By Sean Labar
The Florida Gators have fallen short of expectations yet again in 2024. Saturday’s loss to Georgia has them sitting at (4-4) with Texas, LSU and Ole Miss up next.
That’s a brutal home stretch for Billy Napier, who has seemingly been clinging on to his job since the season began.
The Gators have lost 18 of 33 games under Napier, and a majority of the losses were with Anthony Richardson leading the offense. He went on to become a top-five pick in the NFL.
Florida is (2-13) against ranked teams under Napier.
ESPN SEC analyst Paul Finebaum has stated publicly multiple times the Florida brass has been focused on Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin to replace Napier after the 2024 season.
“I’m talking to people in the parking lot at Ever Bank Stadium. I’ll say that on the front end,” Finebaum said on the Matt Barrie Show after the Georgia loss. “They want Lane Kiffin. You can agree or disagree America, but that’s who they are fixated on, and that has not changed in 10 weeks.”
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Kiffin currently has the Rebels in contention for the College Football Playoff and it has always felt like a long shot for him to jump from a thriving SEC team he has built to Gainesville, where there is plenty of work to be done and massive expectations.
Florida Gators Decide To Keep Billy Napier For 2025 Season
In the most shocking announcement of the 2024 college football season so far, the Florida brass announced on Thursday they won’t be making a head coaching change and are riding with Napier again for the 2025 season, according to 247Sports national college football reporter Matt Zenitz.
“I am confident Billy will meet the challenges and opportunities ahead,” Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin said. “We will work alongside him to support any changes needed to elevate Gator football.”
This is interesting for multiple reasons. First and foremost, the timing of the announcement. It’s almost like the Florida brass inquired about Kiffin and were shut down, so instead of letting the season play out and conducting an official coaching search, they are opting to announce Napier is their guy with four critical games left on the schedule.
There is room to be optimistic if you’re a Gators fan. DJ Lagway looks like the answer at QB and there is talent on the roster. It’s just a matter of Napier maximizing that talent or not. So far, he hasn’t.
