GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Miami coach Mario Crisobal and Florida counterpart Billy Napier will be in the spotlight — under interrogation lamps, really — as much as quarterbacks Cam Ward and Graham Mertz when the No. 19 Hurricanes play at the Swamp on Saturday.
The close friends and former Alabama assistants enter their third seasons trying to erase whatever negativity carried over from last year’s late-season slides and regain support from frustrated fanbases.
It’s not a must-win scenario for either. But it sure seems like a can’t-falter situation.
“For me, it’s about our players, it’s about this staff,” Napier said. “That’s the cool thing about football. I can remember growing up as the son of a high school coach. When the season’s over and the playoffs are finished, the state champion holds the trophy up, we’re back to 0-0.
“There’s a new team in the weight room, on the practice field, then you have the same ambition and the same goals. … This game is the start of the story of the 2024 Gators.”