Everything Billy Napier said of Florida's 26-7 loss to Miami

Florida head coach Billy Napier met with the media at the conclusion of the Gators' 26-7 loss at Miami, where he discussed UF's shortcomings on offense, its defensive play, the importance of the bye week, and more.

Here's everything he had to say:

Opening statement:

"Okay, heck of a football game, and hats off to Miami. They have a really good football team, I think they played well enough to win tonight, and credit to coach Cristobal and his team and how they played complimentary football. You know, I do think that our kids battled their tail off, you know, I think in particular defensively, it was an incredible effort. Obviously not good enough on offense. We didn't generate enough yards or points. The first half was a trial of errors. Not many plays where we executed well at all. We had mental errors of protection on third down, and really struggled to stack any good plays together. You know, we had four three-and-outs and six punts in the first half. I do think the kids responded at halftime. The staff did a great job of putting together a good script. We found some running game there early in the second half, and able to kind of make it a football game there, 13-7, and get a takeaway, right, and in position there with a fourth down, got to have it. You come up a little bit short on the 30-yard line. And then, obviously, at that point, the game kind of gets out of control with a couple of short fields late. But in general, you know, our kids competed. I do think that I'm proud of the way the kids showed up and the effort in which they played with. Now, the execution on offense obviously was not good enough. We struggled to get off the field on third down in the first half on defense. I do think that Tommy D0man had a good day in the punt game, but it was a game of field position, and we played on a long field in the first half, and obviously we kind of got back into some normal field position in the second half, but in general, had our shots, we had our chances. There were some plays to be made in the second half in particular, but it's a good football team. What questions do we have?"

On 0-for-13 on third down, issue there and what held you guys back:

"Yeah, no, I think in particular in the first half, we had some busted protection. I do think there's opportunities there when you look at it big-picture wise where we got to make some plays. We got to give Miami some credit, too. They pressured us, they affected the quarterback. And it wasn't good enough, you know, so I think the first half in particular was a game that was about third down. They stayed on the field, they got us off the field."

On game-planning for Carson Beck based off familiarity:

"Yeah, look, I think we have a good defensive unit. I think we've got good personnel, our staff does a great job. We played the early downs. I do think that he did a nice job on third down in particular in the first half. But in general, our defensive staff and players did a great job of executing the plan."

On at what point the buck stops with Napier and the offensive staff to put guys in better position:

"Yeah, I think that when we watch the tape, it'll be a combination of a lot of things. I think there's, every position is contributing to our issues. Obviously, we talked about DJ and what he's been through this offseason. I do think that there's some rhythm missing there, and that's going to be what we – we're going to go back to the drawing board, and I think the open date's coming at a good time there. We've got to evaluate everything we're doing on that side of the ball."

On if Miami's running back tandem was as good as they've seen:

"Yeah, I think, obviously a couple of those touchdowns are on the short fields at the end of the game, but in general, they're effective. I think their OL does a nice job. It's a vertical run game. They're most big, and they're both heavy, and they're tough to tackle, so they're both really good players."

On not kicking a field goal on fourth-and-4:

"Well, it's fourth-and-four, you know, it's a 53-yard field goal. You're rolling in four quarter. You know, analytically, it was a go; if you think about it, it was a touchdown game at that point, even if you get to three, still a touchdown game, right? So, I think we got it on the short field. We hadn't had many of those the entire night, and it felt like we had to play there. We just got to get our depth on the route. The play was there. We completed the pass. We gotta get our depth."

On the protection:

"It was muddy. It was a pressure game. A lot of fire zones. And I think that they stay on top of the route. That was the plan and the intent. So, in general, there, we called it a few. We did have some issues with protection."

On turning it around:

"We've got to generate some points. We've got to get more first downs. We've got to find some rhythm on offense. That's the bottom line. We've got a good group in the kicking game, and our defensive guys continue to show up and play. We're lacking consistency, we're lacking detail, and we're struggling to stack plays."

On what gives them confidence:

"The young men in that locker room, that's what gives me confidence. I know what you're capable of, in particular, offensively. We got to help them, and we got to do our best from a leadership standpoint and coaching standpoint, with each group. But I think the makeup of the group is what gives me confidence."

On the game's physicality:

"Yeah, we knew it was going to be that type of game, both sides, both very physical teams, and we got a couple guys banged up. We have more on the details of those injuries in the future, the severity of some of them, and I think we might come out of there OK."

On defense:

"It was 13 - 7 in the second half. Two turnovers on downs. Two short fields, 13 points. The defensive group kept us in the game."

On 10 men on the field on the field-goal block attempt:

"Yeah, I don't really know the details of that right now."

On rivalry games:

"Yeah, we got work to do. We've got an obligation to do that, not only for our fans and our alumni, but for the players in that locker room. So, yeah, we care about a lot too."

On DJ Lagway's mindset:

"He's battled. He's battled. He's a young player. He's had a unique offseason, and he's battling his tail off to try to do his job for his teammates. You know, I think the team rallied around him this week. They respect him as a person, as a leader, as a competitor. They know what he's been through, and I think that that's their intent, and they certainly showed up and played that way."

On DJ keeping a positive mentality:

"Yeah, no, I think there's one way to do it. You got to try to keep it technical for him. He's still a young player. You got to keep him process-oriented, and you got to show him where if he does it the right way, he'll get a different result. And again, quarterback play oftentimes is a reflection of the play around the quarterback, right? You guys don't like to hear that, but I think it's important to understand that the quarterback is playing well. A lot of times, the players around him are playing well. He's contributing to some of our issues, and there are also a lot of other players, so as a whole, the unit has got to do much better."

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