By: David Wunderlich -- November 9, 2022 Everyone knew that Florida football had a lot of issues after the end of the Dan Mullen era. Call Billy Napier the Fireman, as he and his staff have successfully put out a lot of the fires. There are more to go, but it’s remarkable how many issues they’ve successfully addressed. Some of them are still provisional extinguishments, but here’s a rundown of some of the fires they’ve had to fight and what their status is now. Call Billy Napier the Fireman for having to put out so many crises | GatorCountry.com
If Florida is going to become relevant - a dominant super-power SEC Championship team again, they'll need continued progress: methodical planning, great coaching, great recruiting and great leadership. I know this is all obvious. But I feel good about the foundation that Napier is building. Seems different and refreshing. As the article mentions, more is needed. Kirby has built a pretty impressive organization in Athens. It did not happen overnight. There was great recruiting, (for years) there were coaching changes and it took time being implemented and built up. With the coaching musical chairs going on, the portal, NIL, the landscape continues to change. We need to be malleable, observant and determined. So how long does it take to recruit all the players that can field a complete team on offense, defense and special teams with the appropriate backups? I mean a super high-caliber assemblage of dedicated 4 and 5 star recruits? These are things that are in our control - I'm guessing a few years easily. That doesn't mean you can't go to the big dance sooner. Teams flounder, people get injured, others play and perform beyond anyone's expectations. I've settled into my chair and am here for the long ride. We've tasted the glory. We've dipped our toes in the evil quagmire of mediocrity. The glory and the view from the top is better. I'm trying to turn the pasts humiliation into humility and move forward proud and supportive. We have to trust the process. My serenity is directly proportionate to the amount of gratitude I can muster up at any given moment. I'm just trying to be grateful. And patient. Go Seniors. Thanks for the hard work. Beat the Gamecocks. Go Gators.
The "Fireman" analogy tells me that Napier had to deal with some negative attitudes that were getting in the way. I hope that this is the last that we hear on this subject. Hopefully, the staff and the players are now focused on becoming a good football team that will keep the players, coached, fans, and the recruits happy. More importantly, the coaches and team will not have any distractions to start 2023 off on a positive note.
