GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida coach Billy Napier will get a fourth season to try to get the Gators back to their winning ways.
Athletics director Scott Stricklin made the announcement in a “letter to Gator Nation” that said the team is “building a foundation that promises greater success next season and beyond.”
The Gators (4-4, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) have made significant progress since lopsided losses to Miami and Texas A&M during the first month of the season. Napier strengthened the team’s shaky defense, found a potential star in freshman quarterback DJ Lagway and developed young talent on both sides of the ball.
It’s the kind of progress that made Stricklin’s decision relatively easy, despite Napier’s 15-18 goal in Gainesville before the game at No. 5 Texas.
“UF’s commitment to excellence and a championship-caliber program is unwavering,” Stricklin wrote. “During these times of change in college athletics, we are committed to a disciplined, steady approach focused on long-term, sustainable success for Gator athletes, recruits and fans.
“I am confident that Billy will meet the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
The Gators went toe-to-toe with then-No. 8 Tennessee in Knoxville and again with second-ranked Georgia in Jacksonville.
Florida lost to the Volunteers 23-17 in overtime, after squandering several chances to put together a stunner. And there are plenty who believe the Gators would have won “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” if Lagway hadn’t pulled his hamstrings in the second quarter while leading 10-3.
“Before the season started, no one expected us to be anything,” running back Ja’Kobi Jackson said. “But we’re proving to people day in and day out that we can play in the SEC, that we can beat teams.”
In September, no one saw that coming. And it looked like Napier wouldn’t even finish the season.
Florida was inept on both sides of the ball in a 41-17 loss to rival Miami to open the season and showed no improvement in a 33-20 loss to Texas A&M two weeks later. Under first-year coach Mike Elko, the Aggies ran for 310 yards, got three touchdowns from a freshman quarterback making his first collegiate start and ended a 10-game skid.
But Napier’s popularity began to turn with a dominant win at Mississippi State and then a bye week that turned into a series of ultra-competitive practices — on-court work that players cite as key to getting on track.
While some wondered if the Gators would give up or withdraw, they dug in for Napier.
“Everything coach Napier says, everyone believes,” Jackson said. “At the end of the day, we play for each other. We play for everyone who is in this building.”
Florida would owe Napier about $26 million if it fires him in 2024. His buyout drops to about $19 million in 2025, though that figure would be significantly higher with his legion of assistants and behind-the-scenes help.
Even with Napier staying put, he’ll still likely find himself in the proverbial hot seat next year. And with good reason.
Florida is 2-12 against ranked teams and 1-10 against rivals Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami and Tennessee. And the mistakes in Napier’s game continue to increase (see Tennessee), albeit at a much slower pace.
Yet the growth exceeds the growing pains. And with November being a key recruiting month, Florida administrators opted to give Napier a vote of confidence, especially with his team in such disarray. The Gators could have their best two quarterbacks behind them, including Lagway, their top two running backs, two of their top four receivers and four cornerbacks when they take the field in Austin.
