Florida has fired football coach Billy Napier, the school announced Sunday. The move comes after an 23-21 win against Mississippi State improved the Gators to 3-4 on the season.
Napier ends his tenure with the Gators with an overall record of 22-23 in his four seasons at the school.
‘As coach Napier has often said, this is a results-driven business, and while his influence was positive, it ultimately did not translate into the level of success we expect on the field,’ Florida AD Scott Stircklin said in a statement.
Napier’s run at Florida was immediately under scrutiny after his success at Louisiana-Lafayette, where he was 40-12 overall and 33-5 in his final three seasons. The Gators went 6-7 in his first season after replacing Dan Mullen and then followed that with a 5-7 campaign that saw the team miss a bowl game for just the third time since 1990.
Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin gave Napier a vote of confidence after a slow start to the 2024 season. Against one of the toughest schedules in the country, Florida finished 8-5 after turning things around in the second half with freshman quarterback DJ Lagway leading the offense in upset wins over Mississippi and LSU.
Florida entered the 2025 season with high expectations following the strong finish and was ranked as the No. 17 team in the country in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll.
However, the Gators stumbled after a win over Long Island in their opener with losses to South Florida, LSU, Miami and Texas A&M. The lone victory during that span was at home against No. 7 Texas on Oct. 4
Among the lowpoint to his time in Gainesville, Napier finishes his career with a 3-12 mark against Florida’s rivals ― Georgia, Miami, LSU, Tennessee and Florida State. Napier also had an 0-14 record against ranked opponents away from home.
Napier is the first coach for Florida to have a losing career record since Raymond Wolf finished his tenure with a 13-24 record between 1946-49.
Florida is headed for a bye week and then its annual game against Georgia in Jacksonville, Florida on Nov. 1.
‘Making this decision during the open date provides our team valuable time to regroup, refocus, and prepare for the challenges ahead,’ Stricklin said. ‘The timing also allows us to conduct a thoughtful, thorough, and well-informed search for our next head coach. We remain fully committed to utilizing every resource available to identify the right leader to guide Gators Football into the future.’
Billy Napier buyout with Florida
Florida owes Napier nearly $21.7 million, according to contract information obtained by USA TODAY Sports. The Gators will pay Napier 85% of his annual compensation, which expires Jan. 31, 2029.
The first installment of his buyout must be paid within 30 days of his firing, and is set to be 50% of what he is due for the total buyout. Napier has no duty to mitigate, and Florida is not entitled to an offset from his future revenue.