Mario Cristobal hasn’t had a lot of success with alma mater Miami, but he’s fared better than counterpart Billy Napier, who has yet to produce a winning season in Gainesville. Florida did reach a bowl in ‘22 but was crushed 30-3 by Oregon State in Las Vegas. Despite excellent recruiting classes, Napier is just 11-13 over his two seasons and is squarely on the hot seat. After beating Utah in his first season opener, Napier lost 24-11 in Salt Lake City last season and ultimately crashed with five-consecutive defeats to close out a rough campaign. He wasn’t let go, but the thinking is he’s got to get results or face the consequences, which is why many betting markets expect he’ll be the first coach fired this season. A strong start against the Hurricanes would help matters immensely, and UF has won two of the last three matchups and five of its last six season openers. Graham Mertz returns for his final season at QB after a decent run as a starter following four up-and-down years at Wisconsin. Cam Ward, who spent a productive season at Washington State after a prolific run at Incarnate Word, will start for Miami in its first visit to the Swamp since 2008. The 'Canes offense should have matchups to exploit since Florida will have to be wary of RB Damian Martinez, who transferred to The U after being named First Team All-Pac-12 at his position for Oregon State the past two seasons. Don’t be surprised if this winds up a shootout as we see positive opportunities for both offenses in this matchup, and neither coach can afford an early-season loss.