"Billy Napier is like Michael Jordan": CFB analyst hails Florida HC's gritty turnaround after receiving backlash from Florida fans

Is the Billy Napier era on once again? The 45-year-old coach has silenced critics in spectacular fashion, leading the Florida Gators to back-to-back victories over ranked opponents LSU and Ole Miss.

The 27-16 win against Brian Kelly’s Tigers and a gritty 24-17 win over Lane Kiffin’s Rebels flipped the script on a season many fans had written off. Napier's turnaround has drawn comparisons from college football analyst Adam Breneman on Wednesday.

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"Billy Napier is like Michael Jordan, and he took it personally. His stock has never been higher after beating number 22 LSU with number nine Ole Miss in back-to-back weekends. Before the season, Billy Napier was favored to be the first head coach fired in college football," Breneman said.

“All season, fans wanted him gone, but after a loss to Georgia, they went 4-4, and Florida announced he would be back next season. It was a great move, and since then, they’ve had those two upsets and changed everything in Gainesville.”

Napiers’ Florida clawed its way to a 6-5 overall record and 4-4 in SEC play after a poor start to the season.

Billy Napier looking forward to improving every game

Billy Napier has shown his coaching acumen at the highest level, putting a dent in Ole Miss' playoff hopes and injecting life into Gainesville. He'll be up in a rivalry game against FSU, about which he said at his weekly press conference:

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"We have no time to play around here because we're turning the page, we started the process yesterday in preparation for Florida State in our rivalry game, which we all know the magnitude of the game.

"I think it's really, really important for our players to be able to hit the reset button in here and within the walls to execute our routine and prepare the way we have been preparing, I think we need to continue to improve."

Much like Michael Jordan, who famously overcame early setbacks, Napier has shown he can rise above the doubters.

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