Florida vs. Tennessee takeaways: Gators, Billy Napier have themselves to blame for OT loss at No. 8 Vols

Image Credit: UAA

Same story, different chapter. The Florida Gators had all the momentum in the world Saturday night at Neyland Stadium only for atrocious play calling and back-breaking mistakes in key situations to turn the tide. Florida ultimately fell 23-17 in overtime to the No. 8 Tennessee Volunteers in a game the Gators actually put themselves in position to win with a surprisingly stellar defensive effort.

With a chance to turn its season around and continue its improved play since the off week, Florida instead fell to 3-3 (1-2 SEC) this season and 1-12 against AP Top 25 teams under head coach Billy Napier with the nation’s most difficult schedule still ahead.

Not only that, the Gators lost their two best offensive players as redshirt senior quarterback Graham Mertz and senior running back Montrell Johnson Jr. both left the game with leg injuries in the second half and never returned.

Napier will take the brunt of the blame for the loss given his decision making in key situations — particularly during the first half — and he certainly deserves it. Florida went 0 for 3 in the red zone during the second quarter alone; it entered halftime with a 3-0 lead instead of what should have at least been a 13-0 advantage on the road against a top-10 rival (even if Tennessee did not play up to its ranking).

“We left a ton of points out there,” Napier said after the game.

No shit.

His predictable play calling reared its ugly head in overtime as well. The Gators found themselves behind the sticks — as they did constantly in the second half — after committing a false start. Napier chose a second-and-15 screen that was immediately snuffed out not only because he called it multiple times in the game during similar situations but throughout his entire tenure at Florida.

The result was a 6-yard loss and subsequent third-down run simply to create a legitimate field goal opportunity. Junior kicker Trey Smack missed a 47-yard try that would have been far closer and more makeable if better decisions had been made. The Vols found the end zone on their ensuing possession with relative ease to walk off with the win.

Even more maddening is that the Gators got a season-best performance out of their defense with two first-half turnovers and multiple three-and-outs during critical situations in the fourth quarter. The unit showed ferocity and consistency for the second straight week after struggling immensely over the first four games of the season.

It was all for naught, though. Florida had this game in its hands and gave it away.

Let’s take a look at what went down Saturday night in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Enough is enough

It was obvious after Year 1 that Napier needed to give up play-calling duties. It was a no-brainer after Year 2 that he could not continue in that role. Yet here the Gators sit six games into Napier’s third season with the man in charge continuing to make predictable play calls and bone-headed decisions that are actively hindering the success of his offense.

The issues started in the second quarter. Freshman QB DJ Lagway had driven 72 yards down the field with officials giving Johnson a terrible fourth-and-inches spot for what appeared to be a clear first down; Napier did not insist on a review. On the next play, needing just inches with a 240-pound quarterback and 220-pound running back (who was tearing through the UT defense) in the game, Napier ran a sweep that was easily snuffed out for a loss. (The UF defense stepped up with a stop, but 50 yards of field position were lost.)

The Gators returned to the red zone on the next possession facing first-and-goal from the 1-yard line. Napier decided this was the appropriate time to call a QB sneak … not with his bruising freshman but rather Mertz, who fumbled centimeters from his knee touching the ground. The miscue was certainly on Mertz, but good play callers do not make that decision on first down with Mertz at QB when their team is running with ease (Johnson) and has others better positioned for success in that situation (Lagway).

Napier aided Tennessee as it gained possession calling timeout on a fourth-and-1 that Vols head coach Josh Heupel decided to risk with a successful conversion. Sophomore defensive back Sharif Denson made UT pay with an interception; an unnecessary roughness was added to the play allowing Florida to start in the red zone at the 11. UF immediately false started. Napier then called second-and-15 tunnel screen (remember this). Lagway then got sacked.

The Gators were in a position where most teams of their talent level would have easily scored a touchdown. Instead, they only lost yardage and were forced to convert a field goal … except they had 12 men on the field and Napier did not leave enough time on the clock, so the 10-second runoff penalty ended the half without UF getting another try. It was nearly identical to what happened against Arkansas last season at the end of regulation. To repeat: Florida started at the 11-yard line with 1:11 remaining, got pushed back and failed to even get a field goal off despite not turning the ball over.

Rather than take at least a 13-0 lead — potentially a 17-0 lead — into the break, the Gators led 3-0. They were stuffed by the Vols to start the second half, too, meaning Napier had an opportunity to blow open the game by taking advantage of the Middle 8 but instead wound up with 0 points.

Napier’s next questionable moment came early in the fourth quarter when he went on fourth-and-3 from the Tennessee 39. Smart football minds can argue whether that was the right decisio when the defense was playing so well, but it was not egregious. More frustrating was the call — a slant to one of the Gators’ smallest players in sophomore wide receiver Eugene Wilson III that was easily broken up in a bang-bang play some thought was pass interference. Lagway, who tends to succeed best when mobile, was not given a play with flexibility despite Florida’s success running all evening.

The next two drives saw creativity-lacking runs on first and second down, which led to difficult third-down conversions with a rookie QB at the helm. That continued throughout the remainder of the fourth quarter. In what could have been the game’s decisive drive, Napier called a slow-developing screen on second-and-17 (remember this, too) leaving Lagway with another difficult third down that he luckily converted into a 27-yard touchdown to force overtime.

Napier broke tendency by throwing into the end zone on first down, which was a positive in general though perhaps not the best situation to make that move. A false start followed setting up second-and-15 for the Gators on which — you guessed it! — Napier called another predictable screen that was blown up for a 6-yard loss. A run was necessary on third down to gain yardage back, but Smack missed his field goal to effectively end the game.

It’s clear – and has been for more than two years – that Napier cannot get out of his own way when it comes to the play sheet. These would have been difficult-to-defend calls under normal circumstances, but they all came at crucial junctures that kept Florida from scoring points.

For a man who preaches constant self-evaluation, he doesn’t live up to that mantra himself. There is a reason why even some of the best offense-first coaches have given up these responsibilities over the years. Not only can it be too much for a head coach to handle along with his other responsibilities, it’s tough to see the forest from the trees in game.

Players are allowed to make mistakes. Coaches are, too, but they’re not supposed to repeat the same ones over and over and over in Year 3. His players made plenty of miscues Saturday night, but Napier lost the Gators this game. He’s the worst game day coach Florida’s had in most of your memories.

Not looking good

Whether the injuries suffered by Mertz and Johnson are season-enders remains to be seen, but neither returned to the game Saturday and both looked to be seriously hurt. Mertz emerged from the locker room on crutches with his head down while getting hugged by teammates and coaches. Johnson was not seen again after exiting from what to that point had been his best running effort of the season with 12 carries for 85 yards.

Johnson was brought down by a move the NFL has outlawed, the hip-drop tackle. He immediately grabbed his lower leg and yelled in pain before being helped off the field. Mertz threw a strike to redshirt sophomore tight end Arlis Boardingham for the game’s first touchdown in the third quarter only to get his foot caught in the turf while finding his balance after the follow-through. A non-contact injury of that variety usually means Achilles, though it initially appeared he grabbed his knee.

If Florida is forced to play without either man going forward, it will be missing its to two offensive players and most vocal leaders for what will be the majority of the season.

What (else) went wrong

• While the illegal substitution penalty was a killer, it was one of a few untimely penalties the Gators committed. There was the immediate false start after Denson’s interception, another on the final drive of regulation and a third on the overtime possession that all pushed Florida behind the sticks. For whatever mistakes Napier made, the players made his decisions more difficult. That said, untimely undisciplined penalties have been a tenant of his career at UF.
• In that same vein, Mertz’s fumble cannot be overlooked. Even if that play was poor and snuffed out, Napier did not cough up the ball. Nor did he throw a horrendous interception starting down a receiver like Lagway did late in the third quarter. That led to an immediate Vols field goal that tied the game 10-10. It was even worse because Lagway had a wide-open receiver on the play.
• There were some curious, seemingly one-sided officiating decisions in this game, including the spot on Johnson’s run, an illegal blindside block on a kickoff that was anything but, a potentially uncalled pass interference and a gifting of extra tie to Heupel, who forgot to call a timeout on a fumble out of bounds.

What went right

• Denson’s pick was excellent, but the Gators actually opened the game with a turnover as sophomore linebacker Grayson Howard jumped on a loose ball for a fumble recovery on UT’s opening possession … though it did not ultimately amount to anything.
• Mertz finished 11 of 15 for 125 yards with a touchdown and three first-down conversions using his legs. He was playing extremely well before getting injured, and Florida might have won the game — despite the aforementioned errors — with him playing more possessions in the second half.
• Lagway finished 9 of 17 for 98 yards with a game-tying touchdown to senior WR Chimere Dike from 27 yards out. He stepped up in the pocket to avoid the rush and threw an absolute dart in a critical situation. Lagway was poised despite being put in an extremely difficult situation, and he did not allow his interception to compound into additional errors.
• Napier outcoached Heupel in one key juncture feigning like was going for a 2-point conversion after that score. That forced Tennessee to burn a timeout. Napier deciding to kick the extra point on the road may be an arguable move, but it was probably the right one — despite the outcome — given how well Florida’s defense was playing.
• Dike was exceptional in crunch time. He finished with four receptions for 76 yards and the score but also had consecutive punt returns of 29 and 27 yards that put Florida in tremendous field position late in the fourth quarter creating the opportunity for his game-tying score.
• Sophomore LB Jaden Robinson broke out with 1.5 sacks (plus a team-high seven tackles), and redshirt junior Edge Tyreak Sapp grabbed one of his own; they happened on three consecutive plays to snuff out a potential scoring drive in the second quarter.

Odds & ends

Florida fell to 32-22 all-time against Tennessee losing two of the last three meetings; that’s the most losses UF has to UT in that span since Ron Zook was coach … the Gators have still won six of the last eight meetings, 18 of 21 since 2005, 26 of 33 since 1993 and 31 of 40 since 1976 … UF is now 14-14 in Knoxville … this was the first OT game between the teams since 1998, which also ended 17-17 in regulation … Florida’s defense did not allow 24 points to a Power Four team for the second straight game after doing so in eight prior contests … under Napier, UF fell to 3-8 on the road, 12-4 when leading at halftime, 12-4 when scoring first, 1-10 when scoring less than 21 points, 5-17 when allowing 21+ points, 1-15 when tied or trailing after the third quarter and 3-12 when being outrushed … the Gators are now 2-12 against AP Top 25 teams under Napier, 1-7 over the last two seasons and 8-20 since 2018 … Florida has scored in 454 consecutive games, an NCAA record

What it means

Florida again snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. The Gators should have led by double digits at halftime and won this game going away in the second half. They had every ounce of momentum that existed in Neyland Stadium and simply blew it — again and again against a clearly overrated Vols team. Nevertheless, such a win would have been a feather in Napier’s cap while fighting to keep the hot seat from engulfing his career in flames.

Looking purely at the box score, this was not a “bad loss” for Florida. The Gators were 14.5-point underdogs and controlled the majority of the contest. Coupling the method of the defeat with the possibility of Mertz and Johnson being out for the season instead puts Florida into basically a worst-case scenario with four games remaining against top-13 opponents.

Given the way the Gators played against Mississippi State and UCF, a win over Tennessee — and expected win over Kentucky — might have provided Napier with all the cushion he needed to retain his job. It might have even spoken to the Gators finally breaking through the dam and improving as Napier has promised throughout his career. Instead, the hot seat remains burning. If UF somehow loses to UK at home next week, that will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

What’s next?

The Gators and Wildcats are set for a 7:45 p.m. ET kickoff with the game airing nationally on SEC Network. Florida will enter its second off week after that contest with five games remaining after the break.