Todd Golden (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) Dumpster fire. As much as I hate that overused term that is the simplistic explanation for everything on the entire planet that can and will go wrong, it seems to be the description of choice for the University of Florida athletic department after Friday’s blockbuster story in The Alligator about basketball coach Todd Golden. Golden is the subject of a Title IX investigation that began on September 27 per the reporting by Jack Meyer and Alex Tucker. The story alleges that Golden has engaged in a pattern of sexual harassment, stalking and sending unsolicited photos of his genitalia to women, some of whom were UF students. Whether true or not, it’s just the latest in a long line of embarrassing incidents involving Florida coaches, student athletes and boosters years in the making. Among the more recent: · Football coach Jim McElwain · Women’s basketball coach Cam Newbauer · Football coach Dan Mullen · Women’s soccer coach Tony Amato · NIL deal with former quarterback recruit Jaden Rashada gone south that includes former Florida staffer Marcus Castro-Walker, mega booster Hugh Hathcock and head coach Billy Napier · And now Todd Golden McElwain: Claimed that he and his family had received death threats from Florida fans. When asked to show proof he couldn’t. Fired after the seventh game of the season. Newbauer: Surprisingly given a fifth season after three losers and one break even, Newbauer resigned (or perhaps asked to resign) prior to the 2021-22 season after allegations of physical and verbal abuse. Mullen: After three straight New Year’s Six bowl seasons, things went sideways for Mullen starting with NCAA probation and a one-year show cause against him ahead of the 2020 Cotton Bowl. When things began to go south during the 2021 season, there were reports that Mullen bailed on his team. He fired offensive line coach John Hevesy and defensive coordinator Todd Grantham a couple of weeks before he was canned. Amato: Given a six-year contract, Amato lasted one season, fired after players began leaving the program in droves amid allegations he pressured players about their eating habits and made disparaging remarks about their bodies. In his only season as the UF head coach, Amato went 4-14-2. Rashada NIL deal: This is an ongoing fluid situation since Jaden Rashada, now a backup QB at Georgia, has sued former Gator staffer Marcus Castro-Walker, mega booster Hugh Hathcock and HBC Billy Napier. Rashada claims he had a $9.4 million NIL deal with Miami although Miami mega booster John Ruiz says no such contract existed. The Gator Collective and Hathcock signed Rashada to a $13.8 million NIL deal after Rashada de-committed from Miami. Prior to National Signing Day in December 2022, the contract with UF went sideways although Napier allegedly tried to salvage the deal. Rashada signed with UF then got a release and went to Arizona State. He transferred after one year to Georgia and launched a $10 million lawsuit against Castro-Walker, Hathcock and Napier. This lawsuit could result in an NCAA investigation and violations against UF. Golden: Friday it was reported that Golden is the subject of a Title IX notice of allegations. Attempts to contact Florida AD Scott Stricklin only resulted in a message that UF cannot comment on ongoing investigations. As of 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning, there were no announcements by Stricklin or the University of Florida regarding Golden’s status. The Gators have a Monday evening game at the O-Dome against Grambling. Earlier in the week athletic director Scott Stricklin announced he would be giving Napier a fourth year to right the football program, an announcement that was met with an almost equal number of positive and negative reactions. Stricklin believes Napier has the football program on the right track and that Napier is the right coach to lead Florida back to a championship level. It should be noted that Napier is considered an absolute Boy Scout in the coaching profession, a deeply religious man who runs a program founded on the principles of honesty, responsibility and accountability. Contrast Napier to the allegations against Golden, whose image was generally clean although last year there were some unfounded rumors that he might have been involved in an extra-marital relationship. The news about Golden compounded the angst among the fans, boosters and alumni who were unhappy that Stricklin was bringing back Napier for one more season. Message boards lit up with calls to immediately dismiss both the coach and AD. Here are a few of the tamer calls and messages I received during the day: “It’s a dumpster fire. Golden has to go. Stricklin too.” “Look at all the coaches Stricklin has hired and fired. Golden is a problem but Stricklin’s a bigger one.” “I didn’t like Foley. He f@#ked us on facilities and he hired Moosedump and Butter Teeth and Mike White. Stricklin hired Mullen, Napier and Golden. We’re the embarrassment of the SEC now.” “Gotta have a new AD. Gotta have a new basketball coach. While we’re about it why don’t we clean out the whole athletic administration?” “What kind of signal does it send if we don’t have the guts to fire Golden and Stricklin?” Title IX investigations are known to move at a snail’s pace, but the Florida athletic administration should have been ready to cover every possible scenario the moment the allegations went viral. Since the notice of allegations was delivered on September 27 there is no good reason for a lack of response. It is troubling that here we are in the early hours of Saturday and there hasn’t been any word from Stricklin. If Golden has been investigated and the allegations are found untruthful, then there should have been a statement to that effect prepared and sent out Friday morning. If the investigation has yet to uncover enough substantial evidence to either fire or suspend Golden, then Stricklin should have called a press conference, explained why he is sticking with Golden for now at least, and then answered questions from the media. If  there is even a small measure of truth to the allegations, then Stricklin should have called a press conference Friday to announce that Golden will be suspended until the investigation is complete, or fired. The lack of a response only lends to the belief that some or all of the allegations are true. Also, the lack of a response heats up speculation that perhaps Stricklin has been removed from the decision-making process. Enough so that he will be removed as the athletic director? That seems to be a possibility. If you were alive and following the Gators during the 1980s, then you are all too familiar with the football scandals that led to the firing of both Charley Pell and Galen Hall as well as the basketball scandal that brought about the firing of Norm Sloan. Those were difficult times at Florida, salvaged by the 12 incident free years of Steve Spurrier and the hiring of Lon Kruger to coach basketball followed by the hire of Billy Donovan. From Spurrier’s first year on the job in 1990 until 2014 when assistant coach Joker Phillips resigned over a recruiting violation there were no run-ins with the NCAA. Both Kruger, Donovan and Donovan’s successor Mike White there were no NCAA violations. However, since the hire of McElwain and his subsequent firing in 2017, there has been a string of embarrassing hirings and firings, an NCAA run-in and the NIL mess. Now, there is a Title IX investigation at a school that for years whose national image was as squeaky clean as it gets. Florida athletics seem to be the dumpster fire that has been suggested on message boards and in print since Friday morning. Whether Todd Golden is guilty or not, the damage has been done to his reputation and to the Florida athletic department. Perhaps a steam cleaning is due.

Gator Bait has obtained a Title IX complaint of serious sexual allegations against University of Florida basketball coach Todd Golden. The complaint was also published in The Alligator as reported by Jack Meyer and Max Tucker. https://www.alligator.org/article/2024/11/uf-basketball-coach-accused-of-sexual-harassment-and-stalking The complaint alleges that Golden engaged in sexual harassment, exploitation, stalking and cyberstalking during the past 12 months. Golden allegedly sent photos of his genetalia to women, took photos of women walking and then showing up at locations where the women would be. Here is a copy of the complaint: Golden is in his third season as the head basketball coach at Florida. The Gators, who won 24 games and made the NCAA Tournament last year, are currently 2-0 and ranked No. 21 nationally in the preseason Associated Press poll. The Gators beat Jacksonville, 81-60, Thursday night in their home opener. Gator Bait will add to the story as information comes in.

Alex Condon (21) puts the ball on the deck on his way to the basket in the second half against JU (UAA Photo) Although he saw improvement from Monday night’s season opener with South Florida, particularly at the defensive end of the floor, Todd Golden knows the Gators are capable of playing much better than they did Thursday night when they took out Jacksonville, 81-60, before an announced crowd of 8,381 at the O-Dome. The Gators (2-0) scored an easy 15-point win over South Florida but they gave up way too many points in transition and gave up 13-27 from the 3-point line. The Gators were much better in both those categories against JU, but they didn’t rebound particularly well and for the second straight game the consistency wasn’t there from the 3-point line. Defensively, the Gators allowed only two fast break points and they held the Dolphins to a 7-24 night shooting (29.2 percent) from the 3-point line, both significant improvements. The Gators forced 18 Jacksonville turnovers, converting them into 24 points. Florida Atlantic transfer Alijah Martin had six steals, bringing his total to 10 in two games. The Gators blocked 10 Jacksonville shots with Chattanooga transfer Sam Alexis leading the way with four. That was the good news. The bad news was Jacksonville outrebounded the Gators 40-30 for a 16-14 advantage in second chance points. After a 5-25 effort from the 3-point line against South Florida, it was hoped that the familiar rims of the O-Dome would yield a far better night but instead the Gators matched Jacksonville’s 29.2 percent (7-24). “I think fundamentally we're not great right now,” Golden said about the rebounding issues. “You know, part of it is, I would say, a little bit of a combination of just probably being a little too amped up, you know, and just trying to go run and chase down the ball as opposed to hitting bodies ... We had a couple where we were sprinting in for the rebound, ball went overhead. You know, stuff like that we’ve got to eliminate. We’ve got to get better that way, but it’s definitely an area that we have not been as good as we need to be, so it gives us something to continue to work on over the course of  the weekend going into Monday’s game against Grambling.” Alexis led the Gators with seven rebounds to go with his 10 points, four blocks and a steal. Washington State transfer Rueben Chinyelu had six points, six rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot. In addition to his six steals. Martin hit 3-6 from the 3-point line, finishing with 15 points, four rebounds and four assists. Will Richard also turned in a strong all-around game with 11 points, five rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and three steals. Although he led the Gators with a career-high 23 points (7-7 from the field overall, 2-2 from the 3-point line, 7-12 from the foul line), Alex Condon grabbed only one rebound and blocked two shots. The single rebound was a sore spot of contention for the sophomore from Australia. “It was a weird game for me because I didn't really rebound,” Condon said. “I’ve just been more confident in my three. I’ve been shooting a little more at practice recently, so I’m just getting more confident with that ... I know if this team is to be good, I’ve got to be in there rebounding, so it’s something that I’m going to focus on next week for sure.” Fortunately for the Gators, neither a great night rebounding nor a lights out effort shooting the three were necessary. The Gators hit 23-33 of their 2-point shots. Through their two games, the Gators are only 12-49 (24.5 percent) on threes but they are 51-71 (71.8 percent) on their twos. This was a grind it out game for the Gators, who are ranked No. 21 nationally. They played tough defensively and they moved the ball particularly well. Walter Clayton Jr., who lit up South Florida for 29 points in game one, rarely took a shot against Jacksonville. He focused on getting teammates involved, finishing the night with nine points, two rebounds, seven assists and a blocked shot. He turned the ball over just one time. Clayton has 10 assists and just three turnovers in the two games so far. “Obviously, [he] didn't take a lot of shots tonight, only eight field goal attempts, but he played within himself,” Golden said. “I thought he did a really good job of kind of reading the game and finding different guys. He was definitely playing as more of a facilitator tonight, which was fine. “I thought there were, like I said, a couple of threes he could have taken that we would have preferred to take, but the 7-1 assist-turnover, obviously, really, really good floor game. And we have been really good taking care of the ball so far in four contests [two games that count, two exhibition games], so hopefully we can continue that.” Jacksonville hung with the Gators for the first 10 minutes, but an Alexis dunk after a spectacular pass from Clayton put Florida up 25-21 and from there the margin grew, reaching double figures on a pair of Martin free throws with 8:53 left that made it 34-23. A 3-pointer by Martin with 5:45 left in the first half gave the Gators a 39-25 lead. The Gators didn’t score again until two minutes later when Martin banked in a 3-pointer that put the Gators up 42-28. Martin also scored the final points of the first half on a fast break dunk finish after a steal that gave the Gators a 16-point lead that held for more than a minute before the Dolphins scored to cut the deficit to 46-32 at the half. The second half was pretty much a repeat of the first. The Gators continued to get nearly any shot they wanted inside the 3-point line, although they did slack off a bit on threes. The Gators led by 20 for the first time with 16:28 left in the game on a Condon free throw. The first of Condon’s two 3-pointers went down at the 7:46 mark to put Florida ahead 72-48. Condon's second three with 6:06 left made it a 25-point game. The second of two second half dunks by Clayton with 2:32 left gave the Gators a 27-point lead at 81-54. It was a good but unspectacular win for the Gators. With a little more experience playing together this season and a better level of competition, this team should get much, much better. The Gators are very capable of scoring from the perimeter, and the inside foursome of Condon, Chinyelu, Alexis and Thomas Haugh should put up good numbers offensively and on the backboards. “We've been very efficient from two so far this year,” Golden said. “I guess today we were really good again from two, and that's got to be a calling card for us, but usually that goes with the glass. So, you know, some really positive with the 2-point percentage, but, you know, the negatives are the glass right now.” SEC Basketball Today's games Grambling (1-0) at Ole Miss (1-0) South Carolina State (1-0) at South Carolina (0-1) Georgia State (1-0) at Mississippi State (1-0) Arkansas State (1-0) at No. 2 Alabama (1-0) Texas A&M-Commerce (0-1) at No. 13 Texas A&M (0-1) Houston Christian (1-0) at No. 19 Texas (0-1) Howard (0-1) at Missouri (0-1) Saturday’s games No. 12 Tennessee (1-0) at Louisville (1-0) Bucknell (1-0) at No. 23 Kentucky (1-0) No. 8 Baylor (0-1) at No. 16 Arkansas (1-0) No. 11 Auburn (1-0) at No. 4 Houston (1-0) Sunday’s games Southeast Missouri State (0-1) at Vanderbilt (1-0) Texas Southern (1-1) at Georgia (1-0)

Billy Napier will return as Florida's head football coach in 2025 (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) In a move that was almost a necessity, University of Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin announced Thursday morning that Billy Napier is and will continue to be the head football coach. In a letter addressed to the Gator Nation, Stricklin ended any speculation that Napier will be dismissed if the Gators suffer blowout losses in their next three games, all against highly-ranked opponents who are in the hunt for a berth in the College Football Playoff. The Gators are currently 4-4, 2-3 in Southeastern Conference play. The difficulty of the schedule would seem to indicate it will take a miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead proportions for the Gators to get to six wins and bowl eligibility. By affirming that Napier will return for the 2025 season no matter the outcome in the last four games, Stricklin sent a shockwave of positive energy to the current Florida roster and to recruits either committed or sitting on the fence, trying to decide if they’re willing to gamble on fitting into the long range plans of a brand new coach in the event Napier is fired. Napier has assembled a young, but very talented roster. If he were to be dismissed it would be akin to an open invitation for every Power Four coach in the country to raid the Florida roster. In the past couple of weeks, some highly regarded commitments have backed away from UF, largely due to uncertainty that Napier would be returning as the head coach. So, a letter of affirmation from Stricklin was an absolute necessity. Stricklin’s letter: Gator Nation, I wanted to let you know that Billy Napier will continue as head football coach of the Florida Gators. As we've seen these past several weeks, the young men on this team represent what it means to be a Gator. Their resolve, effort and execution are evident in their performance and growth each week - building a foundation that promises greater success next season and beyond. UF's commitment to excellence and a championship-caliber program is unwavering. In these times of change across college athletics, we are dedicated to a disciplined, stable approach that is focused on long-term, sustained success for Gator athletes, recruits and fans. I am confident that Billy will meet the challenges and opportunities ahead. We will work alongside him to support any changes needed to elevate Gator football. As college athletics evolves, UF is committed to embracing innovation and strategy, ensuring the Gators thrive in today's competitive landscape. Gator Nation has remained strong, showing up game after game to stand with our team. This loyalty creates an incredible environment that inspires our players to compete with heart and determination. Now, I call on all of Gator Nation to continue standing behind Billy and his dedicated team while we work together to build a championship program. Go Gators! Scott Stricklin Athletics Director This was not an unexpected move on the part of the Florida athletics administration. Although alumni, boosters and media have called for Napier’s dismissal, particularly after the Gators lost in rather embarrassing fashion at The Swamp to 4th-ranked Miami and 15th-ranked Texas A&M in the first three games, Stricklin has never wavered in his confidence that Billy Napier is the right coach to put Florida football back on a championship track. Florida’s play in the last five games has been particularly encouraging, lending to the belief that Billy Napier has the Gators moving in the right direction. The Gators are 3-2 in their last five with hard fought losses at the hands of 7th-ranked Tennessee in overtime and 2nd-ranked Georgia. The Gators have continued to make progress despite a rash of injuries that has decimated the roster. Starting quarterback Graham Mertz went down with a torn ACL late against Tennessee in Knoxville, which quite possibly prevented the Gators from springing the upset. Significant among the many injuries last Saturday against Georgia in Jacksonville was a soft tissue injury to the hamstring of freshman quarterback DJ Lagway. At the time of the injury in the second quarter, the Gators had a 10-3 lead and plenty of momentum. Lagway could be available albeit in a limited capacity Saturday when the Gators face 5th-ranked Texas in Austin. The Longhorns are favored by 21.5 points, in part because the Gators may have to play the entire game with Aidan Warner, a walk-on transfer from Yale, at quarterback. Still on the schedule, the Gators have home games with 14th-ranked LSU and 16th-ranked Ole Miss plus a season-ending road trip to Florida State. With that daunting schedule, the handicap of a depleted roster and the possibility of a recruiting class in need of a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, Stricklin’s letter was a necessity. Either he had to announce Napier’s dismissal or affirm that he and the athletic administration trust that Napier is the right coach to lead Florida football into the future. By announcing that Napier will be his coach moving forward, it not only gives the Gators the best chance to prevent the roster from being poached when the transfer portal opens in December but save the 2025 recruiting class. Lagway and freshman running back Jadan Baugh would be particularly inviting targets for schools wishing to replenish their rosters through the transfer portal. The move also allows the coaching staff to hold onto key recruits such as 5-star receiver Vernell Brown III and 4-star corner Ben Hanks Jr.    After losing seasons in 2022 and 2023, this was expected to be a breakout season for Napier and the Gators. The poor play in the Miami and Texas A&M games gave the look of a program spiraling out of control, but ever since an open week following a more difficult than expected 45-28 win over Mississippi State, the Gators have been a team that nobody wants to play. The Gators have shown significant improvement defensively where they’ve been able to pressure the quarterback and the secondary has turned into ball hawks who pick off passes. On the other side, the passing game has turned explosive with Lagway throwing the ball and the running game hasn’t missed a beat despite injuries to Montrell Johnson Jr. and Treyaun Webb. In their place Baugh and Ja’Kobi Jackson have found room to run behind an offensive line that seems to show weekly improvement. The Gators are fourth in the SEC in fewest sacks allowed. In making his decision, Stricklin had to take into account that in Florida’s dominating, 48-20, win over Kentucky, 19 Gator starters are eligible to return next season. An additional 27 Gators played against Kentucky who will be able to return. When you throw in the number of underclassmen who are out with injuries, that’s an exceptional nucleus returning who could make quite a difference next season. During a brief conversation with Stricklin a few months ago, the athletic director commented to me, “We have to stop this endless cycle of changing coaches. How many coaches have we had since Coach Spurrier? Five? And only one of them (Urban Meyer) lasted more than four years. If we’re going to build a program that can sustain success, we can’t just keep on doing what we’ve been doing.” Since Steve Spurrier, Ron Zook was fired before his third year completed. Urban Meyer coached six years, producing two SEC and two national championships. Will Muschamp was fired during his fourth season. Jim McElwain didn’t make it to the end of his third season. Dan Mullen was fired with just a couple of games remaining in his fourth season. Zook, Muschamp, McElwain and Mullen all produced winning records although none of them won the SEC or got the Gators in the College Football Playoff. Napier has produced two losing seasons and he needs two wins in the last four games to at least break even in season three. Retaining Napier probably won’t settle well with a portion of the Gator Nation, but from this vantage-point, it seems the right thing to do. It is time to break the cycle of firing coaches and paying out enormous amounts of money to buy out their contracts. That money could be better spent on a recruiting budget that is half of what Georgia spends or other necessities such as NIL to prevent players from leaving as well as lure players from the portal. Unlike Georgia, whose players seem to be ever so familiar with the police blotter, Napier runs a high character organization where player responsibility and accountability are stressed. Napier has yet to bring in a top five recruiting class, but as the 2024 freshman class has proven with Lagway, Baugh, LJ McCray, Graham Miles, Aaron Chiles and others, he has an eye for the kind of talent that can play at a championship level if given time to develop. The foundation is in place for a breakout season in 2025 if Napier can keep the Gators on the same trajectory. He should be given the opportunity of a fourth season as head coach to prove he has the program on the right track.

Will Richard dunks in the second half against South Florida (UAA Photo) Todd Golden wasn’t trying to be disrespectful to a very good South Florida team that 21st-ranked Florida (1-0) beat, 98-83, Monday night in Jacksonville, but the last thing he expected was for the Gators to find themselves upside down by 13 in the first half of the season opener. “I wouldn’t have expected we were down 13 in the first half, you know, but we were in that moment and I thought it was a good sign that we didn’t blink,” Golden said Wednesday afternoon before the Gators hit the practice floor to tune up for tonight’s home debut with Jacksonville (1-0) at the O-Dome (8 p.m., SEC Network+). “We kept our head up, we weren’t pointing fingers, we weren’t making excuses we just kind of got back to it and obviously, Will (Richard) kind of got it going and that kind of opened it up for us.” Richard went into a mini-shooter’s coma, sandwiching a driving layup between a pair of 3-pointers and then finishing the half with a fadeaway bank shot that pulled the Gators to within a single point (40-39) at the horn. He scored 15 more in the second half to finish with 25 while Walter Clayton Jr. led all scorers with 29. “We got that thing back to where we were only down one at halftime so we were able to take a deep breath and go get it in the second half,” Golden said. The Gators were much better offensively from the outset of the second half, but they couldn’t shake the Bulls until the final seven minutes when their relentless effort to drive the basketball to the rack took its toll. In a second half in which the Gators exploded for 59 points, they hit 15-29 of their 2-point shots and got to the foul line 29 times after just four in the first half. It was a 13-0 run that expanded Florida’s lead from 63-62 to 76-62 that put the game away, all from drives to the basket and the foul line. “S ystematically, we don't want to have to rely on high percentage makes from three to score well,” Golden said. “Obviously, [we] want that to kind of be icing on the cake, and I think, you know, we saw a tale of two halves that way a little bit in terms of just our attack in the first half. I thought we settled a little too much, and we didn't get enough rim pressure. Obviously, we only got to the line four times I think in the first half and I credit our guys for being more aggressive, getting downhill and getting to the rim in the second half. And obviously we shot well from two, but we also got to the line 29 times in the second half, and just had relentless rim pressure. And that's really the way we want to play. “So I think that speaks more about, you know, systematically, how what we're doing works when we attack it the right way. And, you know, we don't want to be living in that 25 percent (5-25 for the game) from three range ... I think we'll get better as the year goes on that way, but yeah, I was pleased with the result, considering we didn't shoot it great." A year ago the Gators were great in shootout games, but this year Golden wants a better defensive effort. The first half when South Florida scored easily in transition and got just about any shot it wanted was like a repeat of last season. The Bulls found the range early and often from the 3-point line throughout the night, knocking down 13-27 of their 3-point shots. They bombed away in both halves without much defensive resistance from the Gators. While the Gators continued to heat up in the second half, South Florida tested Florida’s defense on the perimeter. That’s something the Gators were set to work on Wednesday. Golden will take 98 points just about any day of the week, but he expects a much better defensive effort from the Gators this season. "I think a couple of things defensively,” Golden said. “Transition defense, we had a stretch in the first half where we were really bad that way and that's been an area where our team has generally been pretty good, so we've got to be better that way. And then just guarding the 3-point line, limiting attempts. Those would be two things defensively that we've just got to improve upon.” PROJECTED STARTERS FOR JACKSONVILLE JACKSONVILLE (1-0): Zimi Nwokeji (6-7, 210, SR); Stephon Payne (6-9, 220, JR); Chris Arias (6-6, 205, FR); Zach Bell (6-2, 180, JR); Robert McCray (6-4, 186, JR) FLORIDA (1-0): Rueben Chinyelu (6-10, 255, SO); Alex Condon (6-11, 230, SO); Will Richard (6-4, 206, SR); Alijah Martin (6-2, 195, GR); Walter Clayton Jr. (6-2, 195, SR) SEC Basketball Wednesday’s scores No. 11 Auburn (1-0) 94, Vermont (1-1) 43: Georgia Tech transfer Miles Kelly hit 7-9 of his 3-pointers to lead Auburn past Vermont. Kelly’s 21 points led five Auburn players in double figures. No. 16 Arkansas (1-0) 76, Lipscomb (1-1) 60: John Calipari’s debut as the Arkansas head coach was successful, led by freshman Boogie Fland, who had 17 points, three rebounds, three assists and a steal. LSU (1-0) 95, Louisiana-Monroe (1-1) 60: Jalen Reed scored 24 points and Cam Carter scored 21 as LSU opened its season with a blowout win. Thursday’s game Jacksonville (1-0) at No. 21 FLORIDA (1-0) Friday’s games Grambling (1-0) at Ole Miss (1-0) South Carolina State (1-0) at South Carolina (0-1) Georgia State (1-0) at Mississippi State (1-0) Arkansas State (1-0) at No. 2 Alabama (1-0) Texas A&M-Commerce (0-1) at No. 13 Texas A&M (0-1) Houston Christian (1-0) at No. 19 Texas (0-1) Howard (0-1) at Missouri (0-1) Saturday’s games No. 12 Tennessee (1-0) at Louisville (1-0) Bucknell (1-0) at No. 23 Kentucky (1-0) No. 8 Baylor (0-1) at No. 16 Arkansas (1-0) No. 11 Auburn (1-0) at No. 4 Houston (1-0) Sunday’s games Southeast Missouri State (0-1) at Vanderbilt (1-0) Texas Southern (1-1) at Georgia (1-0)

Injured QB DJ Lagway practiced in a limited capacity Wednesday (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) Under the best of circumstances, prepping for the No. 5 team in the country, which ranks No. 1 in both total defense (241.3 yards per game, 3.8 per play) and pass defense (135.8 yards per game, 4.6 per attempt, 12 interceptions and only 3 TDPs allowed), is no easy task. When you’re the Florida Gators (4-4, 2-3 SEC), whose roster has been decimated by injuries, particularly at the quarterback position, getting ready for Texas (7-1, 3-1 SEC) in Austin (Saturday, 12 noon, ABC) requires a bit of innovation and creativity in practice. “I think again I go back to the importance of walk-ons relative to just the ability to simulate the other team’s offense, defense and kicking game,” Florida head coach Billy Napier said at this Wednesday evening press conference. “You got more players that are taking more reps. There’s a lot of guys who typically are rotation players in that format but they went every play today [at practice] and you got some guys who are chipping in like Ja’Markis Weston playing at linebacker today for us on the scout team. So some of these guys maybe don’t typically do those jobs, they have to chip in and contribute in that fashion.” Adversity has struck the Gators hard at the quarterback, running back and secondary positions. Graham Mertz is done for the season after suffering a torn ACL against Tennessee. DJ Lagway is listed as questionable after suffering a soft tissue injury to his hamstring in last Saturday’s loss to No. 2 Georgia. Leading rusher Montrell Johnson Jr. is listed as questionable while sophomore Treyaun Webb is done for the season with a fractured tibia. In the secondary, corners Ja’Keem Jackson, Jason Marshall Jr. and Devin Moore are out along with safety Asa Turner but corner Dijohn Johnson is on the questionable list. Lagway participated in Wednesday’s practice but his availability for Texas will probably be a game-time decision. Redshirt freshman Aidan Warner, a walk-on transfer from Yale, has been taking the reps as the No. 1 QB this week with Colorado State transfer Clay Millen the No. 2. The likely running backs against Texas are freshman Jadan Baugh and redshirt junior Ja’Kobi Jackson. It will be a patchwork secondary with the likely corners Aaron Gates, who had an interception against Georgia, and Trikweze Bridges, the leading tackler against Georgia who is versatile enough to play safety, STAR, nickel and corner. Lagway’s reps in practice were extremely limited Wednesday, but Napier is aware how much it means to the Willis, Texas native to be able to play in his home state. “I think he’s trying,” Napier said. “He’s a competitor. You think about him, he’s going back to his home state. He wants to try to find a pathway to make this work. Obviously, it’s touch and go. Look, the guy’s giving it his best shot. We’ll see where we’re at in the league. There’s no secret to it anymore. You guys will have a good idea where we’re at when we approach kickoff.” Warner came off the bench in the second quarter against Georgia when Lagway left the game injured. He completed 7-22 passes for 66 yards with an interception, but to his credit he led the Gators on a field goal drive in the final minute of the first half and a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter. “I think he’s surprised us,” Napier said. He’s got some arm talent. I think there are some traits there to develop and he’s done a good job.” FLORIDA INJURY REPORT FOR TEXAS Out CB Ja’Keem Jackson CB Jason Marshall Jr. WR Eugene Wilson III RB Treyaun Webb QB Graham Mertz S Asa Turner WR Kahleil Jackson CB Devin Moore OT Devon Manuel DT Jamari Lyons Questionable RB Montrell Johnson Jr. QB DJ Lagway WR Elijhah Badger CB Dijon Johnson OG Damien George Jr. SEC Football No. 11 Alabama (6-2, 3-2 SEC): Wide receiver Cole Adams, who has been Alabama’s No. 1 punt returner, will miss the rest of the season with a lower body injury.  Saturday: at No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-1 SEC)    No. 2 Georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC): Leading rusher Trevor Etienne, who left the Florida game with a rib injury, should be available for the game against Ole Miss in Oxford. Etienne has 453 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. Saturday: at No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC) No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-1 SEC): Starting left guard Garrett Dellenger will miss Saturday’s game with Alabama after undergoing tightrope surgery for a high ankle sprain. Saturday: No. 11 Alabama (6-2, 3-2 SEC) Mississippi State (2-7, 0-6 SEC): The Bulldogs are 24-point underdogs on the road Saturday against No. 7 Tennessee. Saturday: at No. 7 Tennessee (7-1, 4-1 SEC) Missouri (6-2, 2-2 SEC): Missouri is calling for a blackout against Oklahoma. The Tigers will be wearing all-black uniforms and fans are asked to wear all-black for the game, which is sold out.  Saturday: Oklahoma (5-4, 1-4 SEC) Oklahoma (5-4, 1-4 SEC): Two former Oklahoma players (WR Theo Wease and OT Cayden Green will start for Missouri Saturday while former Missouri wideout JJ Hester is the Sooner’s leading receiver with 13 catches for 265 yards and a touchdown. Saturday: at Missouri (6-2, 2-2 SEC) No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC): Leading rusher Henry Parrish Jr is out for Saturday’s game with 2nd-ranked Georgia while leading receiver Tre Harris is listed as doubtful. Parrish has run for 678 yards and 10 touchdowns this season while Harris, who has missed the last two games, has 59 catches for 987 yards and six touchdowns. Altogether, there are 26 players on the roster listed as out, doubtful, questionable or probable. Saturday: No. 2 Georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC) South Carolina (5-3, 3-3 SEC): The Gamecocks got a slap on the wrist from the NCAA for a Level III violation committed by former director of player personnel Taylor Edwards. Saturday: at No. 24 Vanderbilt (6-3, 3-2 SEC) No. 7 Tennessee (7-1, 4-1 SEC): The Vols are the only team in the nation that has held all eight opponents to 20 or fewer points. The Vols rank fifth in the nation in scoring defense (12.4 points per game) and fourth in total defense (271.6 yards per game).  Saturday: Mississippi State (2-7, 0-6 SEC) No. 5 Texas (7-1, 3-1 SEC): Even with the announcement that quarterback DJ Lagway could play for Florida Saturday, the betting line has remained the same. Texas is a 21.5-point favorite to beat the Gators. Saturday: FLORIDA (4-4, 2-3 SEC) Vanderbilt (6-3, 3-2 SEC): Paul Finebaum says the Commodores could beat a lot of those Big Ten teams” listed in the first College Football Playoff poll. Saturday: South Carolina (6-3, 3-2 SEC)

Scott Stricklin Letter Announces Decision

Walter Clayton Jr. goes baseline in the second half against South Florida (UAA Photo) JACKSONVILLE -- In many respects, Florida’s 98-83 win over South Florida Monday night at the VyStar Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum was a typical season opener. The Gators made and overcame enough mistakes that Todd Golden won’t lack for teaching moments anytime soon. Despite missing way too many wide open 3-pointers, playing sloppy at both ends of the floor and leaving their defense on the bus that brought them from Gainesville the Gators opened the 2024-25 season with a quality win over a team that won 25 games and the American Athletic Conference regular season championship a year ago. “You know, that’s a really good team,” Golden said. “I think they have great perimeter shooting, they have great playmaking, they have some big bodies inside ... They're really good, and I think they'll continue to be really good over the rest of the year. They put pressure on us in the first half, and I did not think we handled it very well.” For most of the first half, South Florida controlled the tempo at both ends of the floor. Defensively, they wouldn’t let the Gators get into any kind of rhythm to the point that nothing was working, whether inside or outside. Offensively, they consistently beat the Gators down the court in transition and they kept making the extra pass to perimeter shooters who knocked down open looks. It was enough to stake South Florida to a 36-23 lead with 6:13 to go before the intermission, but that’s when the Gators got their act together, at least from an offensive standpoint. Walter Clayton Jr. began a mini-rally when he drove to the rack and stuck in a bank off the glass with 5:51 to go. That’s when Will Richard took the game over, going on a flurry during a span of 1:15 to sandwich a layup in transition between a pair of 3-pointers to bring the Gators back within three, 36-33. It was a banked 15-foot jumper with one second left in the half that cut the lead back to a single point, 40-39, the first time the game was that close since the 11:26 mark when the Bulls took a 17-16 lead on a 3-ball by Jimmie Williams. “You know, we were just so out of sorts, and we were starting to do some things that we don't ever do, and so we just wanted to kind of get ourselves back organized,” Golden said. “I thought Will was huge in that moment. He had some big shots. He kind of took the lid off the rim in the first half. I think he scored eight points in a row, and that kind of calmed us a little bit.” At halftime, the Gators were only 3-17 shooting from the 3-point line. Defensively, the Gators gave up 6-15 shooting from deep, so to trail by a single point was somewhat of an accomplishment. The Gators showed plenty of resilience in erasing 12 points from a 13-point deficit but that skimmed over the problem of digging a deep hole to begin with. Golden credited South Florida with a strong defensive effort that forced the Gators out of their comfort zone. As disappointed as he was with falling behind by 13, he was quick to praise his team for having the wherewithal to mount a comeback. “They put pressure on us in the first half, and I did not think we handled it very well,” Golden said, adding a little later, “They're fast, and they get out, and they were getting downhill on us, and I think we're a little surprised by that, but I was proud of the way we rallied, obviously being down 13 in the first half. You know, a weak-minded team might not be able to come back the way we did.” Despite the poor shooting (3-17) from the 3-point line in the first half, the Gators did convert 13-17 from inside the arc. The adjustment at the half was to look for fewer 3-pointers while concentrating on attacking the rim. That led to 29 free throw attempts -- Gators made 23 -- and that was the difference in the final outcome. The game was still tight until the midway point of the second half when the Gators went on a 13-0 run to take command. Leading 63-62 with 10:43, Alijhah Martin got to the foul line for four straight points to kickstart the run that was finished off on a 3-point play by Clayton that made it 76-62 with 6:43 left in the game. “We did not shoot a good percentage from three [in the first half],” Golden said. “I thought we were settling. We weren't putting pressure on the rim. We weren't putting pressure on the refs to make any calls. We only shot four free throws in the first half. So a big part of the message at halftime was not allowing them to keep us on one side of the floor, working on getting downhill, getting middle, and then putting pressure on the rim. And we started with finishes, and then over the course of the half, we just wore them down a little bit, started getting them out of position defensively, trying to finish with their bodies and get to the line. “So obviously we scored 59 points in the second half. We were much more effective that way. But the goal is to do that each half, and I thought we were a little soft on the offensive end in the first half.” Clayton, who scored nine first half points, exploded for 20 in the second half as he consistently beat his defender off the dribble to get to the rack. He was 5-5 from inside the arc, 1-2 on 3-balls and 7-7 from the foul line. Richard, who had 12 in the first half, added 13 second half points. It wasn’t a vintage shooting night from the 3-point line for Richard, who can go into a shooter’s coma when it seems he can’t miss. He hit only 2-7 from the 3-point line but overall he was 10-17 from the field and 3-3 from the foul line for a 25-point effort. Florida Atlantic transfer Alijhah Martin threw up six SCUDS from the 3-point line but he finished with 13 points, six rebounds and three assists. He came away with four steals showing the ability to play physical  defense without fouling. “He obviously didn't shoot the ball well from three tonight, but I thought he was really good on the glass,” Golden said. “I thought he did a good job getting steals, good with the ball, three assists, one turnover. You know, and he's a confident guy, right? Getting downhill, even he's not making shots, he's still putting pressure on the rim, getting to the line. Had, I think, one or two really tough and one finishes in the second half that were big momentum moments for us. So, you know, even though he didn't shoot the ball well, he was still able to find ways to help us win tonight.” The Gators got only 23 points from their big guys, 13 of which came from Alex Condon, who was whistled for four fouls, three of which were cheapies. Condon also contributed five rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot. Chattanooga transfer Sam Alexis had six points, four rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot. Washington State transfer Rueben Chinyelu only had two points but he grabbed four rebounds and blocked a shot. Thomas Haugh scored only two points, but he affected the game on both ends of the court in both halves, finishing the night with six rebounds, two assists and a steal. “He's a guy that can affect the game positively without scoring, and I thought we needed more of that tonight,” Golden said. “I thought he was good defensively for most of the game. Obviously, six rebounds kind of kept us in our stuff offensively.” For the game, the Gators shot 33-63 from the field overall but only 5-25 from the 3-point line. The Gators were 28-38 (73.6 percent) on their 2-point shots and 79.3 percent (27-33) from the foul line. South Florida lit up the Gators from the 3-point line, hitting 13-27 but the Bulls didn’t have the inside game that could get them to the foul line consistently. They hit 14-17 of their free throws, but that was a 15-made shot difference which showed in the final outcome. The Gators will play their home opener Thursday night at the O-Dome against Jacksonville, a 78-65 winner Monday night against Trinity Baptist.

DJ Lagway scrambles for yardage against Georgia (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) Good news arrived Sunday in the form of an MRI that revealed the soft tissue injury to quarterback DJ Lagway doesn’t seem to be as significant as initially feared. When Lagway left the Georgia game on a cart late in the second quarter, it was feared he might be done for the season, but Billy Napier said Monday that Lagway hasn’t been ruled out of Saturday’s game with Texas in Austin.   “The good news is we’ve had positive information on that front,” Napier said at his Monday press conference. “ That is the positive there. We do think the injury is less significant. We do think there is a pathway to a recovery and a return. We did find that out yesterday evening. So a lot of good on that front.  “So less significant than we anticipated, and he's been doing well so far this morning. We have not completely ruled him out, and I think a lot of that will be to be determined as we move our way throughout the week. So that's a good thing for all involved and certainly for DJ.” The Gators were leading Georgia, 10-3, with 5:06 remaining in the half when Lagway was injured on a short run over the left side of the line. He left the field on a cart, although it should be noted he was sitting and not stretched out, a sign that perhaps he hadn’t suffered any kind of a knee injury.   Sunday, Napier got the MRI report that revealed the extent of the injury and the possibilities for this week.   “ Ultimately you have to get to the MRI to find out how much damage there is, and that's what we did,” Napier said. “We did the MRI Sunday, got it back last night. So positive news on that front.”   With Lagway in the game against Georgia, the safeties had to play several yards back because he throws such a great deep ball and Florida receivers such as Elijhah Badger, Chimere Dike and Aidan Mizell all have serious field-stretching speed. On the first play following Devin Moore’s interception of Carson Beck and 32-yard runback in the second quarter, Lagway threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Aidan Mizell that was a thing of beauty. Mizell was clearly faster than Georgia’s DBs and Lagway showed incredible touch on the deep throw. Later in the quarter after Aaron Gates picked off Beck and ran it back 19 yards, Lagway led the Gators on a drive that culuminated in a Smack field goal that gave UF a 10-3 lead.   At that point in the game Florida had all the momentum and it felt like an upset of the nation’s No. 2 team was brewing. Then came the Lagway injury and Florida proceeded to lose its momentum. Backup Aidan Warner did lead the Gators on a drive that produced a field goal with three seconds left in the half and a touchdown that tied the game at 20-20 in the fourth quarter, but the Gators lacked the explosive passing threat they have with Lagway, which showed in the final yardage totals. In taking out the Gators, 34-20, Georgia held a 455-228 yardage advantage overall, 233-78 in the second half.    Texas was established as a 21.5-point favorite when the betting lines went up in Las Vegas Sunday. That was before it was determined that Lagway might be available. If he is able to play, expect the line to come down by a touchdown or even more.   On that end, Lagway will be closely monitored during the week to determine if he can play against the 5th-ranked Longhorns. It might be a late week or even a game time decision.   “We're going to kind of see how that goes," Napier said. "I think obviously the position he plays makes that possible. Look, it's going to be pretty clear-cut once we get to Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, so we'll know.”   Meanwhile, Warner will be prepping for the first start of his collegiate career in the event Lagway can’t go and Colorado State transfer Clay Millen will be the backup. Against Georgia, Warner completed 7-22 passes for 66 yards with one interception.   Warner earned the No. 3 quarterback job during August so he never got reps with the first or second teams until Graham Mertz went down with a torn ACL against Tennessee. Since then Warner has taken the second team reps and shown enough potential that he’s stayed ahead of Millen, who started 10 games at Colorado State in 2022.   “Now, the three quarterback gets no reps, right?,” Napier said. “He (Warner) got reps for the last couple of weeks as the two, and I would say he's had some really good practices. I think there are some things to be encouraged about.”   Of course, nothing will be more encouraging than for Lagway to continue to respond to treatment that will make him available to play against Texas. Getting him back would be a huge boost for the Gators, who will be going against the nation’s No. 1 defense.   Lagway wasn’t the only Gator to go down Saturday. Corners Devin Moore and Dijon Johnson both left the game injured. Their status won’t be known until later in the week, but Napier wouldn’t rule them out just yet.   “I think both of those guys are in a category they could very easily be available for the game as well,” Napier said.   If Moore and Johnson are unable to go, Aaron Gates and Trikweze Bridges will probably start at the corners. Gates had a very productive game against Georgia with four tackles, an interception, a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. Bridges, who’s played the nickel and safety all season, showed his versatility against Georgia by shifting over to corner. He finished the game as Florida’s leading tackler with eight.   Cormani McClain, who played a significant role in the corner rotation against Georgia, finishing the game with four tackles, and freshmen Jameer Grimsley and Teddy Foster will all be involved in the defensive game plan this week.

Tre Wilson (3) scores a touchdown against Samford (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning: When it comes to injuries, it seems the Florida Gators (4-4, 2-3 SEC) take one step forward and two steps backwards lately. Monday, Billy Napier announced that quarterback DJ Lagway’s injury isn’t as bad as originally thought to the point he might have a shot at playing Saturday when the Gators face No. 5 Texas (7-1, 5-1 SEC) in Austin (12 noon, ABC). Tuesday, Florida’s 247Sports site reported that sophomore running back Treyaun Webb will undergo surgery next week for a fractured tibia that will end his season. Wednesday, 247 reported that sophomore wide receiver Tre Wilson has undergone surgery that will keep him sidelined the rest of the year. Webb, whose best game was eight carries for 41 yards in the Gators’ 45-28 win over Mississippi State, has only played in four games, so he will be able to take a redshirt. His 4-game totals were 21 carries for 93 yards and a TD. Wilson had surgery on his hip by a specialist in Chicago Tuesday. Wilson was expected to build on last year’s 61 catches for 538 yards and six touchdowns for an All-SEC caliber season, but he has played in only four games this year. In his four games, Wilson caught 19 passes for 286 yards and one touchdown. At his Wednesday evening press conference, Napier could update Lagway’s status as well as that of corners Devin Moore and Dijon Johnson, both injured in the Gators’ 34-20 loss to Georgia. At his Monday press conference, Napier said both could possibly be able to suit up and play against Texas. SEC BASKETBALL The No. 21 Gators (1-0), 97-83 winners over South Florida in their Monday night season opener, will face Jacksonville (1-0) in their home opener Thursday night. In the win over South Florida, four Gators scored in double figures led by Walter Clayton Jr. (29) and Will Richard (25). Scoring 13 each were Florida Atlantic transfer Alijah Martin and sophomore Alex Condon. Jacksonville scored a 78-65 win over Trinity Baptist in its season opener, led by Stephon Payne III, who had 18 points and 13 rebounds. Despite a bad, 5-25 shooting night from the 3-point line, the Gators hit 28-38 on their 2-point shots including 15-21 in the second half. Offense wasn’t the problem just as it wasn’t last year. The Gators do have plenty of room to grow defensively after giving up 13-27 from the 3-point line. SEC Basketball No. 2 Alabama (1-0): Seven players scored in double figures led by Mark Sears with 20 in Bama’s 110-54 win over UNC-Asheville. Friday: Arkansas State (1-0) No. 16 Arkansas (0-0): Today: Lipscomb (1-0); Saturday: No. 8 Baylor (0-1) No. 11 Auburn (0-0): Today: Vermont (1-0); Saturday: at No. 4 Houston (1-0) Georgia (1-0): Freshman Asa Newell had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocked shorts to lead Georgia to a 83-78 win over Tennessee Tech. Sunday: Texas Southern (0-1) No. 23 Kentucky (1-0): Oklahoma transfer Otega Oweh scored 21 points to lead the Wildcats to a 103-62 win over Wright State in Mark Pope’s head coaching debut at UK. Saturday: Bucknell (1-0) LSU (0-0): Today: Louisiana-Monroe (1-0); Sunday: Alabama State (0-1) Mississippi State (1-0): Josh Hubbard scored 26 in Mississippi State’s 95-60 win over West Georgia. Friday: Georgia State (1-0) Missouri (0-1): Mizzou was outscored by 18 by Memphis in the second half in an 83-75 loss. Saturday: Howard (0-1) Oklahoma (1-0): Jalon Moore scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead Oklahoma past Lindenwood, 93-60. Ole Miss (1-0): Jaylen Murray’s 24 points led the Rebels to a 90-60 win over Long Island. Friday: Grambling (1-0) South Carolina (0-1): The Gamecocks were shocked by low major North Florida, 74-71. Friday: South Carolina State (1-0) No. 12 Tennessee (1-0): Zakai Ziegler had 13 points, nine assists and two steals to lead the Vols to an 80-65 win over Gardner-Webb. Saturday: at Louisville (1-0) No. 19 Texas (0-1): The Longhorns lost their season opener to Ohio State, 80-72. Friday: Houston Christian (1-0) No. 13 Texas A&M (0-1): The Aggies were shocked by unranked UCF, 64-61, Monday night. Friday: Texas A&M-Commerce (0-1) Vanderbilt (1-0): Boston College transfer Devin McGlockton scored 24 points and pulled down 13 rebounds in Vandy’s 102-63 win over Maryland Eastern Shore. Sunday: Southeast Missouri State (0-1) COUNTDOWN TO FIRING DAY Extinct Species List Mike Houston, East Carolina: The immediate response to the firing of Joe Houston was ECU scored 56 points to blow the doors off Shirley Temple. ECU is 4-4 and could go bowling because the next two games are against Florida Atlantic and Tulsa. This will be one of the more attractive Group of Five jobs. The guy they want is Joe Sloan, the offensive coordinator at LSU, a former ECU quarterback. Will Hall, Southern Miss: The guy they want is Bill Clark, who won at Jacksonville State and UAB, but he may say thankee but no thankee. Next on the list is Brennan Marion, the offensive coordinator at UNLV. Mike Bloomgren, Rice: The average freshman has an SAT score of 1550. What that tells us is Rice has to find a coach who can scour the country to find enough smart guys who would be interested in coming to play for a dead end program that has rotten facilities. On Life Support Billy Napier, Florida: Expectations of what happens next with Napier are all over the place. There are still the fire Billy folks who think that losing the next three games will be the end, but there is a growing opinion that Florida won’t dare lose super freshmen like DJ Lagway and Jadan Baugh to the portal in the event Napier was canned. It’s dicey. A statement by athletic director Scott Stricklin that Napier will be Florida’s head coach next year would be helpful, particularly for the 2025 recruiting class. Trent Dilfer, UAB: Trent finally has a quarterback in former Gator Jalen Kitna. The offense is finally cranking. Will that be enough to punch the ticket for one more year for Trent? Money will be a factor. They really can’t afford to fire him. Kenni Burns, Kent State: The same school that produced coaching legends Lou Holtz, Nick Saban and Gary Pinkel and was the place that kickstarted the careers of Don James and Glen Mason is 1-19 under Kenny Burns. Mike Neu, Ball State: The Cards hung with the same Vanderbilt team that beat Alabama and hung with Texas. They beat the same Northern Illinois team that beat Notre Dame in South Bend. Is that enough to give Neu another year? Stan Drayton, Temple: Stan is a fine assistant coach and a terrific recruiter. He’s  the coach at Shirley Temple, an absolute graveyard. The Owls are 2-6 so far and they’re about to get their doors blown off by Tulane. Sonny Cumbie, Louisiana Tech: He’s 3-5 this year with one of his losses to New Mexico State. He’s 8-23 in three seasons. Three wins and he stays, two wins and it’s a big maybe. A big factor will be money. Louisiana Tech doesn’t have any. Endangered Species List Sam Pittman, Arkansas: If he can get one more win and get the Razorbacks to a bowl game, there is a good chance he survives. Right now, Arkansas has five wins so it’s dicey. Tom Herman, Florida Atlantic: This is not working out. Herman was a winner at both Houston and Texas but his two seasons at FAU are 6-14 with a 4-game finish that screams out 0-4. They don’t have a lot of money at FAU and that may keep him around another year. Kevin Wilson, Tulsa: He’s getting paid $1.9 million a year and they expect more than a 3-6 record that includes a blowout loss to UAB. Perhaps an investment in facilities -- Tulsa’s are rotten -- would help. Tulsa is a private school that has some oil money behind it so maybe they raise the money to buy Wilson out, but odds are they’ll give him one more year. Hugh Freeze, Auburn: The Tigers lost to Vanderbilt at home and there’s every good chance they’ll have a losing record. The natives are restless, but there is no indication from Mr. Yella Wood yet that the big money boosters will pull the plug this year. Don Brown, UMass: They don’t have any money, they play in a tiny 17,000-seat stadium and they play a lot of paycheck games to fund the rest of the athletic department. If they really want to win some football games they should drop back down to D1AA where they were once a powerhouse. Jim McElwain, Central Michigan: Old Yeller is 3-5 this season and he’s pushing hard for a third consecutive losing record, which doesn’t settle well with the faithful. If he loses to Bowling Green this week, which is entirely possible, he will be moved to the On Life Support list. Mike Novell, Florida State: They won’t fire him this year, but if he were willing to leave to go somewhere else they would waive the buyout. Will someone take a chance and hire him away or are the Seminoles stuck for at least one more year. Ryan Walters, Purdue: The Boilers are 1-7 and barring some unforeseen miracle, they’re headed for a 1-11 season without a win over a Division I team. Rocky Rahne, Old Dominion: His 4-year record is 19-28. He has yet produced a winning season. The Monarchs are 4-5 right now, needing to win two of three to get some catfish bowl where a pair of bottom feeders get to play a game nobody but the gamblers and most bored will watch. ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: If the first College Football Playoff poll holds through the month of November and the conference championship games, then the Southeastern Conference will own one-third of the 12 playoff berths. The first poll has Georgia, Texas, Tennessee and Alabama in from the SEC with LSU, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Missouri still in the hunt. COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF POLL:  1. Oregon 9-0; 2. Ohio State 7-1; 3. Georgia 7-1; 4. Miami 9-0; 5. Texas 701; 6. Penn State 7-1; 7. Tennessee 7-1; 8. Indiana 9-0; 9. BYU 8-0; 10. Notre Dame 7-1; 11. Alabama 6-2; 12. Boise State 7-1; 13. SMU 8-1; 14. Texas A&M 7-2; 15. LSU 6-2; 16. Ole Miss 7-2; 17. Iowa State 7-1; 18. Pittsburgh 7-1; 19. Kansas State 7-2; 20. Colorado 6-2; 21. Washington State 7-1; 22. Louisville 6-3; 23. Clemson 6-2; 24. Missouri 6-2; 25. Army 8-0 Remaining games for SEC teams in the poll: No. 2 Georgia: at No. 16 Ole Miss; No. 7 Tennessee; UMass, Georgia Tech No. 5 Texas: FLORIDA; at Arkansas; Kentucky; at No. 14 Texas A&M No. 7 Tennessee: Mississippi State; at No. 2 Georgia; UTEP; at Vanderbilt No. 12 Alabama: at No. 15 LSU; Mercer; at Oklahoma; Auburn No. 14 Texas A&M: New Mexico State; at Auburn; No. 5 Texas No. 15 LSU: No. 12 Alabama; at FLORIDA; Vanderbilt; Oklahoma No. 16 Ole Miss: No. 2 Georgia; at FLORIDA; Mississippi State No. 24 Missouri: Oklahoma; at South Carolina; at Mississippi State; Arkansas

Billy Napier interviewed at halftime of Florida-Georgia by Jeff Cardozo (Gator Bait Photo by Chris Spears) A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning: Florida lost to Georgia Saturday. No surprise there. Georgia was favored by 14.5 points, so by losing 34-20 the Gators probably cost a slew of Georgia fans some cash. Some might think of that as Florida’s only victory of the weekend considering the number of injuries suffered during the game. Quarterback DJ Lagway seems likely to miss at least a couple of games although Billy Napier did say he believes it is possible his budding superstar freshman could return later in the season. We’ll have to wait and see how many of the others who left the game will be available in the weeks ahead, but most notably for Saturday’s game with No. 5 Texas (7-1, 5-1 SEC). In anticpation of the Gators playing without Lagway and with a patchwork secondary, the opening line from Las Vegas favors the Longhorns by 21.5 points.   For a coach who’s been in survival mode even before the season began, the potential of playing the final four games of the season with the backup to the backup QB starting can’t be a relishing thought. Napier seems to be in stiff upper lip mode even when things are going well. His expression hardly changed post game Saturday when asked about the significance of the Lagway injury. He dialed up his next man up response and his lip never looked stiffer.   So how do the Gators make it through the last four weeks in the event Lagway can’t come back? Lagway was supposed to be the insurance and understudy to Graham Mertz, but now Mertz is gone and so is Lagway, leaving to walk-on and Yale transfer Aidan Warner and Colorado State transfer Clay Millen, a starter in 2022 but benched after one game in 2023 never to see the field again. Millen is the son of former NFL quarterback Hugh Millen.   We saw Warner throw a couple of SCUDS against Georgia although he did  hit Chimere Dike for a clutch 8-yard gain in traffic to set up a field goal at the end of the first half and hit Elijhah Badger deep downfield on a 26-yard gain to kickstart the drive that led to Florida’s game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter. Still, two passes aren’t exactly going to strike fear in opposing defenses, especially the one they will see in Austin Saturday. Texas has the top-ranked defense in the country. The Longhorns have allowed only three TDPs all year, picked off 12 passes and allowed opponents an average of just 4.6 yards per attempt.   Millen began his career at Nevada and transferred to Colorado State in 2022 when Jay Norvell left Nevada for the CSU job. He threw for 1,910 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2022 at Colorado State, then was benched after throwing for 110 yards and an interception in a blowout opening game loss to Washington State in 2023.   The big question not just for this week but the remainder of November is can Napier survive if the Gators are unable to win another game? That has to be a possibility given the situation at quarterback combined with all the other injuries. Or, has the improvement the Gators showed in the five games after the loss to the Aggies enough to sway the administration and boosters that given a healthy roster Napier might put the Gators back on the college football map as a championship contender?   Patience has never been a long suit of Florida fans or boosters spoiled by the combined three national championships, eight SEC championships and 187-37-1 record posted during the 17 years of Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer. Napier believes the Gators are on the verge of becoming relevant again. With more than 35 players returning who have starting experience and plenty who have seen significant action as reserves, Florida could be very, very good.   So, will Napier be given one more year or will he become the fifth Florida coach since 2001 who didn’t get to year four before he was fired? If the administration and boosters are in accord that Napier should get one more year, then something needs to be said now to give him a chance to salvage his recruiting class.   Associated Press top 25: 1. Oregon 9-0; 2. Georgia 7-1; 3. Ohio State 7-1; 4. Miami 9-0; 5. Texas 7-1; 6. Penn State 7-1; 7. Tennessee 7-1; 8. Indiana 9-0; 9. BYU 8-0; 10. Notre Dame 7-1; 11. Alabama 6-2; 12. Boise State 7-1; 13. SMU 8-1; 14. LSU 6-2; 15. Texas A&M 7-2; 16. Ole Miss 7-2; 17. Iowa State 7-1; 18. Army 8-0; 19. Clemson 6-2; 20. Washington State 7-1; 21. Colorado 6-2; 22. Kansas State 7-2; 23. Pittsburgh 7-1; 24. Vanderbilt 6-3; 25. Louisville 6-3   AFCA Coaches top 25: 1. Oregon 9-0; 2. Georgia 7-1; 3. Ohio State 7-1; 4. Miami 9-0; 5. Texas 7-1; 6. Tennessee 7-1; 7. Penn State 7-1; 8. Notre Dame 7-1; 9. BYU 8-0; 10. Indiana 9-0; 11. Alabama 6-2; 12. Ole Miss 7-2; 13. LSU 6-2; 14. Boise State 7-1; 15. SMU 8-1; 16. Texas A&M 7-2; 17. Clemson 6-2; 18. Iowa State 7-1; 19. Army 8-0; 20. Washington State 7-1; 21. Kansas State 7-2; 22. Missouri 6-2; 23. Pittsburgh 7-1; 24. Colorado 6-2; 25. Vanderbilt 6-3   SEC FOOTBALL No. 11 Alabama (6-2, 3-2 SEC): The Crimson Tide goes to LSU for a playoff elimination game. Winner still has a good shot, loser eliminated from contention. Next: at No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-1 SEC)   Arkansas (5-4, 3-3 SEC): The Razorbacks gave up a whopping 694 yards total and 562 through the air in their 63-31 loss to Ole Miss. Next: Open   Auburn (3-6, 1-5 SEC): One week after lighting up Kentucky for 278 yards, Jarquez Hunter was held to 50 by Vanderbilt. Hunter is second in the SEC with 913 rushing yards.  Next: Open   No. 2 Georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC): Carson Beck, who began the year as the Heisman favorite, has thrown eight interceptions in his last three games and 11 for the season. He threw only six in 14 games last year.  Next: at No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC)   Kentucky (3-6, 1-6 SEC): The Wildcats are dead last in the SEC and No. 123 nationally in total offense at 313.7 yards per game. Their 360 yards against Tennessee were the most they have gained against an SEC team this year.  Kentucky has to win their next three games to keep its streak of eight consecutive bowl seasons alive. Next: Open   No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-1 SEC): Alabama is a 2.5-point favorite for Saturday night’s showdown in Tiger Stadium ... DL Jason Guillory, done for the season wtih a torn Achilles, plans to return for 2025. Next: No. 11 Alabama (6-2, 3-2 SEC)   Mississippi State (2-7, 0-6 SEC): Since taking over at quarterback, true freshman Michael Van Buren Jr. has thrown for 1,323 yards and nine touchdowns. Next: at No. 7 Tennessee (7-1, 4-1 SEC)   Missouri (6-2, 2-2 SEC): It’s a perfect 7-for-7 for Missouri when it comes to home sellouts for 2024. Mizzou sold the final tickets for Oklahoma and the season finale with Arkansas to close things out. Next: Oklahoma (5-4, 1-4 SEC)   Oklahoma (5-4, 1-4 SEC): Jackson Arnold, back in the starting role at QB, threw for two touchdowns and ran for another in the win over Maine. Next: at Missouri (6-2, 1-2 SEC)   No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2, 3-2 SEC): In their win over Arkansas, wide receiver Jordan Watkins caught eight passes for 254 yards and five touchdowns. The Rebels lead the SEC and rank second nationally in total offense (555.4 yards per game) and lead the nation in sacks (41). Former Gator Princely Umanmielen has 7.5 sacks in eight games, which is more than he had in 12 games last year at Florida. Next: No. 2 Georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC)   South Carolina (5-3, 3-3 SEC): LaNorris Sellers had his best game of the year when the Gamecocks upset Texas A&M, throwing for 244 yards and two touchdowns while running for 106 and another TD. Next: at No. 24 Vanderbilt (6-3, 3-2 SEC)   No. 7 Tennessee (7-1, 4-1 SEC): Dylan Sampson has run for an SEC-best 980 yards and 19 touchdowns this season. The Vols lead the SEC in rushing with 234.5 yards per game. Next: Mississippi State (2-7, 0-6 SEC)   No. 5 Texas (7-1, 5-1 SEC): Texas leads the nation in total defense, giving up just 241.3 yards per game. The Longhorns allow only 3.81 yards per play. They are giving up only 11.5 points per game, which ranks second nationally. Next: FLORIDA (4-4, 2-3 SEC)   No. 15 Texas A&M (7-2, 5-1 SEC): The Aggies were torched for 530 yards by South Carolina, 286 on the ground and 244 through the air, their worst defensive effort of the season. Next: Open   No. 24 Vanderbilt (6-3, 3-2 SEC): The Commodores keep finding ways to win even though they struggle offensively (337.7 yards per game). Diego Pavia has thrown 15 touchdown passes (only 3 picks) and run for 563 yards and four touchdowns. Next: South Carolina (5-3, 3-3 SEC)   AROUND THE STATE Florida Atlantic (2-6, 0-4 American): The Owls have lost three in a row and four of their last five, giving up more than 490 yards per game in the losses.  Next: at East Carolina (4-4, 2-2 American)   Florida International (2-3, 0-6 Conference USA): The Panthers can’t seem to stop the run, bad news considering they’ll play at Jacksonville State in a couple of weeks. Jax State is averaging 269.63 yards per game on the ground. Next: Open   Florida State (1-7, 1-8 ACC): As bad as the Seminoles have been offensively, they hit rock bottom against North Carolina, gaining only 201 yards. The Seminoles are next to last nationally in rushing offense, just 76.11 yards per game. Next: at No. 10 Notre Dame (7-1)   No. 4 Miami (9-0, 5-0 ACC): With three games to go in the regular season, Cam Ward has thrown for 3,129 yards and a nation-leading 29 touchdown passes. In the win over Duke he threw for 400 yards and five touchdowns. Next: at Georgia Tech (5-4, 3-3 ACC)   South Florida (4-4, 2-4 American): The Bulls have regained their offensive mojo to win their last two games. They put up 525 yards and 44 points oin their win over Florida Atlantic. Next: Navy (6-2, 4-1 American)   UCF (4-5, 2-4 Big 12): UCF finally has found a quarterback who can throw the ball accurately. Freshman Dylan Rizk lit up Arizona for 294 yards and three touchdowns in his first career start. He added another 55 yards on the ground as the Knights scored their most impressive win of the year, 56-12. Next: at Arizona State (6-2, 3-2 Big 12)   ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: After a weekend of surprises in which several playoff contenders bit the dust, here is a revised look at College Football Playoff contenders and pretenders. The first playoff poll comes out this week.   SEC Contenders: No. 2 Georgia (7-1); No. 5 Texas (7-1); No. 7 Tennessee (7-1); No. 11 Alabama (6-2); No. 14 LSU ( 6-2); No. 15 Texas A&M (7-2); No. 16 Ole Miss (7-2) Pretenders: Missouri (6-2); Vanderbilt (6-3)   Big Ten Contenders: No. 1 Oregon (9-0); No. 3 Ohio State (7-1); No. 6 Penn State (7-1); No. 8 Indiana (9-0) Pretenders: Illinois (6-3); Iowa (6-3); Minnesota (6-3)   ACC Contenders: No. 4 Miami (9-0); No. 13 SMU; No. 19 Clemson (6-2); No. 23 Pittsburgh (7-1) Pretenders: No. 25 Louisville (6-3); Syracuse (6-2)   Big 12 Contenders: No. 9 BYU (9-0); No. 17 Iowa State (7-1); No. 21 Colorado Pretenders: No. 22 Kansas State (7-2); Texas Tech 6-3   Independents/Pac-2 Contenders: No. 8 Notre Dame (7-1); No. 20 Washington State (7-1)   American Contenders: No. 18 Army (8-0); Tulane (7-2) Pretenders: Navy (6-2); Memphis (6-2)   Mountain West Contender: No. 12 Boise State (7-1) Pretender: UNLV (6-2)   Sun Belt Contender: Louisiana (7-1) Pretender: Georgia Southern (6-3)   MAC Contenders: None   Conference USA Contender: Western Kentucky (6-2) Pretender: Sam Houston (7-2)