Gators’ Bye Week Breakdown: Four Takeaways

It has now been a month since the start of the Florida football season and the Gators arrive at their first bye week 1-3. Sure, two losses came against No. 3 LSU and No. 4 Miami, but Florida’s schedule doesn’t get much easier. The next two matchups after the bye feature No. 10 Texas at home and No. 9 Texas A&M on the road. 

Here are four takeaways from Florida’s first four games as the Gators (and fans, rightfully) get a week off:

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The Defense is Elite

The Gators still rank 31st in the FBS in total defense, even after facing two top-5 opponents with Heisman-caliber quarterbacks. 

Sophomore linebacker Myles Graham has been a revelation in the middle for Florida. He currently leads the team in tackles and tackles for loss with 24 and 2.5. The legacy Gator has continued UF’s defensive stand, stemming from a four- game win streak to end of last season. 

The Gators have only allowed five touchdowns this year, and three came against Miami. One even came in garbage time after Florida turned the ball over on downs at the 22-yard line. In short, UF’s defense has stalled offenses and kept the shape of a playoff-caliber team. 

The Offense Won’t Succeed With Napier

The media continues to ask Napier if he will remain the offensive playcaller for a specific reason: Florida’s struggled to achieve even the slightest production this season. Running back Jadan Baugh has found some success on the ground, but the passing game has had no breakthroughs. 

Napier’s questionable play-calling continues to be the focus of those issues. Even when Baugh is running well, Napier abandons the run. Even when he does lean on the run, he puts Ja’kobi Jackson in the game instead of Baugh. In Florida’s loss to USF, Baugh had five carries for 51 yards on the first drive and only had 13 carries the rest of the game. It’s as if he has an imaginary snap count. 

In the passing game, screen passes behind the line of scrimmage at disadvantaged times plague any progression downfield. Even in the season opener against Long Island, an FCS team, receiver Eugene Wilson III had four catches behind the line of scrimmage and ended with negative five yard on the day. Screen plays on first down limit the options on second and third.

Napier continues to call the plays and says he will make changes. Nothing has changed in the offensive gameplan through four weeks. 

Lagway Needs to Grow

Not all of Florida’s problems stem from Napier. 

Lagway has struggled mightily in his second year under center. The list of excuses is lengthy. Minimal practice and lingering injuries, partially tied together, aren’t a great formula for success. 

The real reason is much simpler: opponents have had a full offseason to study Lagway, and he can’t throw intermediate passes. His deep ball was his biggest asset during his freshman year, and opponents have almost completely eliminated his ability to get the ball downfield by positioning three defensive backs deep. Lagway’s inability to read the defense in the middle of the field has probably led to more screen passes. With the deep ball taken away by the defense and the short ball coming too frequently, the only way for the offense to get better is for Lagway to develop the lacking intermediate game. 

The Gators Aren’t as Good as We Thought

To sum everything up, the Gators just aren’t good. The first few weeks were about underperformance, but this might just be the new reality of Florida football. Standards need to be lowered and fans need to go into every game without the thought of greater season implications. 

The talent is still there and so is room for improvement, but with the hole Florida’s dug in the first month, there is no chance of an SEC Championship or College Football Playoff appearance. With Napier still on board, he will need to salvage his job by taking the season game by game.

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