Bishop Media Sports Network
Camden County Wildcats Coach’s Show w Travis Roland September 9 2025
Time To Go?
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
You may have heard that the #13 Florida Gators lost to USF over the weekend, 18-16. The game was at home at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, aka The Swamp.
South Florida deserves credit. They started the season by beating #25 Boise State 34-7. With that being said, Florida views their program as superior to South Florida. This is a loss that cannot happen for a coach on the hot seat like Billy Napier.
“It’s not good enough,” Coach Billy Napier said. “We’ve got work to do. You guys know it. I know it. Anybody that watched it knows it. We got to take ownership of it, and we got to go back to work. That’s it.”
Napier’s record at Florida is 20-20, with a 14-7 home record. He’s been 1-1 after the first 2 games each season he’s been in Gainesville.
The offense finished with 355 yards but they had to settle for three field goals. Florida’s lack of discipline was on display. The Gators held a one-point lead in the final three minutes of the game.
They had two costly penalties on South Florida’s final drive. Defensive back Dijon Johnson was called for pass interference. On the next play, defensive lineman Brendan Bett was flagged and ejected on the final drive for spitting at an opponent.
The surprising thing is this was two days after Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter was ejected for spitting on Dak Prescott.
“I haven’t had that conversation with him yet,” Napier said of Bett. “We’ll take a good look at it, but it’s unacceptable. I think we’ve got a lot of players in that room as well that have the same belief that it’s unacceptable.”
“When a guy does something like that, he’s compromising the team. He’s putting himself before the team. Everything the game is about, you’re compromising, so there will be lessons to be learned there. Yeah, it’s that simple.”
That helped set up the 20-yard field goal by Nico Gramatica as time expired. This was the first road win against a ranked opponent for USF since they beat #16 Notre Dame on September 3, 2011.
“We created it. We deserve it,” Napier said. “If you play football like that, you’re going to be criticized. It comes with the territory, right? Only thing you can do is go get it fixed, and that’s what we’ll start working on (Sunday).”
This was Florida’s first defeat at home against a school from Florida, other than Florida State or Miami, since a 16-14 loss to Stetson in 1938.
Clearly UF fans are angry and talks about firing Napier have resurfaced.
The next game is on the road at #3 LSU. The last time the Gators won in Baton Rouge was 2016. The following games are at #5 Miami, home against #7 Texas and at #16 Texas A&M. The odds seem to be stacked against Napier.
They needed to beat South Florida to have a chance to get to six wins. I think UF will finish with a losing record. The question is, how will the fan base react if they lose their next four games? I wonder when they will run out of patience. I don’t think he will make it to the end of the season.
His buyout is 85% of his current remaining contract, which would be $19.38 million after this season, with 50% of the buyout ($9.7 million) being due within 30 days of Napier being fired and the rest being paid out in equal installments every July through 2028.
There is no offset for the buyout if Napier gets another job.
Brunswick High Pirates Coach’s Show w Garrett Grady September 5 2025
Pretenders?
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I’d have a hard time saying anything positive about Alabama.
In fact, that debacle against Florida State reminded me a lot of that FSU-Georgia Tech game last year, when a team didn’t just lose but also got dominated along the lines.
This was not a result you could blame on a first-time starting quarterback. Ty Simpson was fine when he wasn’t running for his life. The Noles looked like a better team in every aspect of the game.
Could it be that FSU will go on to win the national title, and Alabama’s loss makes more sense in context? Perhaps. Could the Tide look much better three weeks from now against Georgia, especially if they get back top running back Jam Miller and proven defensive tackle Tim Keenan III? Of course.
But there’s not much recent precedent for a ranked team getting humiliated in its opener, then turning around and having an amazing season.
A few recent examples, in reverse chronological order.
2023: No. 8 Florida State 45, No. 5 LSU 24. Though Jayden Daniels went on to win the Heisman, LSU went 9-3 in the regular season and would have missed a 12-team College Football Playoff.
2023: Duke 28, No. 9 Clemson 7. Dabo’s team finished 4-4 in the ACC.
2021: No. 1 Alabama 44, No. 14 Miami 13. The Canes went 7-5, and Manny Diaz got fired.
2018: No. 25 LSU 33, No. 8 Miami 17. The Canes went 7-6, and Mark Richt retired.
Alabama fans looking for a ray of optimism might recall 2016, when the top-ranked Tide destroyed No. 20 USC 52-6. The Trojans went on to win the Rose Bowl.
But there was a clear spark to that run: At 1-2, Clay Helton benched QB Max Browne for redshirt freshman Sam Darnold, who went 9-1 from there. Again, QB was not the problem for the Tide in Tallahassee last weekend.
I do believe Nick Saban got out at just the right time. The ability to sustain that level of year-in, year-out dominance, particularly in the SEC, seems next to impossible in an age when everyone can leave at any time.
Ohio State could become an exception, simply because it’s long recruited at a higher level than anyone else in the Big Ten. (Michigan included, thought that’s starting to change.) The razor is much thinner between Alabama/Georgia/LSU/Texas.
After week one FSU is playoff contender, and Alabama is definitely a pretender.
That’d be poetic, but no, only the first part seems feasible at the moment.
MCA Buccaneers Coach’s Show w Bradley Warren September 4 2025
Jason Bishop Show September 4 2025
Frederica Academy Knights Coach’s Show w Brandon Derrick September 3 2025
The Reset
By: Michael Spiers
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Jacksonville Jaguars have spent all offseason telling us they’re different.
New head coach. New coordinators. A new general manager calling the shots. A bunch of new faces on the roster. It’s a complete reset.
But here’s the reality: in the NFL, it doesn’t matter how shiny things look in May or how sharp you look in a preseason practice clip. It only matters if you win when the real games begin.
And for the Jaguars, that moment comes this Sunday in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers.
This game is more than just a season opener. It’s the first chance for Jacksonville to prove they’ve actually turned the corner after a miserable 4-13 season that cost Doug Pederson his job.
Fans are hungry for a team they can believe in again. And frankly, the players are too. You can sense that energy every time Liam Coen talks about setting the tone
Coen, who takes over as head coach after building one of the league’s most exciting offenses in Tampa, hasn’t shied away from the obvious. The Jaguars must start fast.
That’s something Pederson’s teams simply could not do. In 2022 Jacksonville dug itself a 2-6 hole before going on a miracle run to the playoffs. In 2023 the Jags stumbled to a 1-2 start and never quite found their stride again.
Even when the wins came later, the early-season stumbles kept the team from hitting its full potential.
Coen wants to flip that script immediately, and a lot of that pressure falls on Trevor Lawrence. Believe it or not, Lawrence has only one Week 1 win in his career. One.
That’s not the record you expect from a quarterback who was hyped as a once-in-a-generation talent coming out of Clemson.
He doesn’t need to throw for 400 yards to make a statement, but a clean, efficient performance that shows he’s in command of Coen’s offense would go a long way.
Now, the offense isn’t the only side of the ball with something to prove. The defense flat-out cratered last season, finishing bottom five in most major categories.
That’s why Anthony Campanile was brought in as defensive coordinator, and his challenge is steep.
The Jaguars don’t need to turn into the ’85 Bears overnight, but they have to be better at pressuring the quarterback and holding their ground against the run.
One player who could make a big difference is veteran defensive lineman Arik Armstead. Last year, he was misused badly and his production tanked.
This season, he’s back where he belongs, working inside at the 3-technique spot, and Coen has been glowing about what that does for the defense.
Armstead’s length, quickness, and experience can be a nightmare for interior linemen. If he’s healthy and disruptive, it changes everything about how opponents attack Jacksonville.
Of course, the matchup with Carolina also has some fun storylines.
The Panthers, like the Jaguars, are being led by a young offensive-minded head coach in Dave Canales. He and Coen have crossed paths before, and there’s mutual respect between them.
Both franchises are trying to prove their former No. 1 overall pick quarterbacks are worth building around. Both are filled with rookies and newcomers who want to prove themselves. In a lot of ways, these two teams are mirror images, which makes Sunday an even better measuring stick.
This game has to be about showing signs of progress.
Fans have been told for months that this is a new era in Jacksonville. That the franchise has finally found the right leadership. That the roster upgrades will pay off. Week 1 is the first real chance to back up all that talk.
If the Jaguars come out, play with energy, execute Coen’s system, and beat the Panthers, it’ll be the kind of early confidence boost this team desperately needs.
It won’t mean they’re suddenly Super Bowl contenders, but it will prove the rebuild is moving in the right direction.
If they stumble out of the gate again? If Lawrence looks shaky and the defense springs leaks like last season? Then it’s déjà vu, and the ghosts of 2024 will creep back in fast.
Week 1 won’t define the entire season, but for a franchise desperate to turn the page, this opener matters more than most.
It’s the Jaguars’ first real chance to show that, finally, things really are different in Jacksonville.
Gridiron Devil
By: Colin Lacy
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
When the lights get flicked on at Womack Field in Statesboro each week, they shine on a Statesboro Blue Devils team that has been building over the past few years under third year Head Coach Matt Dobson.
A big piece of the growth being seen in Statesboro is the young quarterback Beckham Jarrard.
Jarrard has become a regular name with anyone around the Blue Devils program, and possibly even more-so around programs that have played Statesboro in the last year plus.
The now sophomore field general started right out of the gate. As a freshman, Jarrard was named the starter from the word go opening up the 2024 season with cross county rivals Southeast Bulloch and raised eyebrows.
The then 5’10” 145-pound freshman connected on 17 of 25 passing for 161 yards and a touchdown. Southeast Bulloch would end up with the win but coming away from the game both sides realized that this was the beginning of something special for the signal caller.
Jarrard would finish his freshman season with the most passing yards in the state for a freshman racking up over 1,600 yards and 15 touchdowns in Statesboro’s 10 games while rushing for 200 more and a couple of scores. The growth of Jarrard was unmistakable throughout the season and that’s just the beginning.
He has dove into the deep end to become the best quarterback he can be…literally. It was while he was on vacation to the beach that a random connection turned into the next step in the progression for Jarrard.
While on the annual family vacation in the summer of 2024, he started throwing the football with a family friend that was with them at the beach. A few minutes went by before someone asked if he could join. After throwing and exchanging stories and getting to know them better, turns out the random encounter would be Jarrard meet Gino English (former quarterback at Florida State and East Tennessee St).
Gino was impressed by the then rising freshman and invited him to come train with him at his childhood home nearby. There he would meet Gino’s QB coach, Pat O’Hara.
Pat O’Hara is a well-known quarterback coach in football to say the very least. After a playing career with the Buccaneers, Chargers, and Redskins, O’Hara ended up in the Arena Football League.
For a few years, Pat would be getting into the coaching side of the game while also still on the roster before a couple stints as a head coach in the AFL.
Then O’Hara would break into the pinnacle of the sport with the NFL.
In February 2015, O’Hara was hired as an assistant coach by the Houston Texans. After 3 seasons in Houston, O’Hara would be named quarterbacks coach (and later pass game coordinator) for the Tennessee Titans.
O’Hara has also worked in broadcasting for UCF radio and CBS Sports Network along with working in the movie scene as a football guru teaching actors how to play in films like The Longest Yard, Invincible, We are Marshall and most recently serving as the football administrator for the TV Series Chad Powers.
So, from the football mind that helped mold Paul Crewe, Marcus Mariota, Ryan Tennehill, Brock Osweiler, Deshaun Watson, O’Hara’s insight is now going into Beckham Jarrard. While it’s not feasible to make the trip to Florida much during the season, O’Hara works weekly with Jarrard via zoom on breaking down game film, helping teach how to break down defenses along with the mental side of being a quarterback.
While other rising sophomores in the summers are playing video games, going to the pool, Jarrard is heading to Florida to work with Pat O’Hara.
The commitment to the game is as impressive as the skills he has already (again, reminder, he’s a sophomore).
Now as a sophomore at 6’0 and 165 pounds (gained 20 pounds from the start of Freshman year), Jarrard has developed relationships with so many high-profile quarterbacks’ coaches and soaking up as much as he can.
Charley Loeb of QB Country (former Syracuse QB) is the main mechanical coach to help mold the young quarterback to someone that is now a big problem for defenses.
Having seen him live a handful of times, in addition to on film and through the eyes of others, there’s no doubt in my mind that on June 15th (the date that college coaches can legally begin full contact with recruits), the phone of Beckham Jarrard will be lighting up almost constantly with coaches from all of the southeast.
Camden County Wildcats Coach’s Show w Travis Roland September 2 2025
