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'I'm Here To Help': Ron Roberts Expands on Mentorship Role With Gators

Originally posted on FanNation All Gators
By Zach Goodall | Last updated 2/24/24

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- In addition to his title of inside linebackers coach, Ron Roberts was hired in January to "oversee" Florida's defense in the roles of executive defensive head coach and co-defensive coordinator, according to head coach Billy Napier.

Although Napier has offered some context about the appointment, its dynamic has left members of Gator Nation wondering: Will Roberts be in charge of Florida's defense, calling or suggesting its plays and establishing its scheme? Will the unit's coordinator, Austin Armstrong, maintain those responsibilities?

Essentially, how will the leadership duties be split?

The Voice of the Gators, Sean Kelley, posed similar questions to the 56-year-old during his Thursday appearance on UF's Gator Tales Podcast, ultimately asking if the position qualifies Roberts as a mentor.

"That just means I have a full head of gray hair, huh?" Roberts pondered with a laugh. "Yeah, I guess so."

The most experienced assistant Napier has hired to his on-field Florida coaching staff yet, with stints in the profession dating back to 1990, Roberts will aid in the fine-tuning of a defense that has been in continual need of repairs, dating back to before Napier's December 2021 inauguration as head coach.

Fifteen of Roberts' seasons in the field were spent coordinating college defenses, including Auburn's, Baylor's and Louisiana's, the latter under Napier's leadership; 11 were spent as the head coach of Delta State and Southeastern Louisiana.

But even Roberts expressed ambiguity regarding how the part will play out in full. Undoubtedly, it'll involve more than supervising the linebackers, but it won’t necessarily mean he’s the commander of the unit.

"I wasn't sure about the title when I got it anyway. I wasn't sure what the executive head coach ever actually meant. But I'm excited about here, being with Billy and the whole program," Roberts said.

"I'm here to help. It's to make sure we play the best football we can, it's to make sure defensively that we're on the right track and doing the best things for our players and making sure we're putting them in the best position possible."

Roberts' description of his services aligns with the narrative surrounding Napier as he enters his third season in charge of the Gators: The head coach, in theory, could benefit from removing tasks from his lengthy to-do list with assistants shouldering more of the workload.

The hiring of Mark Robinson to fill the Gators' first "Chief of Staff" position, analyst Joe Houston to split special teams coordination with Chris Couch, and Roberts as an "executive head coach" lend credence to the idea that Napier understood the need for further assistance.

The circumstances made Roberts a prime candidate to fill the final opening on Florida's defensive coaching staff. Napier on National Signing Day deemed Roberts the originator of the scheme UF deploys, conveying that if anyone can get the group on the right track, it's him.

"As a D.C., and you've been in that chair, you know your job is really to keep things off the head coach's plate and make sure he feels comfortable on gameday," Roberts said. "You make sure that part of the ball is taken care of. It's one thing you can alleviate off of his table and make him feel comfort. So, just want to make sure we're on track with his philosophies, what he wants done and his overall, big picture of the plan."

Specific to the plan defensively, Roberts will work in tandem with one of his coaching disciples in Armstrong. Armstrong, who turns 31 this July, reported to Roberts as a graduate assistant during Roberts' first season as Louisiana's defensive coordinator, in 2018.

Now, the mentor will report to the mentee, although Roberts will lend Armstrong a hand as "a guy who can coach the coaches, who can improve the installation, the gameplans, really get the best on that side of the ball," Napier said. He indicated that the two were excited to work together again.

"When I first went to Louisiana, [Armstrong] was my G.A. We worked closely together. He was the guy I really, you know, every day in the unit meeting, plans, putting all that stuff together," Roberts remembered.

"And then obviously the last, whatever, five years since then, I probably talked to him weekly. From when he was at Georgia, then back at Louisiana to Southern Miss, then you know, his short stint there at Alabama. I think we've always talked weekly, so I think there's a real familiarity with how we see football, and how we see constructing the big picture of this thing."

Armstrong's initial brushstrokes on the proverbial canvas illustrated improvement, albeit marginal, from Florida's defense of 2022, which was coordinated by another student of Roberts', Patrick Toney. Toney left the Gators after one season for an assistant gig with the Arizona Cardinals.

The unit allowed 1.2 fewer points, 28.67 fewer total yards — 9.1 fewer passing and 19.6 fewer rushing — per game under Armstrong compared to its performance under Toney.

Still, these averages remained among the worst in the Southeastern Conference. Florida ranked No. 11 in scoring and total defense, No. 9 in passing defense and No. 12 in rushing defense in 2023. It also forced 1.2 fewer turnovers per game than the year before, plunging from the No. 1 spot in the conference to No. 14, the bottom.

Roberts forecasted adaptations to come as he and Armstrong determine schematics that best fit the players Florida will field in 2024 and beyond. As Armstrong has mentioned before, Roberts summed up the signature characteristic of defenses he's coached as the ability to be "multiple."

"I think by the time we go through spring we'll know where we're at," Roberts said, "and what we've got to throw out, what we've got to put in, what we've got to tweak and, you know, how can we get it there."

But Roberts already has a sense of confidence about the talent he's inheriting by taking on a leadership role with the Gators. He studied the roster and depth charts provided by Napier, watched Florida's 2023 season in full and analyzed player profiles created by the staff upon his hiring.

His takeaways included belief in the defense's nucleus of young contributors, and that the group's general lack of experience prevented some players from participating at full speed throughout the year.

"I thought there was some youth, you could see it, the confusion. Guys not playing with their hair on fire," Roberts depicted. "I think anytime that happens you're gonna get them to slow down a little bit. Some of it was due to youth. I think I saw a team that runs really well, I think we're very talented. I think we've for edge rushers, I think we've got kids that can run in the backend. I'm real excited about the roster."

Roberts acknowledged the potential for hesitancy from players and coaches to an adjustment in leadership within a program. Change isn't known to be easy.

With that in mind, Roberts intends to be flexible and adjustable in his approach to guiding Florida's defense. That won't interfere with his sentiment that 2024 is a prove-it year for the unit.

"I think I said the first defensive staff coming in, okay, year one of Napier it was Patrick Toney, year two it was Austin," Roberts recalled. "This is not year two and this is not a rebuilding year. This needs to be year three of Florida football in Billy Napier's tenure, and it needs to look like that.

"So, whatever we've got to do to clean things up and make it easier for our players to play fast and put them in great situations to play football."

This article first appeared on FanNation All Gators and was syndicated with permission.

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