GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida coach Billy Napier sounded more downtrodden than ever after losing to South Florida on Saturday. He was clearly stunned, especially after spending months telling everyone around him how disciplined, dedicated and different these Gators seemed heading into his fourth season.
Character. Camaraderie. Composure. Leadership. Talent. Napier felt he had something special in Gainesville.
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Yet his 13th-ranked team melted down in nearly every way possible while losing 18-16 to the Bulls in the Swamp and putting the coach back on the proverbial hot seat.
No one should be surprised if that was Napier’s last game at Florida Field. After all, he dropped to 20-20 overall, including 14-7 at home, and has consecutive road games upcoming against No. 3 LSU and No. 5 Miami.
Lose both and why wouldn’t Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin make a change during the team’s first off week and before seventh-ranked Texas visits Gainesville for the first time since 1940? The one pause might be Napier's nearly $20 million buyout.
“I think I’m more concerned with doing my job to help lead these young men,” Napier said when asked about whether he’s the right guy for the program. “That’s a big-picture question, and I think right now it’s more about today. It’s more about what we do tomorrow, and I think that’s what we’ve got to get consumed with.
“I think I’m consumed with doing the best job I can do for the players, leading the staff and getting the football fixed because ultimately that’s going to decide how far we go around here.”
Napier was confident the Gators would be in the mix for the College Football Playoff this season. That seems like a pipe dream now, after managing just 451 yards of offense against lower-division Long Island in the opener and then losing to South Florida.
Napier’s play-calling against the Bulls was more scrutinized than quarterback DJ Lagway’s rehabilitated throwing shoulder. The loudest complaint: Why would Napier call two pass plays, including a deep ball to freshman Vernell Brown III on third down, during Florida’s drive when the Gators needed to milk the clock?
Florida took roughly 30 seconds off the clock and gave USF the ball back with 2:25 to play. Adding insult to misery, the Gators were penalized twice on the next three plays: Dijon Johnson was flagged for pass interference, and Brendan Bett was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and ejected for spitting on offensive lineman Cole Skinner.
“It’s so out of character for us,” Lagway said. “Coach Napier, he’s built the foundation from Day 1 here. He knows and we know what’s the expectations (are) here, and we didn’t live up to that today.”
Throw in Napier settling for three field goals early and Florida’s defense giving up a 66-yard touchdown pass late because defenders were staring at coaches on the sideline when the ball was snapped, and it’s no wonder the home crowd booed him as he left the field.
“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).”
Napier was under fire after a 1-2 start last year following home losses to Miami and Texas A&M. The Gators rallied down the stretch and won their final four games. But those came against a Tulane team playing without its starting quarterback, the worst Florida State team in 50 years, an LSU team arguing on the sidelines and an Ole Miss team that dropped roughly nine passes.
It covered up some Napier’s warts. But the former Sun Belt Conference coach of the year has been known more at Florida for his team’s slow starts, in-game disorganization and offensive malaise than his solid recruiting and the way he's deftly navigated name, image and likeness as well as a salary-cap structure.
Equally troubling: He was urged to hire an offensive coordinator in the offseason and eventually declined while holding tight to play-calling duties.
Stricklin has been one of Napier's staunchest supporters, but the AD recently got a three-year extension that keeps him under contract through 2030 and a five-year parachute after that to serve as the assistant to his successor.
With that kind of job security and with the university planning to begin searching for its next school president in 2026, Stricklin might change his tune on Napier sooner rather than later.
“The vibe in the locker room is we were definitely heartbroken, sad, mad,” Lagway said. “We could have played a lot better. We left a lot of points on the board. We did a lot of things that we should have cleaned up, yeah.”
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