Gators HC Billy Napier, Staff Address Defensive Lapses During Bye Week
For the third season in a row, the same questions lowlight the Florida Gators' season: What is wrong with the defense? How can they fix it?
The simple answer to those questions can align with their efforts on the recruiting trail under Dan Mullen from 2018-2022. The lack of execution from a tackling standpoint and in coverage plague even the limited success they've realized in pushing opponents behind the sticks at points this season.
However, aspects of the operation still fall on the ones delegating responsibilities from the sideline to the talent on the field. For one, Florida ranks as the worst third-down defense operating at the FBS level, allowing their opponents to convert 54.4% of their attempts.
As a result, following a telling loss to LSU — firmly establishing Florida's middling status in the ranks of the SEC at the moment — the bye week came at just the right time. Gators head coach Billy Napier and his staff had the time to look in-depth at the unit's shortcomings thus far in 2022 and provide any adjustments they see fit.
"There's time for quality control," Napier explained. "We've got a pretty extensive process that we go through relative to evaluating where we're at, areas that need to get better. You can evaluate each game, and okay, 'what contributed to each game? Why did you win the games you won? Why did you lose the games you lost?'
"Essentially, that's probably what gives me comfort is we know why we've lost games. I think we know what winning football looks like, and the games we lost, we didn't deserve to win," he continued.
"Oftentimes, playing defense is not about what you're doing; it's about how you do it."
Who's doing it also has a big impact.
Napier hasn't shied away from discussing the propensity for players to be out of position on the Florida defense, causing the evident lapses that result in the lack of production of that side of the football. That's exemplified in the unit's susceptibility to allowing explosive plays.
With several players having the potential to earn the blame for a high volume of the Gators' errors, Napier and Co.'s thorough personnel evaluations, on top of the aforementioned self-reflections, continued during the bye week.
"I think, each week, you're evaluating personnel based off not only performance in the game, but also what we observe every day," he said. "I think there is more than just that handful of plays that we see on Saturday. What is each individual like from a self-disciplined standpoint, how they're living their life, what's their approach in the weight room and the training room, every meeting, walk-through, practice, rep that they take.
"We spend a lot of time with the guys. I think that's always very fluid and we're rewarding what we see. There is a number of players that have benefited from doing it the right way."
The increased usage of freshmen throughout the year and running back Lorenzo Lingard against LSU are examples of that process.
Despite the frustrations building deep within those on the outside looking in, as the long-standing clamoring for defensive change continues amid the third consecutive season of poor performances on that side of the ball, Napier stressed that those within the building are the most bothered by the lapses in that area.
His previous comments about defensive play caller, co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Patrick Toney showed that, but he reiterated such on Monday following the timely bye week.
"Nobody cares more than the players do," he said. "I know you guys got articles to write and our fans have got things to talk about around the house, but there's no one that it's more important to than the people that work extremely hard and take tremendous pride in what they do. That's exactly the approach that they've taken.
"There's nobody that's ignoring the problem. I think we've got a group of people that really care about doing their job better, and that's what they're going to try to do."
Second-year defensive end Tyreak Sapp spoke to the unit's drive after consistently underperforming.
He reiterated Napier's sentiment of embracing the work to improve from their current standing as a bottom-tier defense tied for 108th with FIU in total defense.
"We see that there's hope in there," Sapp said. "We see that we can put something — it's just another step that we can take just to break that barrier, and we understand we can take that step if we just focus a little harder, work a little harder and put a little bit more focus into it and put a little bit more emphasis on certain things."
In his eyes, the buck starts and stops upfront, especially on third downs.
"Third down and affecting the quarterback, taking some of the heat off our DBs, because our DBs over the past this season, they had off in coverage," he said when asked what area they need to refine the most. "Our linebackers as well have done an exceptional job.
"I feel like we can just upfront as rushing four, I feel like we can affect the quarterback more, just be more precise in our rushes and understand who we're actually up against."
Year one of the Napier tenure will reach its pinnacle when Florida travels to Jacksonville on Saturday to take on the country's reigning national champion and No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs. It begins the quest for noticeable development for the program's future, specifically on that side of the ball.
With just five games remaining on the schedule, the bye week provided room to tweak various areas of the defense with ample room for improvement — to put it lightly — down the stretch. Napier and his staff will look to aid the talent on the field in the best way they see fit.
"We've got a lot of football left here, and we're going to do our best to help the players improve and help the staff improve."
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