Brenton Cox Gone, Napier Won't Say Why.

THOUGHTS OF THE DAY

The closest Napier came to specific reasons why Cox is gone was to say it was “cumulative” and a “decision made in the best interests of the team.”

By FRANZ BEARD

GatorBait Sr. Columnist

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning:

The question kept coming back at Billy Napier for the 15 or so minutes he stood before the media at his Monday morning press conference. Why? Why was Brenton Cox Jr. dismissed from the football team? Napier never would go into specifics. Was that because of student confidentiality laws or simply because he thinks it is way too personal? That we don’t know.

What we do know is Florida’s top edge rusher is done for the season, coming at a time when the Gators (4-4, 1-4 SEC) hit the final third of the season needing two wins in the final four games for bowl eligibility and the 15 extra practices that come with it. Although Cox’s 2022 numbers weren’t anything to write about, it should be noted that he got a double team on at least 90 percent of all the snaps. For 2022, Cox had 35 tackles, two sacks, eight tackles for loss, nine quarterback hurries and one pass breakup. For his Florida career, Cox was credited with 117 tackles, 14.5 sacks, 32 tackles for loss, 39 quarterback hurries, seven pass breakups and one forced fumble.

In Saturday’s loss to Georgia, Cox had two tackles, one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry.

The closest Napier came to specific reasons why Cox is gone was to say it was “cumulative” and a “decision made in the best interests of the team.” More than once, when pressed for more information, Napier said, “We keep that in house.”

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On his Twitter account, Cox posted, “I find it hard to express my disappointment in being dismissed from the team. It is truly a shock. I have always had a competitive spirit. I think sometime that gets misconstrued.” As with Napier, there were no specifics.

Right guard O’Cyrus Torrence also offered no specifics but said “some thing you do, you just can’t put up with as a team, as a whole. We’re in this thing together so some things you do just can’t be accepted.”

Cornerback Jaydon Hill admitted the Cox dismissal caught him by surprise. If he knew what was at the root cause of the dismissal, he wasn’t saying. However, Hill did make one very interesting comment.

“It definitely sends a strong message to the locker room,” Hill said.

There are plenty of ways to read into that comment and none of them are positive.

With Cox gone, where will the Gators find pass rush Saturday when they face Texas A&M (3-5, 1-4 SEC) in College Station? The Aggies rather dormant passing game came alive in a loss to Ole Miss over the weekend behind big arm freshman quarterback Connor Weigman, who threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns. He had a strong pocket presence because he only ran the ball three times and the Ole Miss pass rush got to him just twice.

Even with Cox in the lineup the Gators never once got to Georgia’s Stetson Bennett, who stood like a statue in the pocket while throwing for 316 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Gators have gotten to opposing quarterbacks only 13 times all season. In the previous Florida pass rushers averaged 39.5 sacks. In the last decade, Florida’s worst pass rush season was 2013 when the Gators managed only 19 sacks.

Napier said Antwaun Powell-Ryland Jr. and Lloyd Summerall III will share Cox’s place in the lineup.

Zipperer done for the season?: There are unconfirmed reports that tight end Keon Zipperer is injured and done for the season. Zipperer has caught 13 passes for 177 yards and a TD.

SEC football

No. 6 Alabama (7-1, 4-0 SEC): Nick Saban says Alabama’s keys to winning at Tiger Stadium against LSU are, “We can’t beat ourselves. We’ve gotta have enough poised to be able to execute in this environment” … Backup kicker/punter Jack Martin will transfer out. He graduates in December and will have two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Arkansas (5-3, 2-3 SEC): Backup running back Dominique Johnson tore an ACL at practice last week and is done for the year … Raheim Sanders leads the SEC in rushing with 1,041 yards (6.67 yards per carry, 7 TDs).

Auburn (3-5, 1-4 SEC): Not only did new AD John Cohen fire Bryan Harsin almost from the moment he walked through the door, but offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau, tight ends coach Brad Bedell, football chief of staff Brad Larrondo and recruiting coordinator Darren Uscher were give the heave-ho. Running backs coach and former Auburn great Cadillac Williams will serve as the interim HBC for the final four games.

No. 1 Georgia (8-0, 5-0 SEC): Georgia will be without linebacker Nolan Smith for Saturday’s encounter with 2nd-ranked Tennessee. For the season Smith has 18 tackles including seven for loss and a pair of sacks.

Kentucky (5-3, 2-3 SEC): Linebacker DeAndre Square who spent the second half of the Tennessee game in a walking boot and on crutches is doubtful for Saturday’s game at Missouri. Square is Kentucky’s leader with 55 tackles.

No. 15 LSU (6-2, 4-1 SEC): Wide receiver Jack Bech (back) should be back in time for Saturday’s game with Alabama. Running back John Emery Jr. (Achilles) is day-to-day as is guard Garrett Dellinger (MCL). Safety Major Burns has been cleared to practice and play.

Mississippi State (5-3, 2-3 SEC): Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated says Georgia Southern AD Jared Benko, San Diego State AD John David Wicker and Eastern Michigan AD Scott Weatherbee could be candidates to replace John Cohen, who left for the Auburn job. All three have ties to Mississippi State.

Missouri (4-4, 2-3 SEC): The win over South Carolina marked only the second time this season that Missouri has had a turnover-free game. The week before at Vanderbilt, the Tigers gave the ball up four times although they did win the game.

No. 11 Ole Miss (8-1, 4-1 SEC): Asked if he talked to Jimbo Fisher after the Rebels beat Texas A&M, Lane Kiffin said, “He never really came over. The media guys said don’t feel bad because he blew them off the day before for their meetings. It is what it is. Can’t control other people.”

South Carolina (5-3, 2-3 SEC): In the week leading up to South Carolina’s loss to Missouri, offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield called tight end Jaheim Bell “one of the most talented football players I’ve ever seen in my life.” So, why is it that someone so talented wasn’t targeted with a single pass in the Missouri game?

No. 2 Tennessee (8-0, 4-0 SEC): Speaking of Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel, Tony Romo of CBS told broadcast partner Jim Nance, “He’ll be on the radar for every NFL team after this year” … QB Hendon Hooker, now considered the Heisman Trophy front runner, has thrown 21 TDPs this season with only one interception while running for 338 yards and four more.

Texas A&M (3-5, 1-4 SEC): On WJOX in Birmingham Monday morning, Paul Finebaum talked about the national perceptions about Jimbo Fisher and the Aggies after their 4-5 start. Finebaum said, “I think the issue becomes far more important from a recruiting standpoint right now than anything else because everything is set and I really am interested in whether or not Jimbo Fisher can hold onto the upcoming class, the one that has yet to be signed as well as the can hold onto the players that he has.”

Vanderbilt (3-5, 0-4 SEC): Quarterback AJ Swann, who suffered a concussion in the loss to Missouri a couple of weeks ago, is expected to be recovered in time to play against South Carolina Saturday.

Our SEC orphans in the Big 12

Oklahoma (5-3, 2-3 Big 12): In their win over Iowa State, the Sooners had eight tackles for loss for the second straight game and multiple interceptions (3) for the second straight.

Texas (5-3, 3-2 Big 12): Stud QB recruit Arch Manning will early enroll in January rather than help his New Orleans high school try to win a second straight state championship.

With Harsin gone, who will be Auburn’s next head coach?

No sooner had John Cohen begun his first day on the job as Auburn’s athletic director than Bryan Harsin was on his way out the door. He’ll have to squeeze by on an adjusted buyout of $15.5 million, not bad for 21 games worth of work. So who will be the replacement, or as Matt Hayes of Saturday Down South tells it, “Who in their right mind wants the job?”

Here are five names that have already popped up as potentially crazy enough to take the job:

Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss: He’s well on his way to a second straight 10-win season. Hayes says, “Ole Miss will not only pay Kiffin whatever he wants, it’s a better job than Auburn.” If he were to leave it could be because the state of Mississippi has a law that forbids contracts longer than four years for state employees.

Hugh Freeze, Liberty: Dennis Dodd of CBS says that Freeze is all but dying for a shot at another Power Five job, but he just signed an 8-year extension at Liberty, which is akin to a lifetime contract. Unless he gets off the rails in his personal life again, it’s a job that might be impossible to get fired from. Even thought it’s a Group of Five school, Liberty has enormous financial resources and better facilities than many Power Five schools including Vanderbilt in the SEC. Hayes says, “Why in his right mind would he want the (Auburn) job?”

Deion Sanders, Jackson State: He’s ready for a Power Five job. He’s charismatic and he’s proven he can coach. With Atlanta nearby, he could tap into a recruiting gold mine, plus he might bring his son Shedeur along to be the QB, who is a serious talent. Would Deion’s ego be willing to share the state of Alabama with Nick Saban?

Matt Rhule: He will make more than $800,00 a month for the next four years NOT to coach the Carolina Panthers. Word is that he wants to sit a year, but would coaching in the SEC change his mind? He’s never worked in the SEC which could be a drawback.

Kevin Steele, Miami defensive coordinator: The boosters wanted him when then-Auburn AD Alan Greene hired Harsin. He’s 64 years old and his Miami defense is middle of the ACC pack. He would crawl backwards from Miami to take the job.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The public will get its first good look at first year coach Todd Golden’s Florida basketball team in the Orange and Blue Scrimmage at the O-Dome tonight (7 p.m.). The Florida roster includes six returnees, four transfers, three freshmen and two walk-ons.

During the numerous preseason practices that have been open to the media, it’s fairly obvious Golden brings a faster tempo than we saw the last several seasons under former head coach Mike White. The ball moves quicker around the perimeter, there is more emphasis ball movement and getting penetration into the paint. There has been great emphasis on getting the ball up the court in a hurry to beat defenses in transition, but if the break isn’t there, the offense becomes one set piece in the middle with four revolving players on the perimeter.

Defensively, the Gators operate mostly in a tight man-to-man scheme that forces a lot of turnovers. The Gators will press and we’ll see some zone, too, with a lot of double teams in the corners.

Golden said last week that only All-SEC center Colin Castleton (6-11, 250, 5th YR) and St. Bonaventure transfer point guard Kyle Lofton (6-3, 188, GR), a three-time All-Atlantic 10 selection, had nailed down starting jobs. Chances are the remainder of the starting lineup will be Kowacie Reeves (6-6, 192, SO) and Belmont transfer Will Richard (6-4, 206, SO) on the wings with CJ Felder (6-7, 240, SR) at the power forward.