Billy Napier doesn't care about noon kickoffs; Mark Stoops needs Kroger Field loud

Kickoff times don’t matter to Florida head coach Billy Napier. Noon, afternoon or evening, whatever, his focus is on winning football games. Everything else is above his pay grade.

The early kick in Lexington this weekend simply is what it is. That’s out of his control. He’s told where to be and when to get there. This time it just happens to be at Kroger Field with a 12 p.m. ET kickoff.

“I don’t view it that way (if it’s harder to play in the early time slot),” Napier said. “We don’t get to decide that, we’ve got to play at different times. That’s one of the reasons why we formatted training camp the way we did this year. I like to win, I don’t care what time the game is, OK? I like to win. Don’t think of it that way. We find out 10 days ahead of time what time the game is. It is what it is.”

No matter the time, he’s preparing for a challenge against the Kentucky Wildcats.

“It’s a tough place to go play. We’ve got to go up there and play at 12 (p.m.) noon. Our players are well aware of the program Kentucky has. They’ve beaten us two years in a row.”

Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops has a similar take, but for a different reason. He doesn’t care when his team takes the field, either, but it’s because he’s confident the home crowd at Kroger Field will have the energy where it needs to be regardless of kickoff time.

Noon ET against the Florida Gators? Rise and shine, Big Blue Nation will be ready to roll.

Stoops joked during his Monday press conference that Kentucky fans would be able to wake up early and “pound some beers” ahead of the game on Saturday. Then he clarified Monday evening during his call-in radio show that he wasn’t discriminating against fans who don’t drink beer.

Bourbon works just fine, too. Preferably from RD1 Spirits — Stoops’ Lexington-based bourbon company.

“I mentioned today (at the presser) I wasn’t concerned about the noon kickoff,” Stoops said. “I’ve been hit up, everybody has been talking about that. It’s no surprise, you know they’re gonna get up and have some beers, but I didn’t mean to discriminate. I mean, bourbon is OK, too. RD1 (Spirits) makes a good old-fashioned. I highly recommend a little RD1 early in the morning if you need a little extra kick.”

There is a reason behind the message (beyond the shameless RD1 plug): The atmosphere will be crucial on Saturday, as it was in 2021 when the Wildcats defeated the Gators inside Kroger Field. Stoops will have his team ready, but the added juice from BBN doesn’t hurt.

“We need the fans loud,” Stoops said. “They made an impact in the Florida game two years ago. They really did, the fans really had an impact. We need that same energy and we need to play with the same enthusiasm and toughness, as well.”

Arrive early to avoid delays at Kroger Field

Tailgate all morning, but build some time into your gameday schedule to get to your seats ahead of the opening kick. Kroger Field experienced delays at the gate ahead of Kentucky’s season opener vs. Ball State — also a noon kickoff — due to an influx of fans showing up immediately before the start of the game.

The University of Kentucky is advising all fans to arrive early with tickets pre-saved onto mobile devices to avoid a logjam at the gates.

Looking for tickets? The game is sold out and UK Athletics is urging fans to use caution against counterfeit and invalid tickets. Only tickets purchased directly through the following outlets are guaranteed to be valid:

• The UK Ticket Office
• Ticketmaster, including the UK Athletics official resale marketplace 
• ReplyBuy
• FEVO
• Visiting team ticket office

UK Athletics cautions against purchasing tickets through other outlets that may be unable to provide this assurance. That risk is magnified for sold-out games like this one.

If you are attending Saturday’s matchup, also make sure you’re showing up in the right color as it is officially a Blue-White Game. Seats on the North (sections 1-16, 34-40, 101-110 and 201-211) side will wear white while seats on the South (sections 17-33, 221-231 and boxes 1-74) side will wear blue.

Be there. Be loud. Wear the right color. Beat the Gators.