Billy Napier, Florida Agree Contract to Be Next HC to Replace Dan Mullen
Nov 28, 2021
Louisiana-Lafayette head coach Billy Napier walks on the sideline during an NCAA college football game against Louisiana-Monroe in Lafayette, La., Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
Florida confirmed Sunday that it has hired Louisiana-Lafayette's Billy Napier as its next head football coach.
Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated first reported the hire.
Napier has a 39-12 record across four seasons at Louisiana, leading the Ragin' Cajuns to a 11-1 record so far in 2021. The team is set to compete in the Sun Belt Championship Game on Saturday at home against Appalachian State.
After taking over a squad that went 5-7 in 2017, Napier led Louisiana to a 7-7 record and a bowl appearance in his first season as a head coach. The squad then went 11-3 in 2019, the first season with double-digit wins in school history.
The Ragin' Cajuns have now accomplished the feat in three straight years, including the 10-1 mark in 2020 that ended with a win in the First Responder Bowl.
Prior to his time as a head coach, the 42-year-old gained experience at some of the top programs in the country, including as an offensive coordinator at Clemson and receivers coach at Alabama. The former Furman quarterback also served as offensive coordinator at Arizona State in 2017.
The Tennessee native fill the vacancy left by Dan Mullen, who was fired last Sunday after a 5-6 start to the season.
Mullen produced a 34-15 record across four seasons at Florida, earning wins in the Orange Bowl and Peach Bowl before reaching the SEC Championship Game last season. A slow start to 2021 ended his tenure, showing the high expectations for this program.
Napier will be expected to get the Gators back to national-title contention in a hurry.
No. 19 Louisiana Fends Off UTSA 31-24 to Win 2020 First Responder Bowl
Dec 26, 2020
Louisiana-Lafayette quarterback Levi Lewis (1) during an NCAA football game against Arkansas State on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020 in Lafayette, La. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
For the second consecutive year, Louisiana-Lafayette has posted a season with double-digit victories, thanks to a 31-24 win over UTSA in the First Responder Bowl at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in University Park, Texas, on Saturday.
— Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns® Football (@RaginCajunsFB) December 26, 2020
Louisiana-Lafayette held a 24-7 lead in the third quarter before UTSA scored 17 unanswered points and tied the game at 24. It was redshirt senior Trey Ragas who scored the go-ahead score for the Ragin' Cajuns, on a one-yard run to cap a 72-yard drive that ate up more than six minutes of the fourth quarter.
The team ended the season having suffered its only loss of the year to No. 12 Coastal Carolina, by just three points back on Oct. 14.
In their second bowl game in program history, the Roadrunners were led by quarterback Frank Harris, whose dual-sided efforts came too late to secure the victory.
UTSA entered Saturday without their head coach, Jeff Traylor, who tested positive for COVID-19.
Passing Makes the Difference Between Run-Heavy Teams
Both teams have found success this season because of their advantage on the ground.
Both Louisiana-Lafayette and UTSA are focused on their run game, with UTSA averaging 214.7 rushing yards per game and Louisiana-Lafayette collecting 207.8 entering the First Responder Bowl. The Ragin' Cajuns carry a slight advantage in terms of how productive they've been with their carries, averaging 5.43 yards per attempt, compared to the Roadrunners' 5.23 yards on every carry.
The game was nearly knotted in the box score at the half—Louisiana-Lafayette had 142 rushing yards compared to UTSA's 123. So where did Louisiana-Lafayette find the advantage and the 17-7 halftime lead and, later, the victory?
It came down to passing. Both of Louisiana-Lafayette's touchdowns in the first half came from senior quarterback Levi Lewis, who has thrown a touchdown pass in 18 consecutive games.
When Harris elected to pass the ball in the second half after just eight attempts and 47 passing yards in the first half, he brought the Roadrunners within three points on two quick touchdown passes in the third, helping them score 17 unanswered points and eventually tie the game.
Having a backup plan for a run-heavy scheme was what allowed Louisiana-Lafayette to top UTSA, so it is promising that Lewis will be returning next year.
Though he is a redshirt junior, Harris hasn't had much experience on the field outside of this season. He sat out as a freshman in 2017 and missed the 2018 season with an injury. In 2019, he made four starts before he was sidelined again.
On Saturday, he too proved to be a viable passer, once he elected to throw the ball late.
With a full season under his belt, the squad will be able to build off his presence next year.
McCormick Is Sincere(ly) Good
Speaking of rushing, one of the most interesting players to watch in FBS over the next few seasons showed off his ability against Louisiana-Lafayette.
Sophomore running back Sincere McCormick ranked second in total rushing yards in FBS heading into Saturday with 1,345 yards and 11 touchdowns on 226 carries. In the second half of the season, he's only improved. Through the past five games, McCormick averaged 155.2 yards per game, and he entered Saturday off a record-setting performance.
In the Roadrunners' season-ending win over North Texas, McCormick logged a program-best 251 yards with two touchdowns.
On Saturday, he compiled 122 rushing yards, marking his seventh game this season with at least 100 rushing yards.
For an offense that relies so heavily on its players to move the ball on the ground, McCormick is a bright spot for the years to come.
What's Next?
Louisiana-Lafayette will open the 2021 season with a road trip to Texas on Sept. 4, while the Roadrunners will travel to face Illinois on the same day.
Louisiana OL Coach D.J. Looney Dies at Age 31 After Heart Attack at Practice
Aug 1, 2020
Mississippi State tight ends coach D.J. Looney watches the video board from the sidelines during the first half of the TaxSlayer Bowl NCAA college football game against Louisville, Saturday, Dec. 30, 2017, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton)
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette announced that assistant offensive line coach D.J. Looney died Saturday after suffering a heart attack during a team workout:
The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Department of Athletics mourns the sudden loss of Louisiana Football assistant coach D.J. Looney, who passed away Saturday morning following a heart attack during a team workout at Cajun Field. pic.twitter.com/7e1DemV5jA
— Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns® (@RaginCajuns) August 1, 2020
Looney, who was 31 years of age, was entering his third season as part of the Ragin' Cajuns coaching staff.
He served as the tight ends coach at Mississippi State in 2017 after playing collegiately for the Bulldogs as an offensive lineman from 2007 to 2010.
University of Tennessee assistant athletic director for football communications Bill Martin, who was part of the MSU staff with Looney, tweeted the following:
Shocked and saddened to hear the news of @CoachDJLooney. Man he he loved @HailStateFB so much. Can still see that smile on the field at last year’s opener. Players respected him so much. Thoughts and prayers to him, his family, @RaginCajunsFB and #HailState family. 🙏
Looney was a Chattanooga, Tennessee, native and played his high school football in Birmingham, Alabama.
After playing collegiately with the Bulldogs, Looney got his start in coaching with the team as an offensive graduate assistant under head coach Dan Mullen in 2011. Looney then spent time as an assistant at East Mississippi Community College, Central Arkansas and the University of Georgia.
With Looney on the staff the past two seasons, Louisiana went to back-to-back bowl games for the first time since going to four straight from 2011 to 2014.
The Ragin' Cajuns went 7-7 in 2018 and then enjoyed the most successful season in program history in 2019, going 11-3 and winning the LendingTree Bowl to close the year.
Louisiana Football HC Billy Napier Encourages Players to Donate to Athletic Fund
Aug 16, 2019
University of Louisiana head football coach Billy Napier is pushing his scholarship players to give back to the school.
According to Kevin Foote of The Acadiana Advocate, Napier instituted a new rule in which scholarship players are "encouraged" to be members of the Ragin' Cajun Athletic Foundation for a minimum of $50.
Meanwhile, it is optional for walk-on players to partake.
Napier discussed the rationale behind the new initiative:
"It's all about gratitude. ... That's probably a little bit unheard of and a little bit unique, but I think this is a place where that would be appreciated. I think it's part of the type of program that we want to have. We want our players to be educated and understand the benefits that come with being a student-athlete and that is not something that should be taken lightly—the effort and time and investment that the people that support athletes at UL have put in into this program."
The second-year head coach also discussed his hope that getting players to donate now will galvanize them to continue doing so after their college playing careers are over: "We're trying to create a scenario where five or 10 years from now these are guys who will give back and continue to be a part of the program and realize what this place did for them. I think we got that message across this morning and certainly that was a good thing."
Napier's new rule may be somewhat controversial since he is asking players to make monetary donations despite the fact that they are not paid for the revenue they help generate for the NCAA.
Louisiana hired Napier as its head coach prior to last season after he spent time at Clemson, South Carolina State, Alabama, Colorado State and Arizona State as an assistant.
During his first season at Louisiana, Napier led the Ragin' Cajuns to a 7-7 record and a berth in the AutoNation Cure Bowl.
