I sure hope it works out for Coach Billy Napier. I've been around a long time and. I've seen the UF program really chew up some coaches and spit 'em out. Even the mighty Urban was a mental train wreck at the end of his time in Gainesville. Napier didn't really come across to me as knowing a lot about UF, Gainesville, and the state of Florida other than saying his one trip to the Swamp was while he was on the Saban's staff at Alabama. Napier knew that Steve Spurrier was the coach here who "threw it around the park a lot", but everybody knows that. I guess Napier knows that Florida is different than the rest of the South and UF is different from the other SEC state schools. Or does he really know what he's getting ready to get in to?
When Napier talked about how important the line of scrimmage is in football in general and the SEC in particular and put emphasis on running the ball it sounded a lot like Will Muschamp talking about what a midline is. Blue collar type stuff you know, I just hope Napier doesn't start handing out hard hat awards. Remember those? When a reporter at the press conference told the new coach that he heard Napier ran a tight ship in regards as to how a football player should learn how to carry and present himself that sounded a lot like Doug Dickey many years ago who was coming back home to Gainesville during the Vietnam War era from a very different UF from the one he knew growing up on campus and playing quarterback for the Gators in the '50s.
I've seen a lot of coaches come in here and want to do the way they did things at Tennessee when Dickey coached there or at Georgia when Muschamp played there, etc. and now it seems Napier wants to do things the way Saban did things at Alabama and the way he did things at Louisiana. It seems to me those were worthy things, but those things that worked at other times and places will not necessarily translate to success at UF. The only coach I can remember at Florida who seemingly did things completely the "Florida way" was Steve Spurrier. Florida just being Florida. But then again that was then and this is now.
I have heard the name Billy Napier in the past when his name came up for vacant jobs at Mississippi State and Auburn. I have read about and admired his work ethic and approach to football, family, and faith. I never dreamed though that he would show up one day in Gainesville as the new head coach of the Florida Gators.
Best wishes to Coach. Maybe you can show us how to be winners both on and off the field. How to temper our pride with a good dose of humility, How to have hope in the midst of all the cynicism and negativity. And one other bit of advice. Learn how to get squeeze some rest among all the hard work you plan to put in. Work is good. Real good. But too much work and no time with the family will lead to burn out real quick.