Napier has Florida prepared, confident for daunting opener

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) – Billy Napier says his spouse was “burning me up” over the weekend with questions on Florida’s most daunting season opener in class historical past.

Napier, fortunately, had all of the solutions. His gamers in all probability would have, too.

The primary-year Florida coach has mapped out each facet of the workforce’s routine heading into his debut Saturday evening in opposition to seventh-ranked Utah. Walkthrough on the lodge? Examine. Pregame meal? Examine. Bus trip to the stadium? Examine. Gator Stroll amongst followers? On-field warmups? Celebratory entrance into the Swamp? Examine, test, test.

The detail-oriented Napier, who makes his workforce put on matching white socks for each apply, has deliberate, plotted, and perfected each minute of every day.

“I feel preparation is the important thing to confidence,” Napier stated.

If that’s the case, the Gators must be feeling like 10-point favorites by now.

It stays to be seen how a lot of a distinction all these discussions and costume rehearsals will make when underdog Florida takes the sphere in opposition to the defending Pac-12 champions, who ended final season with a loss to Ohio State within the Rose Bowl.

Florida, in the meantime, completed 6-7 after firing coach Dan Mullen following an time beyond regulation loss at Missouri in November.

Athletic director Scott Stricklin employed Napier days later, tasking him with main the Gators again to prominence after 13 years and not using a Southeastern Convention or nationwide championship.

Considered one of Napier’s first duties, as cliché because it sounds, was to instill extra self-discipline in a program that clearly lacked it lately. The Gators misplaced at residence to reeling LSU in 2020 as a result of cornerback Marco Wilson tossed an opponent’s shoe following a third-down cease, they usually ranked thirteenth within the SEC and 122nd within the nation final 12 months in penalties.

“He got here in and structured every part,” tight finish Dante Zanders stated.

Napier took the identical method for recreation day.

“He desires to verify every part is ready in order that when it comes all the way down to the sport, there’s no excuses to the place: ‘Oh, I didn’t know I wanted to be right here. I forgot this. I left this at residence. Or, oh, I forgot that we had conferences right now,’” Zanders stated.

The Gators have each purpose to be amped up for Utah, a 2 1/2-point favourite in response to FanDuel Sportsbook. Florida has misplaced 10 of its final 16 video games, and few outsiders would put the once-proud program in any class aside from rebuilding mode; Napier’s workforce was picked to complete fourth within the SEC’s Japanese Division.

“We’ve a chip on our shoulder this 12 months,” punter Jeremy Crawshaw stated. “We need to show ourselves. We’re coming for every part. … We knew we didn’t play as much as our customary final 12 months, however we’ve come hungry each time, each apply, each carry session, each movie session. We’re hungry, and we’re speaking about it.”

Florida’s opener has been talked about for months. It marks the primary in a collection of high-profile video games Stricklin has scheduled lately, an inventory that features North Carolina State, Cal, Colorado, Arizona State, Texas and Notre Dame.

The sport is bought out, and greater than 10,000 Utah followers are anticipated to be in Gainesville – perhaps even within the Swamp – because the Utes start protection of their convention title with their highest preseason rating ever.

Napier, in the meantime, is making an attempt to keep away from historical past. Florida owns the nation’s longest lively successful streak in residence openers at 32.

The Gators final dropped a house opener in 1989, when Mississippi received 24-19 at Florida Discipline. Steve Spurrier changed Galen Corridor the next 12 months.

And no first-year Florida coach has misplaced his debut since Charley Pell in 1979. Corridor, Spurrier, Ron Zook, City Meyer, Will Muschamp, Jim McElwain, and Mullen received their debuts by a mean rating of 46-10.

In fact, none of these guys opened in opposition to a ranked workforce. Florida has performed simply two ranked groups to start out seasons — No. 7 Houston in 1969 and No. 15 Miami in 1982 — and received each.

Napier welcomed the problem and referred to as it a “carrot” for his workforce. Nonetheless, he admittedly has felt higher about openers earlier than. In any case, he was at Louisiana-Lafayette the final 4 years, and the routine there had turn out to be extra ingrained with each season.

Napier expects to have jitters, perhaps even butterflies and goosebumps, as he jogs into the packed Swamp for his first actual recreation. No variety of mock-ups – or questions from his spouse — would assist him keep away from these.

“I don’t assume I’m ever going to be past that,” he stated. “I feel, as a competitor, soccer specifically, you’re employed the whole 12 months and also you solely get so many alternatives to compete.

“I feel what I’ve discovered over time is the essential half is that how do you get to a spot the place you’re nicely ready and you’ve got confidence.”