Napier building a foundation of toughness, resolve within Gators

JACKSONVILLE — Quitting is easy and once you’ve quit, doing it again becomes easier. Last year’s group of Florida Gators showed they would quit in 2021. It’s hard to blame them after their head coach quit on them. But, still, they showed that when things get tough, when adversity strikes, they may pack it in.

That isn’t in Billy Napier and he won’t stand for it in his football program.

Napier took over a Florida program that hasn’t performed to its expectations or standards since Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow were on campus. The Gators have had some success. Florida went 11-2 in 2012. They won the SEC East in 2015 and 2016 in a watered-down division. UF won 22 of its first 25 games under Mullen but only made it to Atlanta in 2020, losing to Alabama in the SEC Championship. Then, the Gators promptly quit in the Cotton Bowl that season.

It’s in them and Napier knew it needed to change.

That process began during the offseason workout program. Players would be tested mentally and physically. They would be given opportunities to quit during workouts.

“It was one of the things that the players felt like needed to improve. One of the things you do that I really believe in, is you ask a lot of questions in the beginning, right? Where are we? What are the issues? What are the things that we need to resolve? And I think togetherness was one of those things,” Napier said Saturday night in Jacksonville.

“I think how hard you play is a reflection of what type of teammate you are. I firmly believe that. When you turn the tape on, if you’re loafing, there’s a lack of effort on the film, then you’re not a very good teammate. So I think you start there. I told the players in the locker room just now, as long as I’m coaching here, we’re going to play this game for the people that we play with. And I think that that takes time to develop. I think we’re getting somewhere in that regard.”

Gators dig a hole to lie down in

Florida came into the game a 22.5-point underdog. Georgia hadn’t been favored by this much since Harry Truman won the Presidential election over Thomas E. Dewey in 1948. Nobody expected Florida to win or even compete.

The Bulldogs forced Florida to punt on its first five drives. The Gators’ defense came out tough, forcing Georgia to punt on its first drive. Then the Bulldogs scored on its next two possessions to make the game 14-0.

Jadarrius Perkins wrestled the ball away for his first interception as a Gator on the fourth drive.

Georgia scored on the next drive on an absurd 73-yard touchdown catch by Brock Bowers. Linebacker Amari Burney played the wheel route to near perfection. He deflected the pass, it bounced off his hand, then his helmet, it was tipped up by Bowers as Burney fell to the ground leaving nobody between Bowers and the end zone.

21-0 Georgia.

The Bulldogs built a 28-3 halftime lead, plenty of reason to pack it in and just get out of Jacksonville as quickly as possible.

A challenge accepted

Napier went into the locker room and challenged his football team. Play for each other, the man to your left and your right is depending on you.

The players responded.

Georgia hadn’t given up a touchdown in the third quarter of any game this season. Florida took the kickoff to start the third quarter and proceeded to go on a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to bring the score to 28-10.

Amari Burney forced a fumble on the next drive, which Florida converted into a field goal. He intercepted Stetson Bennett by jumping into the passing lane with an athletic move (see below), and UF converted that into a touchdown to make it a 28-20 game.

Georgia would score the game’s final 14 points and the Gators’ offense couldn’t respond.

It will take time

This isn’t a moral victory. It’s not a participation medal. Fans — and even I — spent years making excuses for Mullen’s recruiting. The coach was so good on Saturday dialing up ball plays that it didn’t matter. Mullen was fired for thinking he could out-coach lazy recruiting. His lazy recruiting left this roster, and yet, there is a small, vocal segment of the fan base already calling changes on a brand-new staff.

Napier inherited a broken program. A locker room with players more concerned about their personal playing time and statistics than wins and losses. It will take time to change that mentality. You’re already seeing the fruits of the labor that was put in during the offseason.

These Gators aren’t as good as Tennessee, LSU or Georgia, but they’re growing. They play hard for each other, harder than they did last year. It’s just eight games into the Billy Napier era. The Gators weren’t going to win the SEC East this season.

They’re years behind Georgia in terms of recruiting. That’s the reality. This year is about laying the foundation for a winning program. Step one was building a winning culture and, even in losses, you’re seeing that attitude begin to form.

“There’s a lot to play for. There’s a lot. No doubt, We ain’t stopping here. We’re looking forward to going out and running the table,” defensive lineman Tyreak Sapp said. “(That) ain’t no problem with that for us. We’re just going to go out, get out here and work during these couple of weeks and get ready to be successful. Because that’s all that you’re going to see from us from here on out – successful.”