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<p>South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp, right, communicates with defensive back Steven Montac (22) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, in Columbia, S.C. South Carolina defeated Missouri 31-21. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)</p>

South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp, right, communicates with defensive back Steven Montac (22) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, in Columbia, S.C. South Carolina defeated Missouri 31-21. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)

Joey Ivie remembers Will Muschamp well.

He remembers the former Florida coach coming to visit him at Pasco High School. He remembers all the phone calls. He remembers the in-home visit when Muschamp and a pair of other coaches showed up to find Chinese takeout awaiting them on his family’s dinner table.

And even though Muschamp was fired two years ago, Ivie still feels a connection with the coach who brought him to Florida.

“You still always, I guess you could say, have that friendship feelings for the coaches that were here,” Ivie said.

For Muschamp, the feeling is mutual.

“I admire a lot of those guys,” he said. “... But at the end of the day, when the game starts, it doesn’t really matter who’s tearing across that sideline.”

His sentiment applies to both sides, of course. Muschamp and Florida’s players all said they won't feel overly sentimental about facing each other.

Nevertheless, Muschamp’s return to The Swamp on Senior Day makes for an awkward new chapter in his history with Florida given that he recruited all of UF’s seniors. He’s now tasked with making their last game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium — a place he undoubtedly once promised them they would remember fondly — one that haunts them.

Meanwhile, the Gators are hoping that the changes implemented by coach Jim McElwain after Muschamp’s firing will lead them to a victory over their former coach.

But just what are those changes?

On Monday, three players took to the lectern to field questions from reporters and all three were asked the same one: What’s been the biggest difference since McElwain took over?

“The chemistry 100 percent has changed,” Ivie said. “From my freshman year to now we’re a completely different team. I can look at from the kicker to the quarterback to the offensive linemen and call them for anything.”

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Added linebacker Daniel McMillian: “I noticed that as a team we come more together. I see myself hanging with players that I never hung with before, such as offensive linemen. Special teams, they so funny. The funniest people on the team.”

And then there was receiver Ahmad Fulwood, who took a different angle.

“He just established that we have really good players," Fulwood said. "It was apparent to us that he was right and that we do have talented players, and we could be as good as we want to be.”

In short, things have definitely changed. But whether those changes will mean anything against Muschamp’s Gamecocks is another question.

It probably wouldn’t have been much of a question just three weeks ago when South Carolina was 2-4. But following wins over UMass, Tennessee and Missouri, the Gamecocks feel rejuvenated. And with a win against UF, they stay alive for a chance to play for the Southeastern Conference Championship.

Meanwhile, Florida needs a win to retain control of the SEC East but wouldn’t be eliminated with a loss. But if the Gators lose, their chances of making a second-consecutive trip to the Georgia Dome plummet.

Even with the added motivation to defeat his old team, though, Muschamp remained firm in his feelings about Florida.

“There’s no hard feelings,” he said.

“There’s no animosity. There’s no grudge.”

But does he want to be the cause of Florida’s conference title hopes taking a massive blow?

“Oh, no doubt,” Fulwood said.

Contact Ethan Bauer at ebauer@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @ebaueri.

South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp, right, communicates with defensive back Steven Montac (22) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Nov. 5, 2016, in Columbia, S.C. South Carolina defeated Missouri 31-21. (AP Photo/Sean Rayford)

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