Before schooling Florida’s players in X’s and O’s, Billy Napier wants the Gators to be on their p’s and q’s.
Minutia matters to the meticulous first-year head coach. Each moment is a chance for his players to grow and improve as individuals to ultimately unite the team.
Napier has instituted a mandatory team breakfast. He and his staff have parsed each player’s schedule to improve time management. Each position group has its own strength and conditioning coach to maximize performance.
The formula turned Louisiana from a middling Sun Belt team into a Top 25 program. Napier’s exacting approach is a shift for the Gators, whose stunning collapse under Dan Mullen exposed flaws in the program’s foundation.
Redshirt senior safety Trey Dean sees the difference.
“Structure. The biggest thing is structure,” he said. “We’re going to be a structured team. We’re going to be disciplined team. So if somebody was to beat us, God forbid, they’re going to beat us.
“We’re not going to beat ourselves.”
For now, results are measured differently as the Gators conclude another week of spring practices.
“I don’t know how many stations we got but every time that whistle blows, you’re going to a new station and you better be ready to work,” senior defender Amari Burney said. “No downtime. We got two different groups going at the same time, so you [have] no breaks.”
Idle hands and minds are a non-starter for Napier’s Gators.
“Everything is planned out,” Burney said. “When he first got here, he had us write down our schedules and everything we do. Then we meet with the coaches and they critique your schedule so that you can be the best player you can be.”
Burney, who graduated in December, said he received high marks from the new staff.
Meanwhile, some teammates had to tighten up their routines after shifting from a more laissez-faire approach under the former regime.
Dean did not specify, but said things had slipped the past two seasons as Florida went from a top-10 program to a losing one in need of a reset.
“A lot of people focus on a lot of different things,” Dean said. “But when you have a strong structure it’s going to be hard to crumble. Just like with concrete. Lay down a foundation.”
Napier’s arrival led Dean to postpone plans to pursue his NFL dream.
“I knew coach Napier was going to hire the right staff and the right people around me to help me become a better person,” Dean said. “I know a lot of people say I shouldn’t have come back even though a lot of people don’t have the chance to go to the NFL. But what coach Napier is bringing to the University of Florida, it’s going to be special.”
Napier’s blueprint includes a mandatory breakfast to prepare the mind and body for each day.
Team bonding over eggs, bacon or whatever a player’s heart — and stomach — desires has been a hit. Team nutritionists ensure each player’s diets and desires are met.
“It’s all buffet style,” Dean said. “We have a variety of everything. So if you like something she’s going to keep it there. Everybody has their own meal plan catered to them.”
Asked if the quality of food has improved, Dean said, “110 percent.”
A player’s individual needs also is front of mind for the Gators’ strength and conditioning staff. A coach with firsthand experience devises programs for the position he oversees.
Rather than everyone running sprints together or performing the same lifts in a group, players train in positional pods.
“All of our strength coaches have played the position.” said head strength coach Mark Hocke, who served under Napier at Lafayette. “That goes into the vision as far as training them to play their position.”
Napier’s vision for the Gators is far-reaching. The ultimate measuring stick will be W’s, beginning with the team’s Sept. 3 opener against defending Pac-12 champion Utah.
Until then, the 42-year-old coach will demand his staff and team dot every ‘i’ and cross every ‘t.’
“No stone is left unturned,” said co-defensive coordinator Patrick Toney, who coached under Napier at Louisiana. “He’s one of the most disciplined people I’ve been around. One of his elite traits is just how diligent and meticulous he is.”
This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Edgar Thompson at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @osgators.
