On3 tabs Florida Gators' Billy Napier as P5 national head coach of the week
Following Saturday’s victory over the University of Tennessee, Florida head coach Billy Napier has been named the On3 Power Five National Head Coach of the Week.
UF’s win also elevated the program to No. 25 in the latest Associated Press Top-25 poll.
The Volunteers were ranked 11th at the time, but the Gators established early momentum behind a well-rounded offensive attack and ultimately came out on top by the score of 29-16.
The Gators’ head man himself is the offensive playcaller and dialed up four touchdowns in the first half. Running back Trevor Etienne was dynamic with 172 yards and a touchdown, while Graham Mertz continues to prove doubters wrong and was efficient with two touchdowns to go along with it.
Don’t get it twisted though: Austin Armstrong and company made a major impact on the defensive side as well. Saturday’s performance against a high-powered Vols offense has the young defensive coordinator trending up nationally and understandably so.
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Josh Heupel’s offensive attack was stalled numerous times by penalties, and other than the first drive, they had a difficult time generating any momentum. The Vols were limited to just seven first-half points, with much of that credit going to Armstrong’s game plan and the hostile environment.
“Look, I know we haven’t won as many games as we’d like to win, but the amount of work that our people have done since we hit the ground here until today — obviously, we have a lot of work left to do — (but) you want to see your people experience some success, right? See the fruits of their labor,” Napier said after the game. “I’m not just talking about the players. I’m talking about the adults too.
“We worked hard, and that’s the thing that it gives you. It validates your plan. It validates what you’re selling to some degree, the things that you continue to harp on. That’s what you want as a leader.”
Up next for the Gators (2-1) is another 7:00 p.m. home matchup, this time against Charlotte (1-2).
Stay tuned to Gators Online.
