Billy Napier, Jason Marshall provide insight on inexplicable penalty
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida defense had just forced Utah to punt. Inexplicably the Gators sent two players with the same number — junior cornerback Jason Marshall and freshman receiver Eugene Wilson.
It gave the Utes a new set of downs, which they turned into seven points.
“It kind of sucks,” Marshall said. “We stopped them, then we got the penalty, turned around, had to go back out there. It was like a sudden change. That just gained momentum from them.”
It was certainly a new penalty and it proved costly.
Eugene Wilson was originally assigned No. 21 but switched to No. 3 the week before Florida traveled to Salt Lake City. Both Marshall and Wilson have roles on the Gators’ return units. That was the start of the problem. Ultimately, it comes down to coaching. It’s an inexcusable mental error for one of the biggest football staffs in the entire country.
Napier explains Florida Gators gaff on special teams
“We had a really, really unique situation in the game that required us to have three personnel groups ready to go,” Napier explained. “Also we’ve got third down grouping in defense on the field. We have a rush team because we’re in the tweener area between kicker, field goal team out, or their punter runs on the field. That was one that I think we’ll be working on the future that caused some issues.”
Utah’s drive began on its own 20 yard line. The Utes picked up 24 yards on their first three plays. The defense did a good job of fitting the run for a short gain, a botched snap forced a third and long. A nine-yard completion forced a fourth down at the Florida 49. That would be quite a kick, but Napier says they were trying to be prepared for a potential 60-plus-yard attempt from Utah.
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Ultimately, it led to the error of having both players that wear No. 3 on the field at the same time. The Gators have an analyst — Chris Couch — as their special teams coordinator. Billy Gonzales also has a role and helps with the unit.
Napier was asked Monday whether the jersey mishap makes him rethink how he structures his staff in regard to special teams.
“It was a very specific error, it has nothing to do with what we do year-round, it was a very specific mistake within the game. It has nothing to do with infrastructure or job description or assignments,” Napier said. “It’s just one very specific mistake, one that we will learn from going forward, much like we do every week we make mistakes. We adjust and adapt. So, I think it uncovered something that’s a challenging situation, one that we’ll work on in the future.”
