Incoming Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier has earned the Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year honor after finishing in first place with a record of 11-1, including a perfect 8-0 within the conference itself.
That earned the University of Louisiana at Lafayette a bid to the Sun Belt Conference Championship Game against the Appalachian State Mountaineers, which will take place on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 3:30 PM ET. on ESPN.
Napier, of course, will be coaching that game for ULL, his final game with the Ragin' Cajuns. The following day on Sunday, Napier will be in Gainesville, officially introduced as the program's next head coach and will hold a press conference the same day.
His team will also have the league's Freshman of the Year postseason honor for running back Montrell Johnson. Johnson ran for 776 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns on the year on 135 attempts (5.7 yards per carry).
"Under his guidance, the team is one of just 10 programs in the country this year with 11 or more wins. With Napier at the helm, the team is 39-12 since 2018 and an astounding 32-5 since the start of the 2019 season," ULL said in its release.
"Entering the title game, Napier has the squad ranked No. 20 in the AP Top 25, No. 21 in the USA Today/AFCA Coaches Poll and No. 24 in the College Football Playoff Top 25, marking the second-straight season the team has found itself ranked in all three national polls.
"Napier is the only coach in program history to pick up Coach of the Year honors twice in his career."
So, the Gators will be getting a coach that is well respected and now well honored within his conference. Certainly, the Gators will hope he can one day win SEC Coach of the Year honors, too.
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