Chad Ochocinco believes Florida fans should have plenty of optimism for the future

Add Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco to the list of people that believe that Gators football is closer than the record would have you believe.

On their popular 'Nightcap' podcast, the duo affectionately known as 'Unc and Ocho' discussed this past Saturday's game, a 24-20 Georgia victory, and gave credit to the Gators for playing as hard as they did and coming within a few snaps of an improbable upset victory.

Ocho: 'Gators aren't that far away'

Saturday's effort impressed Ochocino enough to believe that the Gators are in a position to contend in the near future.

"As up and down as Florida has been, as inconsistent as they've been depending on who they're playing, the fact that they played Georgia today and played Georgia so well...I just don't understand what the problem may be with Florida," Ochocinco said. "I think they're not that far away if they can find some continuity and consistency in each game."

This is nothing surprising. We all know Florida's roster is among the best in the nation and, for reasons that have been head scratching, things were not able to come together under Billy Napier. That's part of the reason why the Gators coaching job should be the most coveted in the nation. If the Florida team that we saw against Texas a few weeks ago and saw against Saturday against Georgia, could show up every week, it could compete for a spot in the 12-team playoff bracket.

Unc clowns Gators for fourth-down play

Billy Gonzales has no regrets for the gamble on 4th-and-1 in the fourth quarter with Florida holding on to a 20-17 lead. Putting the ball in Jaden Baugh's hands was probably the right call. The Gators' 231-pound back is built for these moments. But the Florida offensive line didn't come through, and it was a turnover on downs. Georgia would score on the ensuing drive and take the lead for good. 

Sharpe still has questions about what happened on that call and why it failed so spectacularly.

"That fourth down really hurt...that wasn't even close. Did y'all know the snap count? Because it damn sure looked like Georgia knew the snap count and y'all didn't get no surge, I don't even know why y'all brought the tape [measurement] out," Sharpe said.