GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The No. 15-ranked Gators won their fifth consecutive game by beating Long Island University 55-0 in the season opener.
The winning streak is Florida's longest since 2020 and matches Ohio State, Illinois, Memphis and Air Force for the longest active streak among FBS programs.
Gators coach
Billy Napier was pleased with the victory against the overmatched Sharks, but after reviewing film, there is plenty to work on with USF coming to town for a Saturday afternoon showdown (4:15 p.m./SEC Network) at The Swamp. The Bulls defeated 25th-ranked Boise State in their opener, 34-7.
"It's important that we make a big jump in terms of efficiency,'' Napier said Monday afternoon. "Really good teams and good organizations don't make the same mistake twice. So I expect our prep and our process to get better this week."
The Gators dominated LIU with a strong defensive effort. Florida allowed just 86 yards, two first downs and limited the Sharks to 1 of 13 on third down. Napier said he counted only two "loaf plays" by the defense. As you have likely surmised, the Gators seek to crank up the offensive efficiency against USF.
Napier and starting quarterback
DJ Lagway both said following the victory over LIU that the offense can play much better. Lagway completed 15 of 18 for 120 yards and three scores.
Overall, the Gators had 451 yards of total offense — 251 passing, 200 rushing.Â
"We started a little bit slow on offense," Napier said. "Offensive football is about precision and detail, and certainly rhythm. We need all 11 players to do their job, in particular the quarterback and the offensive line, those positions are key to success. [Long Island] did give us some wrinkles, but once we adjusted, I thought overall there was a lot of positive there."
To watch Napier's entire Monday press conference, check out the video below:
Â
