Evaluating Florida's 'scary' early-season home games vs. Miami, Texas A&M, UCF

The Florida Gators have a fascinating schedule in 2024, especially at the onset regarding some home games, and On3’s Andy Staples and J.D. PicKell reacted to it on Wednesday.

Via Andy Staples On3 on YouTube, the duo recognizes the pressure on Billy Napier from the onset, beginning with a showdown with the Miami Hurricanes, after the reaction to controversial comments made from former Florida star Princely Umanmielen earlier this week.

“There’s nothing that’s going to be said that’s going to remedy the thing that Steve Spurrier said, that Princely Umanmielen said. What’s gonna help remedy this is getting a win week one against Miami, start the season off with a bang and then we — you know, don’t even think about this,” PicKell said, regarding Florida’s current predicament.

After Staples put it perfectly, “It’s one of those crazy games where it does not matter who wins. The opposing fan base is going to want to jump off a cliff,” PicKell harkened back to his preview on the game, and explained what determining factors are going into it.

“This whole game, not to go back too far to this preview. If it were played at a neutral site, I’d probably lean pretty heavily towards Miami,” PicKell added. “Maybe that’s me, like you just said, with the recency bias. Maybe that’s me drinking the Cam Ward Kool-Aid.

“But the fact that it’s played in Gainesville, in the swamp, just throws a total variable of like, who the heck knows what’s about to happen in this game kind of feel.”

Andy Staples on Florida’s ‘scary’ early season schedule

Outside of the opener against Miami, Staples believes Florida has some other scary early season showdowns, like a clash with Texas A&M, and one against the UCF Knights.

“Nobody’s talking about Texas A&M coming to Gainesville. Like, that is a tricky one. Mike Elko is gonna have them better. Like they’re gonna be significantly better than they were last year,” Staples added. “The UCF game. Like, I realized they were scheduled, I think they’re actually scheduled by, I think one goes back days back to the Jeremy Foley as athletic director, and one is in the Scott Strickland era, but Miami and UCF playing in the same year, when you already have Florida State, and it’s a very good version of Florida State. Like, that is brutal.

“Because Miami, obviously they want to beat you. But UCF wants to beat you even worse. Like UCF, wants to go to the swamp and — now remember, they did, UCF did (win) when the last time they played. It was in a bowl game. But that was a very different situation. This one would hurt so much more. … So you’ve gotta worry about that. Like that is a scary schedule. And it’s not just — everybody keeps looking at the back half. There’s some scary stuff in the front half. … If you don’t win that game (UCF), it crushes the vibe. The vibe — vibes die on the vine.”

With such a difficult back half of their schedule, PicKell believes the Gators could be in for a disaster if they lose a couple of their early season clashes, with a specific emphasis on the UCF game.

“That’s the way that it shapes up. I mean, let’s say Miami doesn’t go your way. Let’s say you beat Samford. A&M, you know, who knows. At Mississippi State. And then that game against UCF? Like Andy, that could kind of be the one, depending on how the vibes are in Gainesville,” PicKell added. “Like, it’s not a patient bunch.

“That is the Vibe Bowl. … The fact that it’s in-state. Like UCF, as much as maybe they’re perceived as not one of those big three, they’re now a power conference school. They’re one of those schools that’s kind of trending upward.”

Staples: Billy Napier ‘probably not going to be Florida’s coach’ if he doesn’t win

Regardless, the one thing Napier can do to end all questions about his job according to Staples is simply win. That’s what it’ll all boil down to for the Gators this season.

“I get people asking me all the time, ‘What should Billy Napier do different?’ Like, there is nothing that matters that he could do different right now, in terms of like the, media strategy or what he says. None of that matters,” Staples stated. “You either win or you don’t. Like, if he goes out there and has a great season. Great. He gets to keep being Florida’s coach. If he doesn’t have a good season, he’s probably not going to be Florida’s coach. Like, that is really all it comes down to.

“And I realize that is a very simplistic and probably counterproductive way to look at that, as someone who has to host shows from now until football season starts, but that’s the truth.”

Alas, Florida has a difficult schedule in 2024, but it’s put up or shut up time for Billy Napier. We’ll see if he can get the job done this season.