What Billy Napier said about South Carolina

Florida football coach Billy Napier met with the media on Monday to preview the Gators upcoming matchup with the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Below is a transcript of some of what Napier had to say, edited down for the most relevent content to this week’s game. A video of the press conference should also autoplay above, users will just need to hit the unmute button to hear it.

The Gamecocks are off to a 2-3 (1-2 SEC) start to the season with wins over Furman and Mississippi State and losses to Top 25 teams North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee.

Florida (4-2, 2-1 SEC) has wins over Tennessee, Vanderbilt, McNeese and Charlotte with losses to Kentucky and Utah.

South Carolina and Florida are set for a 3:30 kickoff on Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium with SEC Network carrying the action.

[Become a GamecockCentral member for $1]

On South Carolina and Williams-Brice Stadium…

South Carolina is a team that we have tremendous respect for. Shane Beamer is an outstanding coach and motivator and always has his team ready to be competitive and play. They play with good effort. I do think he’s got a tough group, and they cause problems for every team that they played.

I think Williams-Brice is one of the tougher venues and better venues in the country, having played there many times in the past. And, look, we’re an underdog on the road in the SEC, and this is an area on our team where we need to accept the challenge and take the next step by playing well and winning the game on the road. So we challenge the staff to do their best work.

On tweaks made because of slow starts on the road…

Yeah, no, I think, you know, we’re going to try to get to Columbia a little bit earlier this week. We’re tweaking our schedule on Thursday. You know, we’re going to put a huge emphasis on sleep Wednesday night, and then, you know, things that, just little things. I mean, I think we’re going to arrive to the stadium a little earlier. All these things are typical quality control that we do. And I think, ultimately, there’s a pulse from the players that you got to take into account, right?

So, most of it’s mental. I do think that, I just met with the accountability group at 11, and we talked about mentally being prepared, physically being prepared, but also emotionally being prepared. You know, you got to anticipate and visualize what it’s going to be like, that it will be challenging.

There’ll be ups and downs in the game. Our dialogue during the week about being prepared to respond. You know, offense supporting defense, defense supporting offense, and playing really good in the kicking game. So, I think that, ultimately, kind of like what I described earlier, we got to know and apply the things that we’ve learned in the past.

…

Yeah, I mean, I think that, look, if we had bounced back and played better in the game and won the game, we would have never had that conversation. Right? I mean, I think some of this is, you know, a product of the result, but ultimately, you know, it’s our job to do the best job we can do for the players, right? And I think, ultimately, you have to listen to them a little bit. So, we tweaked things, you know, and I think, ultimately, bottom line is, when the ball’s spotted, we kick it off. Okay? You’ve got to be ready to mix it up, you know?

And if you’ve done a good job preparing all week, you’re mentally prepared. You can communicate at a high level. You can play fast. You can anticipate. And then, physically, you’ve got to have a sharp sword. You know, you’ve got to be ready to go. That ax has got to be, can’t be dull, you know?

So, you’ve got to make the work a little bit easier. If we take the right approach Tuesday, Wednesday, if we’re growing and improving in the physical parts of our team, we can apply that. And then, again, like I mentioned before, there’s an emotional component that I think we have to bring that. Got to create an edge, and that’s what this week’s about.

[Win South Carolina-Florida football tickets]

On Arlis Boardingham’s impact in the middle of the field and Trey Wilson stretching the field horizontally…

Arlis is a young man who, he was a part of that group of players. I can still remember when we hit the ground after the signing period was over. Who are the available players? We evaluated a ton of players. This guy’s in California. And we started dialogue with him. He’s a sharp young man, comes from a great family, and has a unique skill set. So, he had a little bit of an injury last year that set back his development because all this tight end stuff was new. But we do think that this guy has a future. And it’s good to see some of that.

You know, this guy is a good run after catch player, and I think he’s really a guy that’s capable of running a full route tree. You know, he can play inside and outside. So, smart enough to handle it. I think he’s learning the fundamentals of the position. You know, for a freshman to be able to go do what he did the other day, I think it’s impressive. And then, certainly, Trey. Trey’s a guy that you got to be intentional about, making sure he has an opportunity to impact the game every week. So, Trey has got unique acceleration. He’s quick. He’s tough to tackle. He’s got some play strength.

So, yeah, those two guys played well Saturday. And, ultimately, can they sustain it? You know, that’s the question. Young player, can you keep your humility? You know, can you keep your practice habits and your approach? You know, I do think that’s part of our team that I’m excited about is I think we do have a group of young players that are getting comfortable on game day, but they’re also getting comfortable with what the week looks like and how to prepare and be ready to be at your best for the team.

[Get the On3 app! Stay connected with GC!]

On keeping Spencer Rattler in check last season…

Yeah, no, these are two completely different teams. Spencer’s a really good player. He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the entire country. He’s got a really good group of skill players. They do a nice job of designing concepts that are very multiple and there’s no doubt I mean every week affecting the quarterback is important but when you play a guy like Spencer is even more important.

On youth in the secondary…

Those guys got here in January and I do think that because they are smart and mature and really work hard at it and they come from good backgrounds they were a little bit more prepared. Bryce (Thornton) comes from a really good program and certainly Jordan (Castell) has been working as a secondary player for a long time.

I think they transition well so Ja’Keem Jackson has earned snaps and he’s had some really good days, good plays and then he’s made some mistakes along the way so he continues to get better. He showed some toughness and some resiliency by overcoming some of those things so you know I do think that all those guys are very capable players and nowadays you got to be able to get a young player ready to go at about every position.

Discuss South Carolina football on The Insiders Forum!