Thoughts of the Day: November 29, 2021

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

THE WEEKEND TRIFECTA

Things are looking a whole lot brighter at the University of Florida after a weekend in which (1) the Gators not only beat Florida State to become bowl eligible but doomed the Seminoles to their fourth consecutive losing season; (2) hired Billy Napier from Louisiana as the new football coach to replace Dan Mullen; and (3) the basketball team remained unbeaten with an 84-45 thrashing of Troy.

Nobody was certain if the Gators would show up and play hard against FSU or if they would mail it in. The 24-21 win had the usual elements of sloppiness (13 penalties, three interceptions thrown and three fumbles) and missed tackles, but somehow the Gators pieced together enough defensive stops with a fine job in relief at quarterback by Anthony Richardson. There was nothing pretty about it, but the effort was there even if the discipline wasn’t.

Best of all, by evening their record at 6-6, the Gators will go to a bowl game that will give them a shot at avoiding a losing record, and more importantly, give them 15 practices that will allow new head coach Billy Napier a chance to evaluate his personnel.

Napier is an up-and-coming star in the coaching profession that some say has the kind of it factor found in Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney, the two most successful head coaches of the last decade, who just happen to be two of his mentors. Napier is 32-5 in the last three seasons coaching the Ragin Cajuns and he’ll have a chance to close out his career in Lafayette next Saturday with a Sun Belt Conference championship. By all accounts, Napier is skilled at creating the kind of football culture that will not just endear him to the players on his roster but will act as a magnet for future recruits. Napier’s reputation is that he’s as good in the locker room with the players on his team as he is in the living room with the parents of the players he’s trying to recruit.

Give Scott Stricklin an A+ for identifying his target and wasting no time to seal the deal.

What the Gators did to Troy Sunday afternoon at the O-Dome was borderline abusive. Mike White has the Gators playing defense with the kind of intensity that hasn’t been seen around here in years. Troy managed just 2-16 from the three-point line. White was happy the Trojans managed to hit only two threes, but he wasn’t the least bit pleased that the Trojans managed to squeeze off that many shots. When the head coach thinks the defense can be better than holding the opponent to 12.5 percent from long distance, you know you’ve got a serious defensive team on your hands.

Another good sign for this basketball team. The Gators had six players in double figures, none of them with more than 12 points. The way they share the basketball and work hard to get good shots, the Gators are going to be a whole lot better than anyone thought when the season began.

IF THE PHONE DOESN’T RING IT’S ME … AND OTHER COACHING NEWS Florida has its head coach in Billy Napier. Southern Cal, which seemed to be spinning its wheels just a couple of days ago, shocked the world by hiring Lincoln Riley from Oklahoma Sunday afternoon. No financial details have been announced, but Riley said no to LSU which put a multi-year deal on the table that would have made Riley the highest paid coach in college football.

Ah yes, LSU. The Tigers struck out on Jimbo Fisher. They whiffed on Riley. Dave Aranda turned down $9.4 million to stay at Baylor. Florida grabbed Billy Napier out from under their noses. And now it seems Scott Woodward is struggling to convince Iowa State’s Matt Campbell or Kentucky’s Mark Stoops that life is better on the bayou.

Speaking of Stoops, Oklahoma named Bob Stoops its interim head coach when Riley left, which leads some to believe that baby bro Mark might be primary target or else Stoops’ former defensive coordinator Brent Venables, whose Clemson defenses annually rank among the best in the business. Some NFL people think Oklahoma will target Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, but he was 35-40 at Texas Tech before going pro. One splash hire that is being mentioned for Oklahoma is Lane Kiffin. His offense would resonate well in Norman and while on the whole he may rather be in Miami, chances are the Canes will stick with Manny Diaz.

Virginia Tech thought it had a legitimate shot at Billy Napier, but Florida met all or most of Napier’s demands and Dave Clawson signed a contract extension with a big raise at Wake Forest. ECU coach Mike Houston and Notre Dame defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman might be the top candidates now.

Duke fired David Cutcliffe, Washington State took the interim tag off Jack Dickert, New Mexico State fired Doug Martin and hired Jerry Kill, Sonny Dykes took the TCU job and Rhett Lashlee replaced Dykes at SMU.

Confused? Wait 72 hours.

The Associated Press Top 25 poll: 1. Georgia 12-0; 2. Michigan 11-1; 3. Cincinnati 12-0; 4. Alabama 11-1; 5. Oklahoma State 11-1; 6. Notre Dame 11-1; 7. Ohio State 10-2; 8. Ole Miss 10-2; 9. Baylor 10-2; 10. Oregon 10-2; 11. Michigan State 10-2; 12. BYU 10-2; 13. Oklahoma 10-2; 14. Utah 9-3; 15. Iowa 10-2; 16. Houston 11-1; 17. Pittsburgh 10-2; 18. Wake Forest 10-2; 19. San Diego State 11-1; 20. Louisiana 11-1; 21. North Carolina State 9-3; 22. Clemson 9-3; 23. Arkansas 8-4; 24. Texas A&M 8-4; 25. Kentucky 9-3

The Coaches Top 25 poll: 1. Georgia 12-0; 2. Alabama 11-1; 3. Michigan 11-1; 4. Cincinnati 12-0; 5. Oklahoma State 11-1; 6. Notre Dame 11-1; 7. Ohio State 10-2; 8. Ole Miss 10-2; 9. Baylor 10-2; 10. Oregon 10-2; 11. Oklahoma 10-2; 12. Iowa 10-2; 13. Michigan State 10-2; 14. BYU 10-2; 15. Pittsburgh 10-2; 16. Houston 11-1; 17. Utah 9-3; 18. Wake Forest 10-2; 19. San Diego State 11-1; 20. North Carolina State 9-3; 21. Louisiana 11-1; 22. Kentucky 9-3; 23. Texas A&M 8-4; 24. Clemson 9-3; 25. Arkansas 8-4

THE SEC WEEK 13 Alabama (11-1, 7-1 SEC): Was that 97-yard drive that Bryce Young directed to tie the game in regulation with 24 seconds remaining Bryce Young’s Heisman Trophy moment? He was sacked seven times in the game yet rallied Alabama to tie it, then win in overtime.

Arkansas (8-4, 4-4 SEC): Sam Pittman, who is paid $3 million a year, has earned an additional $750,000 in incentives.

Auburn (6-6, 3-5 SEC): The loss to Alabama marked the third straight game that Auburn has blown a double-digit lead in the second half … Auburn gave up six sacks to Alabama and managed only 159 total yards.

Georgia (12-0, 8-0 SEC): Stetson Bennett warmed up for the SEC Championship Game by throwing four touchdown passes, two to freshman tight end Brock Bowers, in Georgia’s 45-0 win over Georgia Tech … Georgia leads the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 83 points and 6.9 points per game. Clemson, which ranks second, gave up 180 points (15 per game).

Kentucky (9-3, 5-3 SEC): Las Vegas had the Wildcats a 3-point underdog heading into their rivalry matchup with Louisville. So much for the spread. Kentucky blew the doors off Louisville, 52-21, after which HBC Mark Stoops admitted he was irked about being the underdog. “Yeah, it pissed me off … look at the score.”

LSU (6-6, 3-5 SEC): Lincoln Riley is gone to Southern Cal. Jimbo is staying put at Texas A&M. Billy Napier is signed, sealed and delivered to Florida. Lane Kiffin and Mark Stoops are on the Oklahoma short list. So, are the Tigers boxed into a corner with Matt Campbell?

Mississippi State (7-5, 4-4 SEC): Quarterback Will Rogers finished the regular season with 4,451 passing yards (370.9 per game) and 35 touchdowns.

Missouri (6-6, 3-5 SEC): Even though Missouri was drubbed by Arkansas 34-17, running back Tyler Badie ran for 219 yards to finish the season with 1,604. It was the fifth game this year with 200 or more rushing yards for Badie, who also caught 54 passes for 330 yards.

Ole Miss (10-2, 6-2 SEC): Ole Miss doubled its win total from last year because of defensive improvement. A year ago the Rebels gave up 38.3 points and 519 yards per game. In 2021 the Rebels allowed 25 per game and 428.8 yards per game. Ole Miss sacked QBs 16 times in 2020, 40 in 2021.

South Carolina (6-6, 3-5 SEC): Shane Beamer is likely to get a lot of votes for SEC Coach of the Year after improving the Gamecocks from 2-8 in 2020 to bowl eligible 6-6 in 2021.

Tennessee (7-5, 4-4 SEC): Running back Tiyon Evans, who was the Vols’ leading rusher (525 yards) prior to the Vandy game, is in the transfer portal.

Texas A&M (8-4, 4-4 SEC): The Aggies managed only 54 yards on the ground against LSU.

Vanderbilt (2-10, 0-8 SEC): Vanderbilt finished 119th nationally in total offense and 118th in total defense.

SEC BASKETBALL

Sunday’s scores: NO. 23 FLORIDA (6-0) 84, Troy (4-3) 45; No. 10 Alabama (6-1) 96, Miami (4-3) 64; No. 13 Arkansas (6-0) 76, Pennsylvania (3-6) 60; South Carolina (5-1) 65, Rider (3-5) 58; Wofford (5-2) 68, Georgia (2-5) 65

Monday’s games: Central Michigan (1-4) at No. 10 Kentucky (5-1); Paul Quinn at Missouri (3-3); Mississippi Valley State (0-3) at Vanderbilt (4-1)

FOOTBALL IN THE MINOR LEAGUES ACC: It will be Pittsburgh (10-2) and Wake Forest (10-2) in the ACC Championship Game. Pitt, winner of the Coastal Division, finished off its regular season with a 31-14 win over Syracuse while Wake Forest clinched the Atlantic with a 41-10 win over Boston College … Clemson (9-3) won’t win the ACC for the first time in years but the Tigers finished the regular season on a 5-game winning streak.

Big Ten: Michigan (11-1) finally got the Ohio State (10-2) monkey off Jim Harbaugh’s back with a dominating 42-27 win over the Buckeyes. The Wolverines ran for 297 yards and held Ohio State to 64 on the ground. The loss may have eliminated Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud from the Heisman Trophy race. Michigan advances to the Big Ten Championship Game to face Iowa (10-2). The Hawkeyes are in because Minnesota (8-4) knocked Wisconsin (8-4) out of first place in the Big Ten West … Did Kenneth Walker do enough (30-138, 1 TD) to move to the front of the Heisman race in Michigan State’s (10-2) 30-27 win over Penn State (7-5)?

Big 12: It will be Oklahoma State (11-1) and Baylor (10-2) in the Big 12 Championship Game. Oklahoma State eliminate Oklahoma from the game with a 37-33 come-from-behind win while Baylor finished off its regular season with a 27-24 win over Texas Tech (6-6) … TCU (5-7), which lost to Iowa State (7-5) will be coached next year by Sonny Dykes, who is leaving SMU.

Pac-12: Oregon (10-2) and Utah (9-3) will meet for the second time in three weeks to determine the Pac-12 championship.

Independents: Notre Dame (11-1) and BYU (10-2) have the top records among independents.

Group of Five: Cincinnati (12-0) will face Houston (11-1) in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game. The Bearcats hammered East Carolina (7-5), 35-13, to finish the regular season unbeaten. Houston, which has won 11 in a row since a season-opening loss to Texas Tech, knocked off UConn, 45-17 … Texas-San Antonio (11-1) saw its unbeaten dream come to an end at the hands of North Texas (6-6), 45-23, but the Roadrunners will still be in the Conference USA Championship Game. Western Kentucky (8-4) made the title game with a 53-21 win over Marshall (7-5).

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The folks in the Pac-12 are hoping that Lincoln Riley taking the Southern Cal job will spark a football renaissance in a conference whose champion will miss the College Football Playoff. Again. It’s going to take more than Lincoln Riley at Southern Cal for the Pac-12 to get a media contract capable of competing with the SEC and the Big Ten. The Pac-12 is a financial bottom feeder and the television networks aren’t exactly thrilled at the idea of a big contract so they can televise thrilling matchups like Oregon