Billy Napier finally remembered scared money don't make money

For at least one night we saw a version of Napier we wish we could see every night

Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier leaves the tunnel with his team as the start of the game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 5, 2024. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun]

One of the reasons why Florida Football fans have been so frustrated with Billy Napier is this feeling that we were sold one version of him personality wise only for him to wind up being the complete opposite. Football is a game where everyone needs to be fired up, not put to sleep.

And while there are still reasons to believe Napier isn’t the guy to lead Florida to anything significant, he could give himself a much better chance if the version of Napier we saw on Saturday night was the version that shows up every night.

Florida Football: Making Money

The problem with Napier’s infamous “Scared money don’t make money” quip when he was first introduced to Florida is that he has seldom lived up to that moniker. Beyond his initial game against Utah, Napier seldom gets aggressive with his play calling, and seldom does he show emotion that would indicate he is invested in the end result.

Which is why it felt out of character when backed up to his own 34 in the third quarter, facing fourth and one, Napier went for it with a run from Graham Mertz.

The drive didn’t end in points, but the end result did drain four additional minutes from the clock to kill off any hope of a UCF comeback.

But it wasn’t just going for it on fourth and one that made it feels like Napier was a different human on Saturday. In the 2nd quarter, when the UCF punter took a flop that wouldn’t even get called in La Liga but was called on Saturday, Napier took an unsportsmanlike penalty for letting the refs know they too should be better at their jobs.

And you know what?

Good for Napier for sticking up for Florida in that spot. One of the themes that has developed this season is fans begging and pleading for Napier to show anything like that. Too often a negative play will happen, whether it’s a bad call or bad execution, only for the camera to pan to Napier with the look of someone who just wants both teams to have fun.

Does a single fourth down conversion or a single unsportsmanlike penalty cure all the flaws Napier has had during his three years in Gainesville?