I am OK with our program (retrospective; long rant)

I like your passion, and you are correct, the team did not improve offensively; but I put that on AR. The light never came on for AR (as it did for Will Grier), and the 2022 season was incredibly disappointing! Personally, I don't fault Napier for AR's inability to execute passes. Napier had some issues--clock management and the offense often didn’t have a sense of urgency when behind; but I liked most of his playcalling. The most frustrating aspect of the season was watching AR miss wide open receiver's, badly!!! Hell, you or I could have thrown the ball better (in some instances)! AR has one hell of a arm and can make throws that some quarterback's cannot make. So, I will at least say he can make some darn good throws! He just was not consistent.

I'm in agreement that I'd like to always see the football squad get better. You appear to have certain expectations, and I'd appreciate hearing what you and others want to see next year.

Unfortunately, I am not sure we will see improvement at the quarterback position in 2023. The quarterback room, next year, doesn't excite me and that includes Rashada (predominantly he's too green and inexperienced.) I am undecided about Miller, and I hope he really develops into the starting qb. Mertz is a mop up only qb. I fear the OL will disappoint next year, because they lack experience working together as a unit. If it takes most of 2023 for the OL to come together will you and others be understanding? I think the offense could be weaker than in 2022, and I think it would be a mistake to expect the defense to be better in 2023 without Ventrell.

Now, let me contradict myself and I hope this is the scenario: Miller or Rashada catches on and the OL performs decently. If the offense can move the chains and score points, I think the defense will do fairly well. I still have a hard time seeing us having a winning season, though. Any team we play, who is better than our quarterback, should be favored.

Consider the 2023 schedule:
Utah
McNeese State
Tennessee
Charlotte
Kentucky
Vanderbilt
South Carolina
Georgia
Arkansas
LSU
Missouri
Free Shoes University
I see us winning McNeese State and Charlotte. I am not sure about the other games. I think we lose against Utah, Tennessee, and Kentucky, at which point we are 2 and 3. I think we lose six out of seven of our final games for a 4 and 8 record and no bowl game. Vandy is the only iffy game of whether we win or lose. If Vandy wins, we are 3-9. Can you handle that? I think that's the worst case scenario. Best case scenario is that we are 6-6. Your thoughts!

 

This is why players should keep their mouths shut.

There IS NO RESOUNDING THEME. McClellan is ONE player -- a freshman -- who made one statement about what he heard other players thought. He was recruited by Napier, he never played under Mullen, he had no idea of what it was like to play under Mullen, and he heard some guys saying some things and now it's the damn narrative.

There is no evidence - NONE WHATSOEVER - of this being true beyond McClellan's personal, admittedly uninformed opinion. Likewise, there's NO EVIDENCE that Napier runs a tighter, more disciplined, more accountable program than Mullen. He might, but he certainly didn't hold his QB accountable for bad play. He didn't hold his DC accountable for the defense's pathetic performance.

 

I don’t have any specific demands or expectations other than what I already said above. I’d like for the team to improve game by game.

I’m not big on predicting wins or losses. I have no control over it and can’t do anything about it either way, so I don’t invest the time in it. Same goes for predicting the overall record. I know some people enjoy it, it’s just not my cup of tea. Still kind of on that same topic, I will say that I never call for a Gator loss before the game is played. Doesn’t mean I expect to go undefeated, just that I believe we CAN win any of them.

Probably not what you’re looking for, but that’s my stance.

 

I’d hate for you to be right but I can certainly see that happening and our coaches being powerless to change it. We just don’t have many proven players. I wouldn’t be surprised to see us 8-4 either but a lot of things have to materialize . We have no qb or line.

 

Fair enough. Yes, that's why the game is played. Wanne, again, sums it up well. We have an unproven line and quarterback, so our expectations need to be measured

 

Everybody understands your positions. We don't need to read any more. They are appreciated but it has moved into insults and that's enough. Thanks!

Edit: They were both very well-supported positions and what a lot of folks would like to see more of in Swamp Gas.

 

He was a troll . . .

 

I can't say anything more than if AR was more Tebow-like in his play in all the games this year the outcomes of some would have been different. Maybe I said too much.

 

You don't know any of this to be true. You suspect it. Your opinion weighs as much as you weighed McClellan's . . . except he was IN the program so he heard from others that were around when Mullen and friends coached.

 

We don’t even know who our line is much less if they are any good or not. Offensive lines take time even if you have the talent.

 

LOLOLOLOL!!!

Seriously????

After your tome of an OP???

 

We haven't seen much of you @92gator . . . Glad you're back posting with us.

 

Fellow Gator fan, I think we all want the same thing--a winning team on and off the field. And actually there is ample evidence, beyond just what McClellan said. I have noticed what player's leaving have stated in their exiting remarks, thanking Mullen first for what be did for them as a coach via Twitter. You can say that should be expected, but when the commendations are really rosy for Mullen and a much different tone for Napier, common sense tells you wants going on. And I am crediting you with common sense, as I write. I do realize that your response to this whole matter was highly charged, and I hope you look at this situation with a filter other than your emotions. Emotions interfere with objectivity. For example, to say that there's no evidence that Napier runs a tighter, more disciplined program, than Mullen is categorically false!

The stats indicate under Mullen that the Gators were one of the worst penalized teams! Out of 120 teams, they were almost dead last.

Did you happen to read how happy Mississippi State fans were, when Mullen left and Hevesy would no longer be the offensive line coach? Well, I did and it was something the fans complained about and Mullen ignored. Furthermore, Mullen brought him to Florida knowing about fan discontent.

Mullen was notorious for not running a tight ship, and he had a great mentor in that regard via Urban Meyer. Many writer's have written about the lack of discipline and how Mullen quit on the team in his last year. It is also noted how he was a lazy recruiter and took too many chances on talented players who never materialized; leaving the team worse off than if he had gone after less talented individuals. That is an indication of someone who was not very disciplined as a person, and little wonder that he couldn't hold player's accountable for their behavior. Additionally, it was well-reported that Mullen was too loyal to his coaches and players to replace them, and it didn't have to be pointed out by a sportswriter to understand that was a problem. I am not your foe because I view things differently than you.

Incidentally, there was much to like about Mullen and he contributed a great deal to this program. But, he's going to be remembered for the ending and it tarnishes any legacy he might have enjoyed.

 

That's not true. man. UF averaged 7.8 penalties a game in Mullen's last year. They averaged 7 a game under Napier this year. In addition, Mullen's 2019 and 2020 teams averaged 5.6 penalties a game, 3rd best in the SEC.

Mullen's recruiting classes were ranked about the same as Napier's. Mullen didn't decide the rankings of the players, so it wasn't him deciding how many stars a guy got or how they ranked.

Kids showing appreciation for Mullen and not Napier could mean they just didn't like Napier, Mullen is who gave the a chance to play at UF, not Napier. And Napier could be running them off, leaving them a bit discontented. Or they might not like him, his actual coaching style or his game strategy.

My response to you wasn't changed. Aside from one comment by one freshman who admitted what he was saying was heresay, you decided the problem with the program was that the kids weren't tough enough. And you presented it like it was factual, or even something that a lot of players are saying. It's not. That's simply not true. There is no resounding theme about these departures other than there have been 22 of them. You can have your opinion of why it is happening, but you present it as unmitigated fact.

 

I agree. But I'm not presenting anything as fact, or explanation. I'm not accusing others of being lazy or unwilling to work. I'm not taking things people really hope is true and presenting them as fact.

Everyone wants to believe that everyone who left sucks, and that Napier is the second coming of Spurrier or Saban or whoever. We all want the team to be successful -- the fall is much funner that way. But I'm not going to take the comments of one freshman player as gospel simply because it fits the narrative I want to believe. No one should.

 

Yeah, I understand. I also understand what a tight ship Coach Napier runs (at least my speculation -- LOL!). I don't think that comment would have been allowed to stand unchallenged and uncorrected unless Coach knew about it and allowed it. Even though it's just one freshman, it's mostly all we have right now.

 

The manic 8 ball says it’s true and I believe it.

 

Wow, you have yourself convinced!!! Geez, according to you, Mullen should still be the coach! Unreal!!!

 

To clarify quite a few starters left this year or were tossed, at least 3 guys that left last year went to start elsewhere.

Losing 1-2 to the portal happens but the number of starters that have left in the last 12 months is pretty high.

Sure the current narrative is that they were “bad seeds or didn’t like the standard” that Napier was bringing.

Time will tell if that plan is the right one.


Typically a class of 25 or so signees and 4-5 transfers is good. Obviously that varies based on where the numbers are and Covid may have inflated rosters.

Good Balanced classes are the key to long term stability and success.

 

He didn’t say Mullen should be the coach.

He present factual evidence comparing the two coaches.

He then clearly gave opinions about why guys might be leaving.

To me that better than people making assumptions to help support their beliefs.