Florida football is back in action for Week 6 after coming off a bye week as the Gators host the UCF Knights this Saturday.
Before the bye week, head coach Billy Napier and his Gators got a much-needed victory on the road against Mississippi State. Quarterbacks Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway played well while Florida’s defense against the run was lackluster.
UCF is coming off a 48-21 blowout loss at home against the Colorado Buffaloes, so the Knights will be looking for a bounce-back performance in Gainesville this Saturday.
It will be interesting to see the adjustments, if any, that the Gators might have made coming off a bye week as they face a UCF team that has success in running the ball which is this Florida defense’s kryptonite.
Napier met with the media on Monday and here’s everything that stood out from the press conference.
Napier talks about the bye week
“I do think our football team got better,” Napier said. “We had three really good practices—Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday—and I think the staff and players did a great job competing.”
Napier went on, “All three days were very competitive. One of the better open dates I’ve been a part of. And I think that we’re hopeful that we improved in a lot of areas there that can help our team going forward.”
Napier talks about facing UCF this week
“This week’s a big week,” Napier said. “UCF, obviously, an in-state opponent right down the road that’s recently made the jump into the Big 12 and P4 football and they have a very established staff.”
Napier went on to say, “I think coach (Gus) Malzahn, just a tremendous amount of respect for his career…I think he’s a really good coach. Their rushing attack, the quarterback run game, the three-level shots, the complimentary plays, (are) really a challenge there for our defense.”
Napier on the importance in starting out fast
“I think starting fast is critical to play and win in football,” Napier said. “And certainly when you play at home, if we’re able to get the crowd into the game, it’s a big piece of the puzzle.”
Napier continued, “We’ve got to start fast. We got to get our fans involved. And I think we did that a little better at Mississippi State. I think that was a big part of the game.”
Napier addresses the problems on defense
“I think between play processes, I think playing against tempo, I think that, overall, that group needs a little bit more consistency,” Napier said. “I think our ability to do it down in, down out. You know, like we did a good job on third down at times. But like we talked about before, there’s four or five possessions in the game where it’s like we disappear.”
Napier went on, “So all the research that we did this past week, it’s alignment, it’s assignment, it’s techniques, it’s fundamentals. Those are the areas that we spent a lot of our time on this past week.”
Napier talks about defending UCF quarterback KJ Jefferson
“Just the physical challenge of getting the guy (Jefferson) down, not only when he’s a passer that’s extending the play, but also when he’s a design runner,” Napier said. “He’s a big man and there’s a certain part of the challenge in playing against a player like that. So we definitely have made cut ups and are trying to teach and anticipate that from the players’ standpoint.”
Napier praises Mertz and Lagway
“I think, ultimately, Graham (Mertz) had a phenomenal week and that translated to play really good in the game,” Napier said about the quarterback play against Mississippi State. “I thought DJ (Lagway) did a lot of really good things too.”
Napier went on to talk about the relationship between the two quarterbacks:
“It’s healthy, man. That’s what I’m gonna tell you. Like they’ve got a relationship. It’s fun to go to that room every day. It’s fun to be on the grass with them every day, to see them work together, prepare together.
“So I think the big thing is the character of both guys, their humility, their selflessness, the confidence that they have and the way they’ve affected their teammates in a positive way. That’s the big thing.”
Napier will continue to use the dual quarterback system
“So I think both players (Mertz and Lagway) got better last week and I think they both took reps with both groups,” Napier said. “So we’re gonna stick to our plan there, and I think we’ll do what we think those players are capable of doing when we call the game. I think that’s an important part.”
Up next for the Gators
The Gators host the UCF Knights in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 7:45 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.