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It’s more than fair to suggest that even the biggest Billy Napier supporters should have reservations about his future at the University of Florida beyond the 2024 season.
The look and feel of his UF football program these past two years, which has had too many Willie Taggart-like moments of an operation not being buttoned up, has given many Gators pause.
Even Steve Spurrier, the iconic coach paid to be a school ambassador, publicly admitted three months ago to wondering what Napier’s team was doing in certain game situations.
University of Florida football coach Billy Napier, entering his third season, has struggled to win over a Gators’ fan base that is running out of patience with the team’s mediocre performance the past two years.
This goes beyond his 11-14 record, only the second losing mark by a UF coach in the post-World War II era (Raymond Wolf went 13-24-2 from 1946-49).
It’s how Napier teams tend to self-destruct in game-deciding moments, which partially explains a 2-4 record in SEC games decided by a touchdown or less. Coming up short in nail-biters last year to Arkansas and Missouri, as part of a five-game losing streak to end a 5-7 season, has rightfully called into question his job security.
The dilemma for Florida AD Scott Stricklin, who hired Napier and fired predecessor Dan Mullen after four years of going 34-15, is how much patience will he have with Napier as he prepares to face the toughest schedule of his tenure.
With 2023 opponents South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Arkansas and Missouri being replaced by Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Texas and Texas A&M — along with Miami and UCF in non-conference play — it’s hard to find more than six wins when Georgia, Tennessee, Florida State and LSU must still be navigated.
If UF goes 6-6 with dependable veteran quarterback Graham Mertz as the primary…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/gene-frenette-napier-testing-patience-122812173.html
Author : The Florida Times-Union
Publish date : 2024-05-31 12:28:12
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