After a pregame scuffle against LSU that resulting in running backs coach Jabbar Juluke being suspended for three games, Florida football coach Billy Napier has no plans for handling pregame warmups any differently at No. 6 Miami on Sept. 20.
It sets up as an another emotionally-charged rivalry game. Miami has been known to insite pregame skrimishes throughout its history, including a well-known pregame brawl with Notre Dame in 1988 at the height of the rivarly between the two schools.
“Look, before the 90-minute mark, there’s a long field and a short field, right? And we have a very disciplined routine,” Napier said. “We go where we’re supposed to be, and we have a routine. We’ve been doing it … this is year eight, and we’ll continue to do it exactly the same.
“And individuals get put in tough spots and they got to represent themselves the right way, the university the right way, the league, college football, and certainly we would expect the same from the other team. I don’t anticipate having any issues.”
LSU took exception to the Florida Gators practicing on its side of the field during pregame warmups on Sept. 13, which resulted in a pair of pregame shoving matches. Juluke was suspended for putting his hands on an LSU player.
“We’ve moved on,” Napier said. “We’ve addressed those circumstance, individuals make mistakes. The good thing, I think, is how you approach the mistake, taking ownership of it. I think it’s important that, you know, you learn and you provide an example so others can learn from it. And I think both these situations will help people in the future. So, yeah, I think we’ve addressed those and we’ve moved on from them.”
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators’ national championship basketball season in “CHOMP-IONS!” — a hardcover coffee-table collector’s book from The Sun. Details at Florida.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida football coach says no changes to pregame routine facing No. 6 Miami
Reporting by Kevin Brockway, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
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