Why Florida fans should buy in to the process, what Florida is building

The Florida Gators are one of the more intriguing teams heading into the 2023 season. On3’s resident college football expert J.D. PicKell already crowned him as one of the teams likely to garner the most headlines next season because it’s tough to pinpoint what to expect from the Gators and Billy Napier‘s second year.

That might be a frustrating reality for Florida fans to subscribe to, especially given the program’s history. But according to the college football expert, Gators fans should not tether their expectations to teams of the past nor other current teams in the SEC.

“For Florida fans, here’s what I would say, don’t let comparison steal your joy. It’s so easy right now to look around the SEC and say, well, we don’t have what they have,” said PicKell. “Yeah, it might be true but guess what? You are building on a different plot of land right now. You don’t have the same situation Tennessee has, the same situation that South Carolina has with Spencer Rattler coming back. You’re not in the same position as those teams are. You’re built differently.

Florida is in year number two of Napier’s era as head coach. And one could make the case that they are in the middle of a rebuild, restructuring, and rebranding of the program and its expectations following the four years under Dan Mullen, in which the program was on the decline. In comparison, Kentucky and Tennessee are much further along in their rebuilds under their head coaches, Mark Stoops and Josh Heupel.

Not only should Gator fans be wary of comparing their team to rising programs, but also of programs that are fixtures within the SEC. Georgia and Alabama are two of the best programs in the conference and college football as a whole. So, as Pickell sees it, looking at the success of those two programs would also be bad for the health of Florida fans.

“Same thing with Georgia and Bama; those coaches have been around a while,” he continued. “They built up to this point. Don’t let what they have make you feel bad about your process and what you’re doing internally. It’s a different kind of build. You haven’t won the SEC in 15 years. It’s a process; it’s gonna take some time. So buy into it. Lean into it. The SEC title is probably not a thing that you’re competing for this year but this year is about trajectory.:

Florida is still in a space where they are trying to define what the team will be going forward. This offseason, Napier has put a premium on fundamentals and execution, which should help Florida with their discipline and focus on the field. There is still some time before the start of the 2023 season, but PicKell doesn’t believe the outcome of next year should be of the utmost importance. What should be important to Florida fans is mapping the program’s trajectory and looking to see if things continue positively for the Gators under Napier’s watchful eye.