Why Did Billy Napier Drop 3 of his Players?
By Will Thomas
On Wednesday afternoon, it was announced that the Florida football team would be shrinking a bit in size, as head coach Billy Napier cut 3 players off of the team.
The guys who are no longer on the squad are freshman S Fenley Graham, freshman DL Chris Thomas Jr., and sophomore S Mordecai McDaniel.
It was originally reported that sophomore WR Marcus Burke was also cut from the team, but new reports show that he is still in Gainesville and on the roster, which is great news for Gator fans.
These three guys were important to the team, even though they didn’t have much playing time in years past. Chris Thomas Jr. provided some important depth in the trenches, and was a big body that o-lineman can’t move easily. Fenley Graham was one of the most explosive and agile players in his high school class, and would likely have returned kicks for the Gators. Mordecai McDaniel was another key depth piece in the secondary.
These cuts were not due to a lack of talent, or inability to preform on the field. Rather, the cuts came due to the players being unable to buy in to the new regime, and that they didn’t help Napier with his image of what the program should look like.
While you never like to see players get kicked off of the team, there are a few positives to take away from this move. It shows that Billy Napier is going to run the program the way that he sees fit, and nothing will stop that. Having a head coach who doesn’t sway away from his values and his vision is great for a program.
We hope all 3 players land on their feet, and have very successful careers in the college ranks.
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