As Hail Florida Hail's Benjamin Henderson points out, former Auburn football head coach Bryan Harsin defending Billy Napier -- a defense centered around "Sun Belt Billy" being 40-12 at Louisiana-Lafayette and having class -- doesn't pass the "ethos" test.
Essentially, the messenger's credibility, or lack thereof, has a domino effect on the message itself.
"There is a concept when writing an argumentative essay of using rhetorical appeals," Henderson prefaced before saying, "Logos is the use of facts, and Napier was 40-12 at his last program. Pathos is the use of emotion, and saying he has always handled himself with class is meant to make us feel empathetic toward Napier.
"Then there is ethos, the credibility of the author to speak on the subject. Bryan Harsin was fired in under two years from Auburn and is advocating that Napier is given the benefit of the doubt. This argument doesn't quite pass the ethos test."
Harsin broke his social media silence in recent weeks to call out Nathan King for not appreciating the media handouts from the Boise native while he was still head coach and followed that up with his random defense of Napier; one that comes off as a second-hand defense of himself.
"Coach Napier has always handled himself with class," Harsin posted on X. "He’s a winner 40-12 at his last program! He’s following 10 years of fired coaches & is working to build some consistency with Florida. He deserves the benefit of the doubt."
Billy Napier at risk of following similar path to Bryan Harsin's with Auburn football
Napier has already lasted two full seasons in Gainesville, something Harsin couldn't achieve on the Plains after his October 31, 2022 firing. Still, Napier's Gators stint may not last that much longer than Harsin's Tigers tenure.
Napier, top Gators booster Hugh Hathcock, and former football staffer Marcus Castro-Walker are being sued by former UF commit Jaden Rashada for an unpaid $13.85 million NIL deal. If Napier isn't fired before the season for that, he could be dismissed during the first half of the season with Miami, Texas A&M, UCF, and Tennessee all on the schedule early.
Either way, Harsin and Napier may be kindred spirits. That's not good company for Napier to be in.