Billy Napier shares how he expects Florida to respond after loss to Utah

Florida did not open the season how they were hoping to as they lost 24-11 to Utah inside Rice-Eccles Stadium. That outcome is now in the past, though, as Billy Napier turns his attention to what’s next.

Napier addressed how his team will respond to their opening loss during his postgame press conference on Thursday night. He said the final score is going to now give Florida an option. Based on what he already knows about his unit, he already has an idea of what their next choice will be.

“I told the team that I think adversary presents a choice, right? You can choose character or you can choose to compromise,” said Napier. “One thing that I know about this group is I think that we’ve worked hard on building some intangibles. And, already, I can see that this group will respond the right way. I believe that.”

Even though last year’s result ended with them on the winning side of the game, Napier said he doesn’t feel any different than he did after last year’s game. He knows more highs and lows are headed the Gator’s way. That means their overall focus needs to turn to growth and development in hopes of correcting what may have gone wrong in Salt Lake City.

“I sat at the press conference last year after we beat Utah and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got a lot of stuff that we’ve got to work on‘. And I feel the same way sitting here today,” said Napier. “But I also know, I feel like, we’ve got a lot of players that will continue to grow and improve as we go through this year.

“There’s no question that this game? You’ve got to handle the ups and the downs. You’ve got to remain consistent in your approach.”

What’s next for Florida will be a flight back home and a week of practice before they play again. From there, we can judge the Gator’s response for ourselves when they face off with McNeese.

“We’re going to be back in The Swamp next week,” said Napier. “We’re going to sleep here tonight, get up and fly back, and get back to work, staff and players, to try to continue to improve.

“I think our team will respond the right way. I’m confident in that.”

Napier pleased with Graham Mertz’s performance against Utah

There was a lot to take away from Florida’s 24-11 loss in their opener at Utah. As it often goes, though, much of that attention turned to the Gators’ new quarterback in Graham Mertz.

Billy Napier spoke about Mertz’s debut at Florida in his postgame press conference. All in all, he was fine with his quarterback’s play against the Utes considering some of his numbers and how he executed their game plan. However, he also added that he obviously thinks there were some moments that he’d like to redo.

“I was pleased with Graham,” Napier said. “I think there was a handful of plays that he’d like to have back, a few early that were a little inaccurate at times. But he made a lot of plays too.

“It was the first game that he has ever thrown for 300-plus. And, for the most part out there, he’s doing what we would want him to do. The ball is going where it’s supposed to go.”

Napier reminded everyone that critics often place Mertz’s position under too much of a microscope. For an opener in an all-new offense and against a good defense, it was what it was and laid a foundation for what he could be as the year goes forward.

“Oftentimes at quarterback, it’s too much credit, too much blame. When you really dig into it, it’s going to be about the players around him playing well,” said Napier. “But, there’s no question, when you play a game against really good competition? There’s a handful of plays where a guy could have done better.”