Billy Napier details challenges of getting players ready while avoiding injury

Fall camp is a bit of a delicate dance across college football. Coaching staffs all over the country want to get their programs ready for the physicality of the upcoming season but not at the expense of injuries that are going to affect how it could go.

Billy Napier is currently weighing that inherent risk down at Florida. During a press conference this weekend, he said a lot goes into that thought process at the level that they play but that they also have to understand that it is something that just comes with the sport.

“I think college football? This is where we develop players, you know?” said Napier. “I mean I think this is a different level of football relative to the National Football League.”

“Look, I mean, we all understand each team is a little bit different. We tackle two times a year in training camp, we tackle three times during spring practice,” Napier explained. “Football is a physical game, injuries come with the game. There is a greater good concept.”

Getting too physical in training camp can be a real dice roll for teams throughout the country. One hit too many or one session that gets too physical and a highly valuable player could end up missing significant time when it matters the most.

Still, Napier says what they’re currently doing in Gainesville is nothing different than what he has seen from his other stops at different programs. His fingers are still crossed for nothing serious to take place but, as far as their present day-to-day, it’s nothing new compared to how he has prepared for years prior as a coach at the collegiate level.

“We’re doing nothing different than we’ve done in years past at all the great places that we’ve worked…It just comes with the territory,” said Napier. “Some years? You have a fantastic year, you come out of their scot-free. But very rarely. I don’t see this one much different than many years from the past.”

Jack Miller battling shoulder tendinitis per Napier

Florida has already announced its starting quarterback this season will be Graham Mertz, but backup Jack Miller has had a relatively quiet fall camp.

That’s because after dealing with injuries during the 2022 season, Miller is once again dealing with them in fall camp. Coach Billy Napier revealed the ailment on Saturday.

“He’s got tendinitis in his (rotator) cuff, so we just slowed him down a little bit,” Napier said. “We’ll get him back here shortly.”

Miller had been absent from practices of late as Florida noticed he had a bit of a tired arm, so he sat out to rest for a few days. Upon further review, the tendinitis was discovered.

Unfortunately for Florida, Jack Miller is now on the shelf for now while missing some very valuable development time.

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