Billy Napier lists Florida players that have made progress in camp

Getter better, or get in line. With under two before the team’s first game, Florida players are racing toward a starting spot. On Sunday, UF head coach Billy Napier updated fans on who’s leading the pack.

“It is extremely competitive right now in most rooms, relative to how we’re going to play the players in the game,” Napier said. “We’ve got a group of established players but we’ve got a lot of players that are right in the middle of heated competition. And I think we’re just going to let that competition take its place, if that makes sense.”

Evidently, it makes sense to Napier. The 44-year-old head coach is doing all he can to ready his team for the upcoming season after leading the Gators to a 6-7 record and a 3-5 mark in the SEC during his first year at the helm.

One of Napier’s most significant efforts came at quarterback. Florida added Wisconsin’s Graham Mertz in the transfer portal this offseason. Last year, Mertz started every regular season game for his third-straight season, throwing for 2,136 yards and 19 touchdowns.

While Napier has his man behind center, he needs other players to step up in their roles. He’s seemingly been happy with what he’s seen.

“I do think we’ve made a ton of progress,” Napier said. “A lot of these young players have made significant progress, Kamran James, in particular. Ja’Keem Jackson, Jordan Castell. I think Mannie Nunnery has had a really good camp. I think Jaden Robinson has had a really good camp. Caleb Banks is impressive at times. TJ Searcy, [too].

“Lyndell [Hudson] is a guy who’s done really well. We all know about Kniejah [Harris] because he had a good experience in the spring. Tony Livingston, Hayden Hansen both really have accelerated their growth. Treyaun Webb, [also],” Napier said. “Those are a few off the top of my head.”

Napier calls the list a few players. In reality, it’s an avalanche of improvement. Players like Kamran James spearhead a loaded 2023 recruiting class. Florida’s incoming class included 16 four-stars and four three-star prospects, rated as the 12th-best class in the 2023 recruiting cycle, per On3’s Industry Rankings.

With a year under his belt and puzzle pieces falling into place, Napier is confident this season will be step in the right direction for the Gators.

“All parts of our organization are in a much better place from an execution standpoint. Ultimately, that’s my job is to get each part of our organization executing at a really high level. Hopefully, I’ll be better because we’ve had a year to work on everything,” Napier said.