Billy Napier Blames Fans on Social Media for Lack of Focus
By Tucker Harlin
Is Lake City Larry trying to make a run at Tyler from Spartanburg for biggest nuisance to a college football coach?
Billy Napier seems to think so.
Florida’s 41-17 loss to Miami was the worst margin of defeat it has suffered in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium since the 27-2 loss in the Sunshine Bowl back in 2015.
The Gators have a lot to learn from their horrific loss to the Hurricanes, and Napier made that a point in his Monday availability.
“We’ve got to go to work on the football part,” Napier said. “We’ve got to become a more consistent team, and we have to execute better.”
All of that is normal dialogue between a coach and media during an availability.
What followed is anything but normal.
“If we can focus on those things and not necessarily some guy in his basement is saying in, you know, rural central Florida on social media, we’ve got a chance to get better.”
Billy Napier with a dig at fans who post criticism on social media from basements in rural central Florida:#ChompedSports #SEC #CFB #Gators pic.twitter.com/lfV7nk9PcP
— Chomped Sports (@ChompedSports) September 2, 2024
This statement is one a coach might tell his team in a private locker room setting, but letting the media get ahold of such a statement isn’t going to help an already impatient fan base.
The jort-wearing Gator fans hold their football coaches to an incredibly high standard, and Napier is the first among the last four to not record a season with 10 or more wins in his first two years on the job.
The brand of football Napier coaches is not an innovative one; it’s a ball control offense that is content to gain between four to six yards per play.
The trouble with Napier running that style is it’s not backed by a defense that can slow down opposing offenses with faster tempos, leaving the Gators in insurmountable deficits.
Add in the fact that Napier and the Florida NIL collective are caught up in a lawsuit with one-time commit Jaden Rashada, and the situation is getting really nasty in Gainesville.
So… maybe don’t publicize the fact that you’re paying attention to what Lake City Larry is saying?
