Napier on the teleconference: A lot of words that mean nothing
Lost in the shuffle of rumors, speculation and lack of anything definitive about the status of Billy Napier there is a football game to be played Saturday (4:15 p.m., SEC Network) in The Swamp. Despite the distraction of Napier’s employment status beyond Saturday evening, the Gators (2-4, 1-2 SEC) are 9.5-point favorites to beat Mississippi State (4-2, 0-2 SEC).
On a day that Matt Hayes of USA Today reported that Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin met with prominent boosters to discuss the when, not if Napier will be fired, Napier did his usual 10 minutes answering questions on the SEC Coaches Teleconference. As per usual, Napier didn’t say anything revealing whether about his job status or the game itself. He praised Mississippi State for its improvement under second-year coach Jeff Lebby, who has already doubled last year’s win total. He gave a moderate amount of praise for the Gators’ ability to stop the run and he praised quarterback DJ Lagway for the way he’s handled the challenge of dealing with injuries that kept him from participating in spring practice and the bulk of fall camp.
Asked if he should be given more time to turn the Gators into a consistent winner, Napier gave a lengthy answer that said a lot without really addressing the question. He didn’t really dodge the question, but simply gave a long answer that was short on detail. Although Napier has to know that his days as Florida’s coach are numbered, it is possible that everything is in the hands of the athletic department and his lawyers.
Here is the answer: “You know, I do think that that’s a reality in our profession, you know, I think that as a competitor, as a leader, you know, I think that it comes with the territory, right? So I think you have to have the ability to focus on the things that are important today, you know? I think it’s, that’s the whole key here is you got to stack good days, and you got to do a good job setting a great example for your players and staff. So for me, ultimately, we got to get consumed with what’s important now, and you live with the result on Saturday, you know, I think we all want better results, even sometimes when we win, you know, I think the product isn’t as good as we would like it to be. And then sometimes you can be proud of how you competed and played, and you played a good opponent and you came up short. So in general, I think it’s about focusing on today, the work, the process, and helping your young people maintain humility when they’re having success, and try to keep that enthusiasm where it needs to be when maybe you’re frustrated or a little bit disappointed about last week’s result.”
INJURY REPORT FOR MISSISSIPPI STATE
Out: RB Treyaun Webb; EDGE LJ McCray; S Aaron Gates; RB Duke Clark; CB Dijon Johnson; and DL Caleb Banks.
Questionable: S Jordan Castell; RB Ja’Kobi Jackson; CB Cormani McClain; DL Brien Taylor Jr.; OT Devon Manuel; and TE Tony Livingston
SEC FOOTBALL INJURY REPORTS
No. 6 Alabama (5-1, 3-0 SEC): Out for the Tennessee game are OLB Jah-Marien Latham; OLB Qua Russaw; DT Jeremiah Beaman; LB Cayden Jones and WR Derek Meadows. Questionable are WR Jaylen Mbawkwe and RB Jam Miller.
Arkansas (2-4, 0-2 SEC): Out for Texas A&M are DB Quentavius Scandrett; WR Monte Harrison; WR Ismael Cisse; WR Jalen Brown; RB AJ Green; TE Jeremiah Beck Jr.; TE Andreas Paaske; DL Danny Salli; and DL David Oke.
Auburn (3-3, 0-3 SEC): Out for Missouri are WR Horatio Fields and RB Durell Robinson. Listed as questionable are CB Champ Anthony and TE Brandon Frazier. LB Bryce Deas is listed as doubtful.
No. 9 Georgia (5-1, 3-1 SEC): Out for Ole Miss are WR Talyn Taylor; WR Thomas Blackshear; TE Ethan Barbour; and C Malachi Toliver. OT Monroe Freeling and Earnest Greene are listed as probable.
Kentucky (2-4, 0-3 SEC): Out are RB Jamarion Wilcox; OLB Jacob Smith; DB Nasir Addison; ILB Devin Smith; DL Nic Smith; and WR David Washington Jr. Questionable are WR Troy Stellato and OL Aba Selm. Probable is DB Jaden Smith.
No. 10 LSU (5-1, 2-1 SEC): Out for Vanderbilt is DE Gabriel Reliford. Doubtful is DL Bernard Gooden. Questionable are DE Jimari Butler and Whit Weeks. Probable are WR Aaron Anderson and OL Paul Mubenga.
Mississippi State (4-2, 0-2 SEC): Questionable for Florida are OT Albert Reese and S/LB Isaac Smith. Out are RB Fluff Bothwell and OL Brennan Smith.
No. 16 Missouri (5-1, 1-1 SEC): Out for Auburn are PK Blake Craig and QB Sam Horn. Listed as questionable is OL Logan Reichart.
No. 14 Oklahoma (5-1, 1-1 SEC): Out for South Carolina are OL Troy Everett; OL Jacob Sexton and OL Jake Taylor. Doubtful are WR Keontez Lewis; TE Kade McIntyre and OL Logan Howland. Listed as questionable is RB Jovantae Barnes.
No. 5 Ole Miss (6-0, 3-0 SEC): Questionable for Georgia are RB Logan Diggs; WR Devin Price and S Ladarian Clardy.
South Carolina (3-3, 1-2 SEC): Listed as questionable for Oklahoma are DL Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy and OL Markee Anderson. Doubtful are OL Nolan Hay; OL Shedrick Sarratt Jr.; and OL Carson Henry. Probable is DB Brandon Cisse.
No. 11 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1 SEC): RB Desean Bishop is probable for Arkansas. Questionable is TE Ethan Davis. WR Travis Smith Jr.; WR Radarious Jackson; CB Jermod McCoy; and CB Rickey Gibson III are out.
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