Florida Football: Incoming punter hints there won't be a new ST coordinator for 2024

It is no secret that one of the weak spots for Florida football in 2023 was special teams. The Gators had multiple back breaking mistakes that seem to build on each other week after week.

One of the seemingly easier fixes for Florida heading into 2024 is to hire a special teams coordinator, something Billy Napier currently delegates to an off-field analyst. But incoming punter Bobby Engstler hinted to reporters that the Gators don't anticipate switching things up next season.

Florida Football: Couch Fire

We have mused multiple times here at Hail Florida Hail that Napier needs to stop delegating special teams to off-field assistant Chris Couch. This isn't a direct knock at Couch himself, more so that he is limited in his role and those limitations keep popping up.

The final straw was when the Gators didn't know when to run the field goal unit onto the field against Arkansas and missed the subsequent kick. Napier hinted after the game that rather than a direct coach telling them when to run on a player had "heard a word" that meant they were to go on.

Engstler is ranked as the 3rd best high school punter in the country and committed to the Gators last month as a preferred walk-on. He is taking part in the Under Armour All-American Game in Orlando and was asked about the status of Florida's special teams heading into 2024.

In a video posted by Nick Marcinko of Gator Country, Engstler was asked if Florida was going to make changes with their special teams setup in 2024 and he indicated Florida isn't planning on making any changes.

"I think everything will be fine next year. I think it happened to be a little bit of a rough year (for special teams). I still think it will be the same (set up) next year."

- Bobby Engstler

We know Napier is methodical about making changes, so it is possible that he is still figuring out the best pathway forward. We also know when Florida was looking for a defensive line and a secondary coach that prospects in those position groups seemed to know who was incoming before an official announcement was made.

Whatever Florida's setup is, there is far too much evidence over the last two seasons to justify keeping the setup the same.

If Napier really is planning on making no structural changes to special teams, may the odds forever be in his favor.