Billy Napier reveals key to success as a head coach

At SEC Media Days, reporters asked first-year Florida head coach Billy Napier how he finds balance and prioritizes his time. That question, he believes, is the crux of the head coaching profession.

“It is the job. That question in itself is a lot of the job, right?” Napier said. “In terms of what are you going to do with your time and where is the most impact available? Because nowadays, around the clock there’s a problem to solve, there’s a next challenge, there’s a relationship to develop on the team, there’s an issue within the staff, there’s a recruit to have a conversation with, whatever the case may be.

“I think having discipline, defining the routine for the people within your organization, keeping them on task and having a very systematic approach throughout the year. I think that’s one of the things that proved to be beneficial for us at Louisiana. Each year we minimized our margin of error, we were more efficient with our time and focused on how we could improve our team and also produce a better product. So that’s one of the things that comes with this job for sure.”

Napier has hired upwards of 50 support staff members to help with everything from quality control to creative ideation. Despite his ability to delegate work to the staffers, the Gators skipper has to make sure they all stick to their roles and use their strengths.

Florida fans will see how well Napier has been at managing his large staff and players on Sept. 3 versus Utah.

Napier discusses takeaways from coaching under Nick Saban

Like several other SEC head coaches, Billy Napier owes some of his ascent through the coaching ranks to Alabama coaching legend Nick Saban. He hired Napier at Alabama as an analyst after his long stint with Clemson. He then brought him back as wide receivers coach for several more seasons.

The former Louisana head coach credited Saban for teaching him how to build a culture of high expectations within a program.

“I think defining expectations, he’s got a really good understanding of all the different parts of the organization and you know, it’s his way,” Napier said. “He’s very methodical, he has his way of doing things, his systems. He defines expectations, he’s consistent, he’s fair.

“Overall, just a very disciplined person, in terms of how he uses his time. Phenomenal leader, always very well prepared. Always evolving. Willing to adjust, willing to adapt. Always quality controlling everything we did. We take much of the same approach in how we operate.”