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JACKSONVILLE - By now, the picture was familiar. So, too, was the pain.
Battered and beaten, Ron Zook jogged away from another disappointment Saturday evening. Once again, the ache was chiseled into the lines across his face, from the tightness around his lips to the deepening crevices about his hollow eyes. Once again, there was a losing scoreboard over his shoulder.
For Zook, and for the University of Florida, it has become a common, cursed image, a routine snapshot of the shortcomings of a program and the coach who has been unable to lead it. The flogging will resume momentarily.
This time, however, if you are going to blame Zook for the latest dose of disarray, at least have the decency to bless him for his willingness to suffer it.
Isn't getting fired punishment enough? This is like running up the score.
Zook no longer has his job, but he still has to go to work. He is out, yet he is still in. He has to watch his players lose to Georgia. He has to witness defensive breakdowns and take the blame for silly penalties and bite his lip as a comeback falls short. He has to run off the field and listen to the fans comment. He has to go to a news conference and answer questions from the headhunters among us.
He does not have to be here. He does not have to work the late nights or the early mornings. He does not have to allow himself to be driven crazy by officials' decisions or by opponents' strategy or by reporters' questions. He does not have to go down with the ship.
Zook could have left. He could have told Florida officials to take their job and shove it in the general direction of an assistant coach. What were they going to do? Fire him again? Call him names?
He could have played golf Saturday. He could have gone fishing. He could have hung around a network studio and griped about timing and talent and lack of tenure.
Who could have blamed him? Fire most of us, and we're going to get away from the failure, as far and as fast as possible. Run us out of town, and you can mail us the check in a different state. Say what you want; fire us, and we aren't going back into the coal mine.
Give credit to Zook for this much. Other coaches might turn out the lights. Not Zook. He is like a beaten boxer who keeps wobbling out to absorb more punishment, stunned and staggered but too stubborn to stop. His job is lost, and still he works. His contract is assured, and his legacy is beyond saving, and even his closest friends are wondering who the new coach will be. Still, he works.
"I just think it's the right thing to do," Zook said. "Sometimes, coaching is a difficult profession. I promised a lot of parents that I would treat their sons like I would want my own children treated. I wouldn't want some guy to give up on my children."
Even on his way out, you have to acknowledge this to be the finest part of Zook. He has absolute loyalty to his players, unquestioned effort, uncommon dedication.
Why should he coach? Hey, you ask a quarterback to keep playing when the game is lost. You ask a team to keep playing when a season is lost. Why shouldn't a coach keep working when his job is lost?
"Coach Zook has a lot of pride in himself," linebacker Todd McCullough said. "He's not ever going to quit. It's a tribute to his character. He gave his heart and soul to this program, and this week, he gave it again."
Let's be honest. For those of us who thought it was time for a change, this doesn't change anything. In the grand scheme, not giving up is hardly the prime directive, not for a coach and not for the Gators. On the other hand, it beats the alternative.
The truth is, against Georgia there were still traces of the problems that cost Zook his job to begin with. The Gators' defense has all but evaporated - it has surrendered an average of 26 points in its six SEC games. The frequency of the penalties remain troubling. The lack of poise in the final quarter is vexing.
After all, this was the Georgia game, a virtual guarantee for Florida in most years. This time, too, the Bulldogs seemed ready to roll over. After Georgia raced to a 21-7 lead, it was as if Coach Mark Richt lost all interest in the game. He called running plays on 10 straight plays over three series, and the Bulldogs rarely found their rhythm again.
Yet, when the game seemed winnable, the Florida cave-in happened again. Under Zook, that has been the principal downfall. Consider: the Gators closed to within 24-21 with 12:20 to go, and the momentum lasted all of one play. Just like that, Georgia was headed toward the goal line again.
In the years to come, this will go down as one more frustration of the Zook era. Most fans spent much of the day already talking about the next coach. Late in the game, police came onto the field on horseback, and you half-expected Steve Spurrier to ride out on a white one to save the day.
After all, Zook's fight is over. There is no salvaging his job. There is no stopping the comments. There is no comeback to win re-election.
There is only today.
Today, Zook is still at work.