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Thanks for the rose petals, but Meyer is ahead of them all. It's that sense of urgency that lifted Bowling Green from MAC afterthought to 17 victories in two years. The same goes for Utah, which went from mid-major to major player in the BCS.
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Yeah, he has won with other coach's players, but the key is he has won. Bruce Weber and Roy Williams got to Monday's national championship game in basketball with other coaches' talent. Winning trumps all the other hands in this business. And Zook left Meyer loads of talent.
"That's a great football team," Zook said in St. Louis before that championship game.
Meyer is a detail guy. He didn't get this far cutting corners. Everything about Florida football will be buffed to a brilliant sheen when the Gators kick off against Wyoming on Sept. 3.
He has established a leadership committee of players to enhance team chemistry. Players -- and students -- have been made to memorize the school song. That's a little bit proactive for Gator Nation, 35 percent of which -- according to one Internet poll -- thinks Meyer will win a national championship within two years.
To be honest, the whole Leak thing is blown beyond all proportion. Fans are concerned that Leak, mostly a drop-back passer in the past, will be made into an option guy like Alex Smith.
Did anyone realize that Leak is arguably a better athlete and thrower than Smith? And good coaches do tweak their systems to fit their talent. Expect Leak to be better than Smith and chase a Heisman this year.
"That's the burning question I get asked a lot," Meyer said. "The question is: Is he athletic enough? Of course he is."
A pep rally (for a spring game?) was planned for Friday night. Orange and blue wristbands will be sold for $1 each with 50 cents of it going to the Children's Miracle Network. The losing color in the Orange and Blue game will join players in planting trees for a community service project on April 16.
"He's been amazing," said Jonathan Clouser, a senior at Pi Kappa Tau.
Meyer has come a long way in a hurry from Bowling Green, where one sorority girl asked him what the school colors were. Utah is part commuter school where 300-400 students were showing up for home games. Because of Meyer's momentum, those students number in the thousands and have a name -- MUSS (Mighty Utah Student Section).
That strategy of interaction hasn't changed.
"A year ago, there was a big fight," Meyer said of the frat altercation. "Across the country, that's what the perception is. One way to alleviate perception is, the coach gets around."
Speaking of perceptions, Meyer has had to shoot down reports that he ran a play near the end of the Fiesta Bowl specifically to show Gator Nation what was coming.
"I knew the entire country and Gator Nation was watching the game," Meyer said. "No, that wasn't (true). People at Utah would go berserk."
Another sensitive subject: Meyer did use Utah film to show Florida receiver recruits. But only a small amount, he said, "to see how they fit in. ... We try to be very respectful."
That recruiting resulted in a top 10 class that will try to be a part, at some point, of Florida's first SEC title since 2000. It can be argued that the program was sliding before Zook arrived. But it was where Meyer always wanted to be, especially when he compared offers from Notre Dame and Florida side by side. Everything came up Gator.
Bottom line: There was a better chance to win now and for the long term.
"I became a fan in the 1990s," Meyer said. "I loved watching Florida play. It was the style, it was the fans, it was The Swamp, it was everything about it."
Meyer is ahead of them all. While his star has risen, his family has been almost transient. The life of a coach, sure -- there is a personal price to pay. Since 2000, the fam has lived in South Bend, Ind.; Bowling Green, Ohio; Salt Lake City; and Gainesville.
What none of the adorers know is that this is where Meyer is going to plant his flag. Apparently, he's going to retire here or ... or what?
"It's hard on your family," Meyer said of all the moving. "I promised them that won't happen again."