Not even a win could save Billy Napier’s job as Florida’s head coach.
Florida has fired Napier a day after he helped the Gators beat Mississippi State, according to multiple reports.
While Florida was able to get a victory on Saturday, it only defeated a Mississippi State team considered to be among the worst in the SEC by two points, 23-21, and needed some late-game magic to get the win. Saturday’s game looked like it was going to be a gut-wrenching loss until defensive tackle Michai Boireau picked off a pass with 21 seconds remaining with Mississippi State near field-goal range.
The game-sealing takeaway energized the Swamp, but the home crowd quickly turned on Napier and booed him as he sprinted off the field. Stricklin had seen enough and pulled the plug on a tenure that most of the Florida faithful thought lasted longer than it should have.
The relatively underwhelming win added to a list of disappointments for Florida through its first seven games of the season. As it improved to 3-4, Florida had multiple rough losses as it dropped from being ranked 15th in the preseason poll.
Napier went 22-23 in four seasons at Florida, including 12-16 in SEC play. He was 5-17 against ranked opponents, including 0-14 away from home, and declined to give up his play-calling role despite calls to do so. He was on the hot seat last season, but Florida won five of its last seven games to seemingly save Napier’s job.
Receivers coach Billy Gonzales is expected to serve as interim for Florida’s remaining five games, beginning against rival Georgia (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) on Nov. 1 in Jacksonville. The Gators (3-4, 2-2) have an off week to regroup from the chaos that often comes with a coaching change.
Jettisoning Napier will temporarily quell a frustrated fanbase, but the group won’t truly be satisfied until the Gators hire someone with a proven track record at college football’s highest level.
Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin is expected to top the list, although Stricklin passed on him when he hired Napier from Louisiana-Lafayette in November 2021. Louisville’s Jeff Brohm, Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz and Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman also could be targets.
Florida owes Napier roughly $21 million, with half of that buyout due within 30 days. The rest will be spread over three annual installments beginning next summer, meaning the Gators will be paying three head coaches for the second time in seven years once they hire Napier’s replacement; they did the same with Will Muschamp, Jim McElwain and Dan Mullen in 2018.
Napier sealed his fate against the Bulldogs. He dialed up a QB rollout on a third-and-1 play in the waning minutes that led to a punt and gave Mississippi State a chance down the stretch. He also called a QB keeper on a third-and-7 play earlier in the game, botched the final possession before halftime and was flagged for having 12 men on the field during a 2-point try.
It was a fitting end for a coach who often looked in over his head in the powerhouse SEC. Between repeated penalties, game organization issues, clock management miscues and running an offensive scheme that was as predictable as it was pedestrian, Napier stuck around longer than many thought he deserved.
Stricklin gave the coach a public vote of confidence shortly before the Gators won their final four games of 2024. They hoped to carry that momentum into Napier’s fourth season, but quarterback DJ Lagway missed close to eight months recovering from injuries — and it showed.
Lagway looked mostly lost in the pocket as Florida struggled to move the ball. Suddenly, the two-time Sun Belt Conference coach of the year, a guy who gained fame at his previous stop by saying “scared money don’t make money,” seemed afraid to get the ball down the field like Lagway did with such ease as a freshman.
Most outsiders saw this ending coming. Although Napier accomplished plenty while helping the program navigate name, Iimage and likeness compensation and revenue sharing, he churned through assistants while failing to find much consistency on either side of the ball.
There’s an argument to be made that the Gators actually regressed from Game 1 (an interception in the final minute to beat then-No. 7 Utah in the Swamp) to Game 45 (an interception in the final minute to beat Mississippi State in the Swamp) under Napier despite a seemingly more potent roster.
Whoever replaces Napier will inherit a sleeping giant, a three-time football national champion that recently caught up in the facilities race and has enough booster support to be a factor in the SEC.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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