During the Billy Napier Era, Florida Football has had adequate but not elite play on the offensive side of the ball. Most fans have begged and pleaded for Billy Napier to hire an offensive coordinator but Napier has been insistent on staying the OC.
Heading into their matchup with Georgia, Napier probably feels validated as Florida leads the conference in a surprising stat on offense.
Florida Football: Move That Ball
Last season against FBS competition, the Gators averaged 5.7 yards per play. This was good for 51st in the country. Yards per play are not the be-all-end-all of offenses, but it does represent an ability to be explosive and score points quickly if needed and/or get out of third and long situations.
Four games into SEC play, the Gators averaged 6.59 yards per play in conference play. To the surprise of many, that's good for first in the conference for games played within the conference.
Equally surprising is that Florida is averaging 32.5 points per game in conference play, good for 2nd in the SEC.
So, Napier turned a corner with his offense?
Well, let's pump the breaks for a second.
Florida's total included playing Mississippi State, which is giving up an SEC-worst 8.03 yards per play. As we noted in our post-game write-up, the Bulldogs played a soft zone custom-built for Napier's base offense to succeed. Likewise, while Florida's effort against Kentucky was praised, the Wildcats turned around and gave up 6.5 yards per play to Auburn.
But there is also reason to believe under DJ Lagway that Florida's offense can be explosive in a way they seldom were under Graham Mertz. After all, Lagway had five completions for at least 40 yards against Kentucky, something not even Tim Tebow or Kyle Trask was able to accomplish.
The biggest test to see whether or not Florida's offense is sustainable as they enter the meat grinder of their season is how Napier and crew adjust to teams with better corners and safeties capable of taking away the deep shot. Georgia, Texas and Ole Miss are all top half in the SEC in both points per game and total yards per game.
Shred those teams, and we can talk about whether Napier is a better play caller than we give credit for. If they have results like they have always been against good defenses, it's a sign that nothing has actually changed.