Who is left to provide any solutions? Apparently not the coaching staff. Not the UAA. Not Strickland and certainly not the Board of Trustees that selected a grifter to be President of the University. Who is left? Boosters and players.
For a booster selection to be successful it will require the Universe to line up and a whole lot of luck. It appears a lot has been invested in "hopes" of Lane Kiffin. While not being a big fan of Lane I have gotten a ticket on the Lane Train because I don't see any other "splashy hires". If Lane is not available not all hope is lost, Tennessee landed their seventh choice in Josh Heupel and the NIL at UT has bought him a good team, he is now very relevant as much as...and I hate to say it...perhaps Cristobal. So that is a direction to go if the boosters have enough money to buy out Napier, hire a top coach and then buy football players. That seems to be the trend...for now. But no one knows if this is sustainable nor if there is enough money for a buyout, top hire, and rent quality players.
Now to the players, and to me this is the only hope for a turnaround this year on the defense. If I were an alpha on a defense when a coach says "we don't trust each other" I would be angry, pissed and want to do something about it. My solution is for Brandon Spikes and the defense have a team meeting with no other staff, no electronics, cell phones anything, an empty room with an Octagon.
The reason I chose Brandon Spikes is I doubt there is anything football related he hasn't seen or experienced. This man, when he needs to be, can be the nastiest dog in the pound and demand players around him step it up. All of the players on the Gator defense know this. And If I were Spikes I would start the meeting like this: "on defense you guys suck...you are underachieving and embarrassing your teammates, your coaches, the fans, the entire damn University and one of the coaches is saying you play like you don't trust each other. What the hell do you say and do about that? Are there teammates you have a problem with and they have a problem with you? Do you have teammates you think are loafing and not doing their jobs? Call them out. There's the Octagon, go settle your differences." At the end of these personal feuds you are going to find out which of these teammates you want to share a foxhole with...or not. Yes this might break up the team even more, but won't that be inevitable the way things are going? And if there is one clear, nasty, alpha dog identified at the end of the day he is awarded # 51, Spikes number. (Jamari Lyons is currently # 51 and I bet he would give it up to a nasty dog).
IF the teammates are able to bond then they need to have the opportunity to evaluate the coaches. The players might know more than you think about what schemes may work out with their abilities. The coaches have been unable to figure this out. What do the Gators have to lose?
If the defense cannot bond my nuclear option is to hire a half dozen ex Marine Master Sargent's and for the next week the defensive football practice at UF is Paris Island. The survivors get to stay and play. The quitters can go home.
For a booster selection to be successful it will require the Universe to line up and a whole lot of luck. It appears a lot has been invested in "hopes" of Lane Kiffin. While not being a big fan of Lane I have gotten a ticket on the Lane Train because I don't see any other "splashy hires". If Lane is not available not all hope is lost, Tennessee landed their seventh choice in Josh Heupel and the NIL at UT has bought him a good team, he is now very relevant as much as...and I hate to say it...perhaps Cristobal. So that is a direction to go if the boosters have enough money to buy out Napier, hire a top coach and then buy football players. That seems to be the trend...for now. But no one knows if this is sustainable nor if there is enough money for a buyout, top hire, and rent quality players.
Now to the players, and to me this is the only hope for a turnaround this year on the defense. If I were an alpha on a defense when a coach says "we don't trust each other" I would be angry, pissed and want to do something about it. My solution is for Brandon Spikes and the defense have a team meeting with no other staff, no electronics, cell phones anything, an empty room with an Octagon.
The reason I chose Brandon Spikes is I doubt there is anything football related he hasn't seen or experienced. This man, when he needs to be, can be the nastiest dog in the pound and demand players around him step it up. All of the players on the Gator defense know this. And If I were Spikes I would start the meeting like this: "on defense you guys suck...you are underachieving and embarrassing your teammates, your coaches, the fans, the entire damn University and one of the coaches is saying you play like you don't trust each other. What the hell do you say and do about that? Are there teammates you have a problem with and they have a problem with you? Do you have teammates you think are loafing and not doing their jobs? Call them out. There's the Octagon, go settle your differences." At the end of these personal feuds you are going to find out which of these teammates you want to share a foxhole with...or not. Yes this might break up the team even more, but won't that be inevitable the way things are going? And if there is one clear, nasty, alpha dog identified at the end of the day he is awarded # 51, Spikes number. (Jamari Lyons is currently # 51 and I bet he would give it up to a nasty dog).
IF the teammates are able to bond then they need to have the opportunity to evaluate the coaches. The players might know more than you think about what schemes may work out with their abilities. The coaches have been unable to figure this out. What do the Gators have to lose?
If the defense cannot bond my nuclear option is to hire a half dozen ex Marine Master Sargent's and for the next week the defensive football practice at UF is Paris Island. The survivors get to stay and play. The quitters can go home.
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