Foto: Getty Images
The Florida Gators have reportedly fired head football coach Billy Napier, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to ESPN's Pete Thamel on Sunday (October 19), hours after the Gators' 23-21 home win against Mississippi State.
Napier, 46, concludes his tenure in Gainesville with a 22-23 overall record, which includes a 3-4 start to the 2025 college football season. Florida enters its bye week before its next game against Georgia on November 1.
"Sources: Florida is firing coach Billy Napier. He’s gone 22-23 in four seasons there, and Florida is 3-4 this year. Florida has a bye week before playing Georgia on Nov. 1," Thamel wrote on his X account. "Napier’s buyout is more than $21 million. Half of that number is due to Napier within 30 days. He is not subject to off-set or mitigation, which means he’s due all of it even if he lands another job."
Napier has been on the hot seat throughout his tenure at Florida, but received votes of confidence, which included athletic director Scott Strickland, midway through the 2024 season, while the Gators finished on a four-game winning streak, including back-to-back wins against then-No. 22 LSU and then-No. 9 Ole Miss. Napier was, however, thrust back onto the hot seat after an upset loss to South Florida in Week 2, which was followed by losses in three of the Gators' next four games.
Napier had previously worked as the head coach at Louisiana, which included winning two Sun Belt championships and four Sun Belt West division titles, as well as serving as an assistant coach under Nick Saban during his tenure at Alabama, among several other position jobs with various programs.