Another enormous overhaul of the coaching carousel in college football may happen soon when Florida plays coach Billy Napier is reportedly about to be fired, despite his recent win.
Billy Napier has brought the Gators to a win over Mississippi State but maybe that is not sufficient to rescue his job. Pete Nakos of the On3 program thinks there are already several sources within the program that it is over with Napier and serious talks are underway regarding his future. These discussions are said to have started last season, revived last month and now being at a feaver pitch.
According to Nakos, one of the sources near the Florida Board of Trustees indicated that the parting decision is almost final. Should the school fire Billy Napier, it is not going to be cheaply, the Gators would pay him approximately 20.4 million of which half the amount would have to be paid within 30 days after his firing. In 2021, Napier had signed a seven-year, 51.8 million contract with Florida after having had a successful experience with Louisiana, but his stay in Gainesville has not lived up to his expectations.
Although the Gators won, USA Today writer Matt Hayes claimed a meeting between athletic director Scott Stricklin and a number of influential boosters took place recently. Such donors were noted to threaten that they would not provide further funding to the program unless it takes a new course. Hayes said that Billy Napier would lose his job by the end of this weekend, and he added that nothing is more certain than Napier will not lose another one.
In case Florida does change, the competition to replace him may lead to the involvement of big names. James Franklin, who is now available would be a good choice since he has SEC connections. Other possible candidates are Lane Kiffin of Ole Miss and Eli Drinkwitz of Missouri – both of them are the up-and-coming stars in the conference. It may not be easy to persuade them to abandon their existing programs though.
The other interesting possibility is Alex Golesh, the head coach of USF, who helped Bulls to defeat Florida in an upset victory earlier this season. Nonetheless, other fans may be skeptical about the possibility of employing another coach with a smaller program following the failures of Napier.
At this point, the Gators are going into their bye week with uncertainty. Be it that Florida does it now or waits until the offseason, one aspect at least appears to be evident: Billy Napier is on borrowed time in Gainesville.
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