Is Stacy Searels the cure to what ails the Florida offensive line?

Over the last few weeks, I've been looking over names of offensive line coaches that have ties to Will Muschamp. The LSU game very possibly might have sounded the death knell for Tim Davis' tenure in Gainesville, so now seems like as good of a time as any to discuss the topic. There are plenty of possibilities out there, but one name keeps jumping off the page: Stacy Searels of Texas.

There are a number of reasons that particular move would make sense. Searels and Muschamp have a history, as they coached together for two seasons at LSU from 2003-04. Searels has deep ties to the South, hailing from the state of Georgia. He attended Auburn and has coached at UGA in addition to his time in Baton Rouge. Searels has a strong reputation as a recruiter (an area that Davis has been widely criticized for during his time in Gainesville). Plus he's currently on the staff at Texas. Considering how tenuous Mack Brown's hold on the head coaching job is in Austin, it makes sense for Searels to potentially look elsewhere for employment.

Now, the negatives. It's good for an offensive coordinator and an offensive line coach to be on the same page, naturally. Searels and Brent Pease have no real known connections, so we don't know if they would be a good fit together. Of course, Pease may not even be the offensive coordinator at UF by this time next season, so that factoid may not even matter. Searels' four seasons in Athens were not completely well-received. Although Georgia turned it around with a 11-2 mark in 2007, his first with the Bulldogs, they were 6-7 by the end of his tenure in 2010, with the running game being largely blamed for Georgia's offensive struggles. By the time Searels left for Texas in January of 2011, his departure wasn't exactly considered the worst development for the UGA coaching staff by the local press.

In Austin, the running game has improved, from 4.2 ypc in 2010 to 4.5 ypc in 2011 and now 4.8 ypc through the midway point of this season. These aren't Earth-shattering numbers, by any means, but they tend to show a trend of positive performance under Searels. Then, there's the matter of salary. Searles reportedly makes $439,500 per year from the Longhorns. So, perhaps he would have to consider the possibility of a paycut in the event he were to somehow end up at UF? Or maybe the Gators would consider continuing to be less-stingy with the salaries of football assistants? Either way, that could be a major factor in the pursuit of a high-profile coach like Searels.

There are other names to keep an eye on (Bob Bostad, currently an assistant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and a former OL coach at Wisconsin, is one who stands out), but if the offensive line continues to be an issue for the Gators, a move on the coaching staff is likely to happen at some point in the not-too-distant future.