Pulse on Napier

[Homer J]

Too many pages to read. Here’s my take:

Nick Saban, with tops 5 recruiting class the last 4 years played 3 teams in the current top 25. He won 1.

Billy took over a 6-7 team and played half the schedule against current top 20 teams. He won 2 lost 4.

I give him one more season to clean up the program and get some studs in to play his game. 2024 is the year we start to compete against the big boys and start winning.

 

[Spurdog98]

I’m aware of that and have already said so. I was specifically addressing the other poster who said SOS wouldn’t have a winning record if he had to play AR.

SOS would have told AR his future as a pro player was a TE and that he needed to convert. Just like he told Anquan Bolden his future as a pro player was at WR not QB and just like he told Jamarcus Russell at summer camp in 2001 his future in the NFL was at TE, not QB. Bolden went to FSU instead and ended up converting to WR and Russell went to LSU because he didn't want to play TE.

 

[Altitude Gator]

Trolling aside--this is probably the worst year to try and say that first-year coaches will always struggle; given that USC, LSU, ND, Oregon, and Washington have all improved or maintained a high level with a first year coach. All of those teams have gotten better as the season has gone on and are executing at a higher level than we are.

I get that Napier was left with a bare cupboard and most of our best players have been guys Napier brought here; but competent coaching sees us with at least 2-3 more wins this season. I really don't see any reason why we couldn't have beat 2 of Kentucky, Vandy, or f$u. The narrative around this team, program, and our future are entirely different if we're an 8-4 or 9-3 team at this point. The former sees us as a top 25 team, the latter as a top 15 team; and either scenario sees us in a much better bowl game. Don't tell me that doesn't make a difference in closing recruits down the stretch either.

TCU is also one game from the playoffs with a first year coach that took over a 5-7 team.

 

[Joegator96]

The Riley comparison is laughable. He was a top 5 coach at a great program with great players. He took several of them with him to another top program that plays in a pussy conference. Why wouldn’t he win immediately?

So are all the other first year coaches who completed the regular season in the top 20 laughable too?

 

[MJMGator]

So are all the other first year coaches who completed the regular season in the top 20 laughable too?

 

[lagator]

That's an odd reply if not downright snarky. Were you under some impression that we could have brought Riley to Gainesville? You do realize that was never going to happen for various reasons beginning with money.

There were no home-run candidates that fit the Florida mold available for our opening. I personally wanted Kiffin, but that wasn't happening either and I knew it. Some people just don't fit the culture, others have sketchy resumes, still others are simply too expensive for our almost small-minded view. Like Freeze. Auburn may want him. You'd never, ever see him at Florida, and frankly I wouldn't want him either. He's a sleaze bucket.

I thought snarky was expected? I also thought pesky amyloid plaques was pretty funny, but sorry if it offended.

The point wasn’t so much about bringing Riley here. I’m sure it could have been possible for the right price, but probably a price way more than we would be willing to pony up. The point was more that with the right hire, things can turn around quickly. And on the flip side, make the wrong hire and things can go to crap in a hurry. So far we are sitting firmly in the crapper, but it’s possible that with recruiting, the portal, and much better coaching he can turn it around. But I wouldn’t bet on it.

 

[GatorInGeorgia]

There’s no such thing as stocking the cupboard for the next coach with the portal rules.

Well according to the person who created the poll there is. If you want to be a control freak then create your own damn poll, SpongeBob SquarePants!

 

[GatorInGeorgia]

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I’m surprised cancel culture & PETA haven’t forced that meme from being pulled. It’s clearly depicting & condoning animal cruelty.

 

[Theologator]

My take,
I am surprised by the significant number of fans that are such absolutists about results. Meaning if there are not 8-9+ wins in his first year he is a complete failure and on to the next one. The fact of the matter is UF over the last 20 years has churned through more coaches than any other high-profile P5 program. A popular saying here and elsewhere is that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. In this context, like it or not, the best course for the program is to actually give him an opportunity to succeed by taking a wider picture of program performance than just W/Ls. That doesn't mean that performance on the field is not subject to criticism, but so many rather than constructive criticism, frame their criticism as a means of justifying their belief/position that Napier is a failure or was never the right coach(despite not even completing his first year). Some go so far as such trivial things like, he just isnt animated enough, or he congratulated our opponent through some coach-speak or the selective memory route, SOS would have never.... No one would give two craps if he posted 10 wins. These are not criticisms but just a manifestation of internal biases.

While not totally unexpected, the 6-6 season is still disappointing, but there were periods of visible improvement against a very challenging first-year schedule. The off-season and obviously second year is going to be determinant for me. If Napier is truly a "process guy" then I would expect some serious self-evaluation and tweeking of what he is doing as head of the program. I highly doubt it will be as extreme as hiring an OC or firing DC, but I would expect some recognition of the issues and some moves to address them. If he says its all fine and we need to try harder, I would have another flag in the negative camp for him.

On a sad side note, it looks like for at least the next 3 years, its Georgia's world and we are living in it.

I’m not so concerned about 6-6. I do see a lot of positives in the program. I was feeling good about the trajectory up until they were so unfocused at Vandy. They did play much better at fsu, just not well enough.

I like BN very much. 6-6 is not that big a deal in year 1 IF the program from top to bottom learns sufficiently from it. I think BN has the temperament, leadership and system in place to make the necessary improvements.

But the defense was a disaster. Special teams was poor. WRs were pedestrian. QB is a very unfinished project. So let’s see if he can do for them what he did for the OL and running game. My bet is that he will because he has built a structure to support the winning culture he’s shaping.

 

[Theologator]

So are all the other first year coaches who completed the regular season in the top 20 laughable too?

I don’t think they had the talent deficit or schedule we had. LSU, ND, & Oregon all lost their last games on the road, BTW. Kiffin lost to Miss St.

But there is plenty to critique in our program, and GC is our place to kick that around. I think BN will evaluate everything and everyone, and make adjustments.

 

[Concrete Helmet]

I give him one more season to clean up the program and get some studs in to play his game. 2024 is the year we start to compete against the big boys and start winning.

This X1000....I would expect a 8-4ish kind of season next year maybe 9-3 with some luck but we need to see improvements in the coaching areas others have suggested to get there. If we see that I think 2024 could see us contending for the division if not conference title. If not we'll probably be stuck in the middle of the pack for a while.

 

[78]

Who dresses this guy in the morning?

 

[Joegator96]

I don’t think they had the talent deficit or schedule we had. LSU, ND, & Oregon all lost their last games on the road, BTW. Kiffin lost to Miss St.

But there is plenty to critique in our program, and GC is our place to kick that around. I think BN will evaluate everything and everyone, and make adjustments.

That has certainly been the promise when he toured the State before the season began. His primary slide had character, knowledge, practice, and finally talent listed in that order. He was empathetic he would lean hard on accountability for everyone associated with the program to drive the process. We are getting ready to see if it was just more coachspeak to kill an hour or if he firmly believes that all participants are held to the highest standards. I'm hopeful the self evaluation period will result in shows of extreme character and knowledge as they practice and acquire talent.

 

[gatormandan]

Who dresses this guy in the morning?

Those stupid looking strangle ribbons should be outlawed anyhow.

 

[cover2]

Those stupid looking strangle ribbons should be outlawed anyhow.

Agreed. Shirt should be a little more trendy as well. Also, let the hair grow and turn it over to SuperCuts. And while he’s at it, ditch the blazer for something a little more provocative for those hard to reach mom’s on the recruiting trail…

 

[soflagator]

So are all the other first year coaches who completed the regular season in the top 20 laughable too?

The one thing I see being missed on a lot of these comparisons is that not all new coaches are in their position for the same reason. There is a huge difference between a previous coach leaving for a better opportunity after success and a previous coach being fired for failure. Teams who fire their head coaches are usually trending down already and need rebuilding.

So guys like Freeman at ND, Venables at OU and Lanning at Oregon who walked into great situations that were stable teams already don’t have the same issues to contend with.

The three main guys, outside of Napier, that followed a fired head coach are Cristobal, Riley and Kelly. Cristobal has been garbage and faced a far less difficult schedule. We talk about not seeing improvement at times here. The canes flat out quit on multiple occasions and were blown out again in the finale.

Kelly finished better than us, and did a decent job. But remember, Ed O wasn’t fired for his recruiting. He was fired because he had off field issues and isn’t a great gameday coach. Kelly’s new job was similar to Meyer/UF in 2005. Needed tweaks not an overhaul, and he still managed to get blown out twice and lose to the same team we lost to, but in a what amounts to a home game. Better year than Napier, but not by much.

Now, if Riley was available and we chose BN, we missed. He walked into a great job but one that needed a lot of work. That said, give him our schedule and I don’t see them ranked where they are. Still has been better thus far.

As I’ve said, Dykes at TCU is the lone exception, imo. I honestly can’t remember if Patterson was fired or stepped away. But regardless, SD has done a remarkable job.

I think it’s fine to be down on BN. It was a rough year. But most of these comparisons don’t work.

 

[Gator By Marriage]

The one thing I see being missed on a lot of these comparisons is that not all new coaches are in their position for the same reason. There is a huge difference between a previous coach leaving for a better opportunity after success and a previous coach being fired for failure. Teams who fire their head coaches are usually trending down already and need rebuilding.

So guys like Freeman at ND, Venables at OU and Lanning at Oregon who walked into great situations that were stable teams already don’t have the same issues to contend with.

The three main guys, outside of Napier, that followed a fired head coach are Cristobal, Riley and Kelly. Cristobal has been garbage and faced a far less difficult schedule. We talk about not seeing improvement at times here. The canes flat out quit on multiple occasions and were blown out again in the finale.

Kelly finished better than us, and did a decent job. But remember, Ed O wasn’t fired for his recruiting. He was fired because he had off field issues and isn’t a great gameday coach. Kelly’s new job was similar to Meyer/UF in 2005. Needed tweaks not an overhaul, and he still managed to get blown out twice and lose to the same team we lost to, but in a what amounts to a home game. Better year than Napier, but not by much.

Now, if Riley was available and we chose BN, we missed. He walked into a great job but one that needed a lot of work. That said, give him our schedule and I don’t see them ranked where they are. Still has been better thus far.

As I’ve said, Dykes at TCU is the lone exception, imo. I honestly can’t remember if Patterson was fired or stepped away. But regardless, SD has done a remarkable job.

I think it’s fine to be down on BN. It was a rough year. But most of these comparisons don’t work.

I’m not sure we ever had a chance with Riley. I don’t think he liked the idea of SEC. Plus, USCw has a much more compliant fan base.

 

[soflagator]

I’m not sure we ever had a chance with Riley. I don’t think he liked the idea of SEC. Plus, USCw has a much more compliant fan base.

Yes, I don’t think we were ever on his radar. Remember, it came out in the aftermath of his move that he’d been really targeting California over the last recruiting class or two. It was a calculated(and shady) move to USC and we were never a real candidate. I’m just comparing his performance, which has been pretty good so far.

 

[Gator By Marriage]

Yes, I don’t think we were ever on his radar. Remember, it came out in the aftermath of his move that he’d been really targeting California over the last recruiting class or two. It was a calculated(and shady) move to USC and we were never a real candidate. I’m just comparing his performance, which has been pretty good so far.

FTR - I think he’s a great coach and would have been my choice in an ideal world.

 

[MertzJay26]

Agreed. Shirt should be a little more trendy as well. Also, let the hair grow and turn it over to SuperCuts. And while he’s at it, ditch the blazer for something a little more provocative for those hard to reach mom’s on the recruiting trail…

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If this were Napier, I’d have no complaints about 6-6 year 1 cuz I know he’d clean up on the trail