Billy Napier identifies why Florida responds with back against wall, noise growing

There’s no animal more dangerous than a wounded Gator. On Saturday, Florida picked up a must-have win over No. 9 Texas in the Swamp. After the game, UF head coach Billy Napier explained why his team plays their best when their backs are against the wall.

“It’s more of a big-picture program, organizational philosophy in terms of what we want our program to be about, the investment in people,” Napier said. “We teach values. We prioritize education. We run a tight ship. We don’t put up with crap. They’re going to do what we ask them to do, and I think they have a healthy respect, and they chose us. They chose that experience.

“That requires a certain character from that person to sign up for that. To me, it’s a reflection of the organization as a whole in terms of what we want the program to be about.”

Florida entered the game Saturday on a three-game losing streak. In turn, many fans were calling for the school to fire Napier. Florida quarterback DJ Lagway had thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. The Gators had every reason to lose focus. Instead, they came together to pull off a massive win.

In the victory, Lagway had his best performance of the season, completing 21-of-his-28 pass attempts for 298 yards and two touchdowns, compared to one interception. Lagway wasn’t the only Gator who had a standout showing, either.

Florida’s defense held Texas to 341 total yards of offense and squeezed two turnovers out of the Longhorns. It was a familiar feeling for the Gators, who had to dig themselves out of a hole last season as well.

With five ranked opponents still ahead on Florida’s schedule, it won’t be easy for the Gators to replicate the magic they captured last season. For now, Billy Napier is worried about keeping his team focused on the process and not the results.

“Look, we cannot connect our identity to the outcome. I think it’s important,” Napier said. “Sometimes when we don’t get the results we want. It’s in our nature to compromise, to blame others and not be accountable… I think it’s important not only for myself and our staff, but we’ve got to be very consistent and fair.

“We have to define expectations for the players and then we have to hold them accountable. Look, it’s a game. Winning football looks a certain way, and you’re going to lose if you play the way we played in the past. We’ve got to keep it technical and show them, ‘Hey, this is how you get the result that you want.’ And, they did that today.”