The Gators from Florida are awful. Let’s be clear-cut.
Coach Billy Napier will probably be fired this season because the team stinks, it’s his third season, he had losing records the previous two, and he’s not doing a good job of recruiting. Let’s be clear about it as well.
Napier described Florida’s performance following its 33-20 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday as “disgusting.” “I mean, ultimately, that’s my fault.”
Fans of Florida, at least, concur with their coach on that point.
If Napier is let go after this season, he will be entitled to a buyout of almost $25 million. He is fired immediately; the buyout would be $28 million. Money won’t be an issue when the time comes, according to Matt Smith of USA TODAY.
The Gators would be the test team for selecting a coach in the extended postseason era. Because of the deadline, hiring a coach from a team that qualified for the playoffs would be difficult.
The dates of the first-round playoff games are December 20–21. That comes after the start of the offseason transfer sweepstakes and the early signing window.
Ideally, Florida would have a new coach in place by early December, to stem the tide of outbound transfers and allow maximum time for portal shopping.
Before we consider potential candidates, let’s discuss a few general particulars: Programs often hire the opposite of what they had before. Napier succeeded as a Group of Five coach. He’d never been a Power 4 head coach. He’s a low-key guy whose M.O. centered on “The Process.” His teams weren’t just bad. They were boring, too.
