It’s coming up on two decades since Urban Meyer won his first national championship with the Florida Gators. Just a couple years after that, he’d win a second, becoming a program legend even after his unceremonious departure from the program.
Now, Meyer has had the chance to look back on that time at Florida with the benefit of hindsight. That includes at least one hypothetical when he had the opportunity to debate which of his two national championship teams would win in a head-to-head matchup.
There are, of course, players who crossed over and played for both teams. But it’s still a fascinating hypothetical to put to the test.
Urban Meyer on the 2006 Florida Gators Team vs. the 2008 Team
GettyThe 2008 Florida Gators after winning the SEC
Despite the crossover that the two Florida teams would have had on their rosters, there are still significant differences between the two teams. Because of that, Urban Meyer thinks it would come down to the style of game.
“If it turned out to be a shootout, the ’08 team would beat you decent,” Urban Meyer said. “If it was a rock fight, then I think it would be a close game, and that ’06 defense would have kept you right there.”
The 2006 Florida team went 13-1, only losing a road game against Auburn. They also only gave up more than 20 points three different times that season. They had two shutouts and held five teams to 10 points or fewer.
“So ’06 defense might have been one of the best defenses ever to play, certainly at Florida, but I think in the country,” Meyer said. “When you see what they did to Troy Smith and Ohio State, they held a Heisman Trophy winner and two first-rounders at receiver and a great team to 75 total yards.”
However, Meyer believes the 2008 Florida team was on another level. Also 13-1, Heisman Trophy-winning QB Tim Tebow returned to lead one of the most explosive offenses in the country. Florida would average 43.6 points per game, scoring 51 points or more five times. The defense, meanwhile, held opponents to 10 or fewer points seven times.
“That was a whole package, man,” Meyer said. “…There’s some teams at the next level that Florida team might have beat. The Florida team, there was no weakness. There was skill players all over the field. We had the fastest team in college football. We blocked punts; our special teams were ridiculous.”
Jon Sumrall is Being Tasked With Getting Florida Back to National Championships
GettyFlorida Gators head coach Jon Sumrall
Florida is a program that has proven it can win the national championship. It’s proven it can do so under multiple head coaches. What it hasn’t done is prove that it can do so in the College Football Playoff era.
Since 2014, the first year of the College Football Playoff, Florida has had just three double-digit win seasons and finished in the AP Top 10 twice. Incidentally, Urban Meyer won another national championship in 2014 at Ohio State.
It’s gotten worse lately. Florida has finished bowl season with a winning record in just one season out of the last five.
So, in 2026, Florida is turning to Jon Sumrall. Coming off a season where he took Tulane to the College Football Playoff, he’ll be expected to do the same with the Gators and get them competitive at the highest level once again.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Ex-Florida HC Urban Meyer Picks Winner Between the 2006, 2008 Gators Teams appeared first on HEAVY.