Welp……
“Spot The Ball” my ass. Lucy (Billy Napier) pulled the football away from Charlie Brown (Gator Nation) once again in an embarrassing 18-16 loss at The Swamp to South Florida. The Gators – and Napier – once again looked disorganized, confused, and unprepared, and never came up with clutch plays. So much for all the false hype – the 2025 season may already be on the precipice of a disastrous, miserable slog to the finish with nothing (well, maybe something) to look forward to at the end.
Florida’s offense did mostly what was expected in the first half. The running game was dominating between the tackles, Jaden Baugh was rolling, and the passing game was efficient if not exciting (I’ll come back to that). HOWEVER……penalties, poor execution, and Napier’s usual lack of feel for red zone playcalling came back to haunt the Gators. 3 trips into the red zone in the first half, and only 3 FGs to show for it. Not finishing drives, which has been a problem since Napier became head coach, once again doomed Florida. The passing game has been NOTHING as expected. DJ Lagway again failed to push the ball downfield, Napier seems averse to aggressive passing schemes, and an alleged fast and talented WR corps continues to underachieve. Vernell Brown III once again was the leading receiver – good for him, but bad for the rest of the group, having a true freshman eclipse them. Where is the (alleged) explosiveness of J Michael Sturdivant, Tre Wilson, and Aidan Mizell? And Napier once again went into a shell in a close game, regressing back to a dink-and-dunk passing attack. But even worse, he went away from the physical inside running game that controlled the first half, calling more stretch plays that allowed the undersized USF defense to run to the ball and make plays. Lagway continues to struggle physically and mentally. It’s obvious he’s still favoring his shoulder and calf somewhat, but even more alarming is not being able to exploit the intermediate zones. The Bulls – and every future opponent – played 2 high safeties all game and dared Lagway and Napier to beat them……and they couldn’t. Even when they went with a 1-high safety look and stuffed the box, Napier had no answer. Finally, the last offensive possession by the Gators was pure Rural Meyer. Instead of bleeding USF out of their last 2 timeouts and pinning them deep in their own territory with little time left, he called a pass on BOTH first down AND third down, both resulting in incompletions stopping the clock. Then, even when he could have called his own time outs to preserve some time for a last chance to come back after the Bulls took the lead, he instead let USF run the clock down to the end—true incompetence, and, sadly, all too predictable.
I’m not letting the Florida defense off the hook, either. Yes, they allowed only 18 points, but committed some crucial penalties (really – another spitting incident allowing a go-ahead drive?!), missed way too many tackles in the backfield, and somehow made another mobile QB in Byrum Brown look like a world-beater. There were numerous opportunities to end USF drives quickly and to build momentum, but the Gators never could take real control of the game. You could almost see the fire dying in the defenders’ eyes, as their effort waned late in the game. The continued absence of DT Caleb Banks is a real issue, and his alleged “minor” foot injury now appears to be another coach-speak lingering injury of more seriousness than previously shared by the staff. The lack of pressure from the Edge players is becoming a real concern as well. Things are about to get very real the next 4 games, and there are more questions than answers (again) right now.
It’s on to LSU, who looked very good in their opening win at Clemson, and will be ready to eat some Gator meat in a huge revenge game. As of now, it appears the Tigers have actually addressed their needs in the offseason – unlike Florida – and look improved and ready for a big season. I’ll need a little time to process this latest disaster and what it means going forward. Once again, Florida is already in desperation mode early in a season, and it’s beyond tiresome at this point. It’s a recurring theme, and is reflecting the definition of insanity.