The Florida Gators openTagsed the season 1-2, including blowout home losses to Miami and Texas A&M. Fan discontent was at an all-time high. So was speculation about coach Billy Napier and his future with the program. After the 33-20 loss to A&M on Sept. 14, it felt as if it was only a matter of time before the Gators made a coaching change.
Eight weeks later, Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin posted an announcement across social media.
Billy Napier will continue as the Gators head coach.
Florida has shown improvement, but its bowl prospects are far from certain. The Gators enter the final stretch of the season at 4-4, with games remaining against Texas, LSU, Ole Miss and Florida State. To date, Napier is 15-18 as Florida coach.
So what prompted the announcement Thursday? Andrea Adelson, Max Olson and Eli Lederman weigh in on the decision to bring Napier back for a fourth season.
Even after Florida started as poorly as it did, there were those inside the Gators athletic department who wanted to see how the rest of the season would shake out before making any decisions about the program’s future. Stricklin and interim president Kent Fuchs, who hired both the AD and Napier, have wanted to play the long game with football. No decision there is made without support from their boosters.
Napier told ESPN in August: “You’ve got to deal with the outside noise, but you know the administration, you understand the heavy hitters, the big investors, they’re fully behind you. They’re helping you solve problems. They’re invested in your team.”
According to multiple people familiar with the program, the belief is that Florida cannot keep hiring and firing coaches every three or four years because it will only keep setting the program back. To them, stability is important, and being patient through the rough parts of Napier’s overhaul would be worth it in the end.
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