Look back on the history of the prior 2 NIL outfits (which were a disaster) compared to when the current NIL outfit got its sea legs underneath it. To me, it's no surprise that commits started popping for this class when they did.
Roids for most, slimfast for others NIL and portal was on coaches. Other staffs negotiated it. I think Billy underestimated the job, speed, pressure, quality big time staff. Most folks have far bigger names than CBN at every major group. He needs to rise like the phoenix from the ashes of these two seasons. Get some cyborgs, headhunters, dogs, Gators, whatever it takes. Oh, and a new faster freaking process.
Not really. I hope he does, but he knows his program better than we do. I will still give him the benefit of the doubt. I know the fans have a WIN NOW mentality. IMO we have got to get some stability to the program- and Napier is a slow build guy. I saw major issues with Zook, Muschamp, and McElwain. I don't see that w/ Napier. I see a guy who is in over his head, and has a nasty learning curve, but also a guy who can get there. IMO- the model is Dabo/ Clemson. And Dabo took a while to get there.
I can see your point, but I don't think you pay a guy what he's making right now for the results we've seen so far.
If we just teach open field tackling... I feel pretty darn good. Tacking in general is one teachable skill we should master.
Yeah- point taken. One cool thing most don't remember about Dabo is that he took a pretty low salary and let his assistants make more. He didn't get the big money until they starting winning the big games. It would go a long way if CBN cut his salary-esp to attract a top notch OC or other assistant.
I think CBN has done fairly well in the portal. Mertz, Pearsall, Montrell,Jalen Kimber, Nunnery, Mazzccua, Hudson, Waites, George, Caleb Banks and Cam Jackson have contributed this year. The big OLman from Kentucky, I think, backed out at last minute and he was expected to help in an area of need: dire need. He’s just going to have to hit it much harder than he has.
Interesting snippet from article written when Napier was fired from Clemson as OC. I see some similar issues Napier was especially young to be a coordinator at age thirty, and was a questionable hire last year for the Tigers. After serving up a 9-4 campaign in his first season, his offense in 2010 would suffer a below average performance in 2010, especially at the quarterback and wide receiver positions. His lack of success in 2010 was due to his predictability on offense. The play calling was conservative, and his offenses failed to develop any kind of identity at any point during the season, even when Andre Ellington was healthy. His tendencies were easy to read, as noted in the Boston College game, the players and personnel knew if the play was under center, it was a run; if it was in the shotgun, it was a pass. Those tendencies coupled with conservative play calling equaled the dismal, below average offense that would end up with a losing record of 6-7.
Good find Marine. Whew- that does sound familiar. Scary too. I may be in the minority, but I still think CBN can be a very good head coach. But IMO he needs to have an OC/ great DC/ then a strong Special Teams guy...
WhaT??? Hudson, Mazzccua, Waites and George were all members of our dysfunctional offensive line. They played but not well.How well did they protect against FSU three main defensive portal players? Montrell he bought with him. Kimber was beat all year. Nunnery would not have played much if James didn't did hurt. Our two defensive tackles were part of a defense that gave up miles in run yardage. Mertz and Pearsall played well. Portal players should start and actually be good.
We will know for sure in the next couple of months. Hope he doesn’t drag his feet because new coaches are being hired and are looking to build a staff.
As it stands and entirely my opinion and in no way a statement of facts. The teams most glaring weaknesses have no quick solution in place. OL, LB, Rush End. If the solution is True Freshman, like it was this year in other spots, we will suffer another losing season. Tackling, well, it's awful, I would be hard pressed to expect that to change significantly. My faith in Billy is about as low as it can get. I don't see the team reflect any of the things he preaches and hate his general approach of just get the lead and hang on. The fact he continues to fall while trying to just hang on and nothing changes gives me little hope it will ever change, the Leopard isn't going to change his spots. Changes, at minimum 1 OL coach goes and OC gets added. ST, I don't know, I would settle for someone who can get the right number of players on the field, ridiculous this even needs to be addressed. The process needs to be accelerated, even if it only provides a short term benefit, because he will be long gone if it continues at the current glacial pace. Staff, already addressed. Portal, see first paragraph. Right now, just want to make a bowl. I think we will know just about everything we need to after the Miami game. Yes, I said it, the Utah game this year was very predictive of the season to come.
Don't think we need a OC we scored plenty of points with no defense and a below average OL Fix the OL And the defenswe can play with any team
DT is a problem as well. I take everything I hear on other boards with a grain of salt because those guys are incessant with their doom and gloom but some are reporting Cam Jackson is leaving and that Norman is flirting with going back up north. With Nasir Johnson flipping to DT we would be once again trying to plug yet another hole. I'm pretty tired of having little to no depth in the same positions year after year. Also, I hate Georgia and what has become of college football. It's always been bad but the talent hoarding by a handful seems worse than ever the past ten years.
We still need an OC. I think our offense isn't THE problem as you said but Napier needs to focus on being a head coach and the OC should have a better feel for timing and situational play calling than he has shown
Overall, the sentiment I see in many forums is that while people are not happy with the lack of progress in W-L record, there is enough potential to wait and see how 2024 evolves. That's where I too am on this issue. If the O can improve slightly (with better OL and need to hit on a top notch portal receiver) and D can make rapid strides (top 30 level) then we will be competitive.
How many games would Napier had won his first year without Anthony Richardson? If the O looked like it did in the bowl game against Oregon State all year, 2, maybe 3 tops? Had Florida won only 2 last year and saw a 3-game improvement in 2023, would that change your perspective on Napier? Would be you be more optimistic going into next year? Outside of AR, how many NFL players did Napier inherit on his roster? Not many. A rebuild takes time, and Florida played some very tough teams to the wire this year. Several coaches have used the rebuild model that first you lose big, then you lose small, then you win small, and finally, you arrive, and win big. Without Richardson, Florida likely loses big most of last year. This year, you lost small. Next year, if you win small, you're probably looking at a 8 or 9 win season. If that doesn't happen next year, then you can consider starting over. But year 3 turnarounds aren't uncommon. Look at the School out West with Norvell, or Arizona this year with Fisch.
This is why I'm so skeptical. What did Chump, Mac and Mullen all have in common? Stubborn as mules, refusal to change. Similarly, Billy has indicated that he is committed to Billy Ball, which is just not very inspiring. It's primitive. Simplistic. Predictable. And worst of all, he has demonstrated either a lack of ability to adjust, or a steadfast determination not to. The consensus seems to be that he needs a solid OC. He seems to think he is that great OC he needs. I just feel like I've seen this movie before....
