Need to eke out a close college football game?
Billy Napier is your man.
The former Murray County quarterback had quite the stellar Southeastern Conference head-coaching debut last Saturday night, guiding Florida to a 29-26 upset of No. 7 Utah in the Swamp. Napier became the first Gators coach to defeat a ranked team in his debut, but the most eye-popping stat is that he improved to 17-3 in one-possession games and has won 12 straight in that category.
That's right. These coin-flip, 50-50 games? Napier is owning them.
"Independent of the score, each game is an opportunity to compete, and you've got to try to position the team to win," Napier said Wednesday. "We play complementary football here, and it goes back to confidence. Good preparation allows players to play through the game and through the ebbs and flows of the game independent of the score, and I think a lot of that overall is just poise by the staff and poise by the players.
"We work hard on football IQ here and in-game adjustments, and that whole process is important, because if the players understand what's happening and why it's happening, then we're more likely to keep our composure and fix the things that need to be fixed throughout the game and then try and get in position to win the game."
Napier's 85% success rate in one-possession contests is in sharp contrast to Nebraska's Scott Frost, who's an abysmal 5-21 in such games for a 19.2% clip. Both coaches have been viewed as shining stars in the business, with Frost being named national coach of the year in 2017 after leading UCF to an undefeated season and with Napier earning top honors in the Sun Belt Conference with Louisiana-Lafayette in 2019 and again last year.
Another close call could be in store Saturday night, when the No. 12 Gators begin SEC play by hosting No. 20 Kentucky and a coach who knows a bit about pressure-packer success himself. Mark Stoops was just 1-4 in one-possession games during his first two seasons in Lexington in 2013-14 but is an impressive 24-12 since.
"There's a belief within your program that all of us like to have that you're going to make a play and do the things necessary to stay in the moment," Stoops said. "We've had our fair share lately of winning those games as well, but there is a new challenge each and every week.
"With Billy, one thing that comes to mind for me is how smart of a play caller he is. You can tell by the way he calls a game that he's very smart and that he's not going to beat himself. He's not going to take risks that are not necessary."
This weekend's trip to Arizona will be a first for Mississippi State but not for third-year Bulldogs coach Mike Leach, who guided Washington State from 2012-19. His Cougars posted a 4-2 record against the Wildcats, including a 2-1 mark in Tucson.
"We usually won in Tucson, and obviously it's a nice stadium with a bunch of people screaming and hollering," Leach said Wednesday. "The visiting locker room is just OK."
Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin on punter Fraser Masin being among the four players of the game for Saturday's 28-10 opening win over Troy: "We should never, ever have a player of the game be a punter. That's not a good thing, and that's not something I can get used to."
Pasquali's Pix
Alabama at Texas: Former Dalton High School and Georgia Tech running back Jahmyr Gibbs averaged 10.3 yards per carry in last Saturday's 55-0 trampling of Utah State, the highest clip by an Alabama running back in his debut since Siran Stacy averaged 12.1 against Memphis State in 1989. Crimson Tide 37, Longhorns 10.
South Carolina at Arkansas: Hard to believe these two have been in the SEC for 30 years now, having joined in the (not so) glory eras of Jack Crowe and Sparky Woods. Razorbacks 31, Gamecocks 22.
Wake Forest at Vanderbilt: The Commodores have three fumble recoveries through two games, matching their total from last season. Demon Deacons 34, Commodores 23.
Tennessee at Pittsburgh: Still no signs of the Volunteers and Louisiana Tech hooking up in the Derek Dooley Classic. Vols 33, Panthers 28.
UTC at Eastern Illinois: The Panthers have quite the Rushmore of NFL alumni with former quarterback Tony Romo, current quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, and Super Bowl-winning coaches Sean Payton and Mike Shanahan. Mocs 24, Panthers 17.
Samford at Georgia: In 2016, Kirby Smart's first season as head coach, the Bulldogs went 3-3 in home games and nearly lost to Nicholls. They're 29-1 at home since. SEC Bulldogs 48, SoCon Bulldogs 3.
Kentucky at Florida: This series is all about the framing. Florida has won 33 of the last 35 matchups, while Kentucky is 2-2 in the past four meetings and prevailed last year. Gators 27, Wildcats 20.
San Jose State at Auburn: The Tigers have won 16 consecutive nonconference home games since losing their 2016 opener to Clemson. Penn State invades next week. Tigers 33, Spartans 14.
Other picks:
LSU 49, Southern 6
Mississippi State 45, Arizona 28
Kansas State 32, Missouri 29
Texas A&M 48, App State 21
Ole Miss 56, Central Arkansas 15
Georgia Tech 31, Western Carolina 12
Miami 37, Southern Miss 14
Ohio State 44, Arkansas State 13
North Carolina 27, Georgia State 20
N.C. State 60, Charleston Southern 7
Notre Dame 38, Marshall 9
Clemson 58, Furman 3
Memphis 19, Navy 16
Virginia 24, Illinois 22
Colorado State 21, MTSU 17
Oklahoma 66, Kent State 11
Michigan 77, Hawaii 10
Last week:
Winners — 23
LSU kicks blocked — 2
Pasquali is 23-2 overall (92.0%) this season.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.