Billy Napier comments on future home-and-home option for Florida-Georgia game

Recently, there has been some debate about whether the Florida–Georgia rivalry game should continue to be played in Jacksonville, or if it would make sense to move the game on-campus. At SEC media days, Florida head coach Billy Napier weighed in on the future of the game.

Napier explained that while the game has a long history as a neutral site matchup, there are economic factors that also go into these decisions beyond that tradition.

“I think that the Florida-Georgia game is an incredible rivalry,” Billy Napier said. “I think there’s history there [in Jacksonville], there’s tradition there. There’s a ton of economic implications relative to these decisions.”

TIAA Bank Stadium in Jacksonville, where the game is currently played, is getting ready to undergo renovations. That could, in turn, displace the Florida-Georgia game. If the game is displaced, the schools will need to come up with another option.

As of now, the plan is to continue the game at TIAA Bank Stadium following the renovations and images have already been released of what the game will look like post remodel.

“We’re gonna have to cross that bridge at some point due to the renovations in Jacksonville, but there’s benefits to a home-and-home from a recruiting perspective and I think there’s also benefit from an economic standpoint for both athletic departments and institutions,” Billy Napier said.

Recruiting is a key point surrounding the debate about where this game should be played. As Napier noted, having this game on-campus would be good for recruiting. That’s a point that Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has made before.

“I’m competing against [coaches] all across the SEC, who host recruits at their biggest games,” Smart previously said. “When Auburn plays at Alabama, guess where the recruits are? When LSU and Alabama play, that’s where the biggest recruits want to go. It’s an opportunity for us to bring these kids, who fly in from all over the country – what game do they want to come see Georgia play?”

For his part, Billy Napier wants to cross that bridge once they get to it, though he sounds flexible on the subject.

“So, right now we’ve got three more years of the same model. I’ve got enough grass to mow right now, so I’m gonna focus on the things that are in front of me.”

Steve Spurrier took a shot at Kirby Smart

Recently, Kirby Smart corrected a reporter by saying that it’s the ‘Georgia-Florida’ game and not the ‘Florida-Georgia’ game. Former Florida head coach Steve Spurrier heard the comment and decided to add one of his own to the debate over the name.

“Heard Kirby said it was the Georgia-Florida Game today during the SEC Media Day appearance,” Spurrier wrote. “He might wear a visor, but until he wins 11 out of 12 of the FLORIDA-Georgia game, I think we all know what it’s really called.”