternoon saying that school officials had met with McElwain and he did not provide any additional information. The university had to send out another statement Saturday morning to refute a report that school officials had been in contact with McElwain's agent, Jimmy Sexton, about the buyout of his contract.
McElwain's mentioning of death threats dominated the headlines in Gainesville all week. Was it too much of a distraction?
"It's hard to tell," he said. "I thought our guys prepared well all week. I was made aware of the stuff this morning right before we walked into our pregame meal, and that was the first time I had heard anything of that nature."
McElwain has a 22-12 record at Florida, with Saturday marking just his second setback against an Eastern Division foe.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.