Maybe the biggest problem when Florida hired Ron Zook to replace Steve Spurrier was this: In the minds of all but the most blindly loyal Gators fans, it was never a matter of if, only when Zook would be fired.

It happened Monday, and the way it went down was probably worse than what anyone could have guessed.

A shouting match at a fraternity house. A loss to one of the 10 worst teams in the country. Sure, Spurrier had forgettable moments in his 12 seasons with the Gators, but never anything like this.

After Florida’s humiliating 38-31 loss to Mississippi State last weekend, there was no more getting around the truth that had been bubbling in Gainesville for a long time. Not only have the once-mighty Gators regressed under Zook’s 2½-year tenure — most people expected a little setback — they have become something of a laughingstock around the country.

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Zook is a good, honest man, and the saddest thing about his failure is that it really isn’t all his fault.

As expected, he brought in top-10 signing classes in all three of his seasons, which is exactly why athletic director Jeremy Foley went out on a limb and hired the lifetime assistant back in January 2002.

Zook is a hard worker, a great recruiter, a loyal coach and employee. He just wasn’t ready to be a head coach, and it was Foley’s refusal to accept that reality that put him in the horrible situation of having to fire his good friend three years later.

“I accept full responsibility for making that decision that has not panned out as we all envisioned,” Foley said.

It’s an article of faith among leaders of big-time college programs that you don’t put a first-time head coach in charge of football. And if you do, he needs to have a resume much more polished than Zook’s was. As much as getting a grasp on managing games, coaches need to learn about the politics, the boosters, the public-relations aspects of being a top guy, and they need to do it at a lower level before they take over one of the top programs in the country. (Can Florida even make that claim anymore?)

Foley ignored the conventional wisdom. After Mike Shanahan and Bob Stoops turned down the job, Foley went to “The Zooker,” as he calls him, and conceded that had Zook turned down the job, there would have been nobody else left on his candidates’ list.

The theory, as Foley explained it then, was that signing day was nearing, he needed to get a coach quickly, and there was no time to sift through the backgrounds and baggage of some of the other names flying around at the time — Rick Neuheisel and Jon Gruden, to name a few.

Foley may have been right. The problem, though, came in having a list with only three names.

Zook tried to ignore the constant negativity aimed his way — see fireronzook.com — and kept plugging away, the ultimate grinder at a school that got used to having a quick-witted showman leading the way.

The embarrassments came quickly and they were about more than just losing or the incident at the fraternity house.

Days before his first Florida State game, Zook made the boneheaded PR move of placing an unprecedented gag order on his team, even though it was the Seminoles who were in turmoil at the time. He said it was to keep the Gators focused. They lost 31-14.

A few weeks later, Florida lost to Michigan in the Outback Bowl when Zook called for a receiver to pass to Rex Grossman on a late drive that would have tied the game. It was the college equivalent of turning John Elway into a receiver with 2 minutes left. The pass got intercepted. After the game, Zook made the startling concession that he’d let his assistants talk him into calling the play.

The list goes on, but the results stayed the same. Zook is 20-13 with four games left. Spurrier lost 27 times in 150 games.

“It was a culmination of disappointments — a lot of different things,” Foley explained.

Ironically, the timing of the firing may be the best decision Foley has made in regards to Zook’s tenure.

Zook will coach out the rest of the season, and his players — most of them as stubbornly loyal to him as he is to them — will almost surely play hard for him. It would come as no surprise to see the Gators win this weekend against Georgia, which would make Zook 3-0 against Florida’s archrival.

But the best thing about the timing is it gives Foley some breathing room to make a good decision. Already, Utah’s Urban Meyer is being considered a candidate because he’s got a sharp football mind and because Florida’s new president came from Utah.

Whether it’s Meyer, Stoops or — could it really happen? — an answered “S.O.S” call for the return of Stephen Orr Spurrier, Foley needs to make a long list, interview thoroughly and make the right choice.

Because some day, Zook might get another chance. Athletic directors, however, usually only get one do-over on a decision this important.