Still, Florida's coach believes the Gators are heading in the right direction.

"I like our team. I believe in our team," he said.

Napier cited the experience of his team, which has 17 returning starters, as a key reason for his confidence.

"We're fourth in our league in returning production. We've got competitive depth for the first time," he said. "We're in year three. Our roster has stabilized. We've got credible leadership at the player level. The discipline and accountability of this team is at an all-time high, and I think some of the adjustments that we made in the off-season have proved to be effective."

One of the returning starters is quarterback Graham Mertz, who threw for 2,903 yards, 20 touchdowns and just 3 interceptions last season. Napier said Mertz has proven to be an example both on and off the field.

"Graham has got character. He cares. He's a worker. He's probably one of the more fun players to coach I've had in my career," Napier said. "He matches your level of preparedness. You show up to the meeting and you're coaching Graham Mertz, you'd better be ready to go."

While the offense was decent in 2023, the defense was subpar. The Gators forced just 7 turnovers on the season, ranking 129th out of 130 FBS teams. They were also 104th in tackles for loss, 92nd in sacks and 69th in total defense.

Changes in the defensive coaching staff were part of major changes to the Florida football program in the offseason as Napier looked for answers.

"We made some changes on the defensive side of the ball. We added another layer of expertise in special teams. We overhauled the nutrition program, and we changed our philosophy in the strength and conditioning area of our organization," he said. "Each year we try to ask ourselves, if you were starting over, what would you do differently, and make the necessary changes. I think we've got to continue to evolve and adjust."

Florida's schedule, which includes Texas A&M early in the season and a three-game stretch of Georgia, at Texas and LSU, is considered by many to be the toughest in the nation. Napier said he has confidence that past experience will serve the Gators well.

"We've been there. That's the unique thing. All this experience that I'm talking about, they were in that locker room after each one of these experiences that we've had. We played some of the best teams in the country down to the wire the last couple years. We're close, and we've been working to get in position to prove ourselves, and this schedule presents every opportunity to do that," he said. "If you're playing an SEC team, no matter what logo is on the other side, you'd better have your team prepared or you'll get embarrassed. I think we've got enough maturity in our locker room to understand that, just the benefit of experience."

Aug. 31: Miami

Sept. 7: Samford

Sept. 14: TEXAS A&M

Sept. 21: @Mississippi State

Sept. 28: BYE
Oct. 5: UCF

Oct. 12: @Tennessee

Oct. 19: Kentucky

Oct. 26: BYE

Nov. 2: Georgia (in Jacksonville, Fla.)

Nov. 9: @Texas

Nov. 16: LSU

Nov. 23: Ole Miss

Sept. 30: @Florida State

QB: Graham Mertz (Sr.-TR)/DJ Lagway (Fr.)

RB: Montrell Johnson (Sr.-TR.)/Treyaun Webb (So.)

TE: Hayden Hanson (RS-So.)/Arlis Bordingham (RS-So.)

WR (X): Chemere Dike (Sr.-TR)/Kahleil Johnson (RS-Jr.)

WR (Z): Elijah Badger (RS-Sr.-TR.)/Marcus Burke (RS-Jr.)

WR (Y): Eugene Wilson (So.)/Aiden Mizell (RS-Fr.)

LT: Austin Barber (RS/Sr.)/Devon Manuel (RS-Jr.-TR.)

LG: Kneijah Harris (So.)/Christian Williams (RS-So.)

C: Jake Slaughter (RS-Jr.)/ Roderick Kearney (RS-Fr.)

RG: Damieon George (RS-Jr.)/Byrce Lovett (RS-Fr.)

RT: Brandon Crenshaw-Dixon (RS-Sr.-TR.)/Kamryn Waites (RS-Jr.-TR.)

DE: Justus Boone (RS-Jr.)/Tyreak Sapp (RS-Jr.)

NT: Cam Jackson (Sr.-TR.)/Jamari Lyons (RS-So.)

DT: Joey Slackman (Gr.-TR.)/Caleb Banks (RS-Jr.-TR.)

JACK: T.J. Searcy (So.)/George Gumbs Jr. (RS-Jr.-TR.)

MIKE: Shemar James (Jr.)/Myles Graham (Fr.)

WILL: Grayson Howard (So.-TR.)/Derek Wingo (Sr.)

LCB: Devin Moore (Jr.)/Cormani McLain (So.-TR.)

SS: Asa Turner (RS-Sr.-TR.)/D.J. Douglas (RS-Sr.-TR.)

FS: Castell Jordan (So.)/Bryce Thornton (So.)

RCB: Jason Marshall Jr. (Sr.)/Ja'Keem Jackson (So.)

STAR: Sharif Denson (So.)/Aaron Gates (RS-Fr.)