Hear Florida coach Billy Napier speak about coaching changes around the country
Florida football coach Billy Napier spoke during his weekly press conference on the challenges of coaching changes.
Florida football coach Billy Napier was asked about the tenuous nature of college coaching after three more football coaches, including Penn State’s James Franklin, were fired over the weekend.
Napier also is in a perilous spot for the second straight season after the Florida Gators (2-4, 1-2 SEC) lost at No. 5 Texas A&M 34-17 on Oct. 14. The loss dropped Napier to 21-23 overall and 0-14 away from The Swamp against ranked teams.
“I don’t think anything’s changed,” Napier said. “I think it happens every year. It’s what we sign up for. They pay us. They compensate us well. So these are challenging jobs in today’s climate in particular. We’re all men. We’re all competitors. We understand we live in a production world and you got to produce. There’s no running from that.”
Napier’s buyout is in the neighborhood of $20 million if he’s fired without cause, with $10 million owed to him within 30 days of his dismissal. Penn State will fork over $49 million to buy out Franklin’s contract.
Florida returns home to face Mississippi State on Oct. 18 for homecoming at The Swamp (4:15 p.m., SEC Network). At this point, Florida likely needs to run the table in its final six games for Napier to save his job, and more tough tests loom on the back end of the schedule, including a matchup with No. 7 Georgia in Jacksonville on Nov. 1, at No. 15 Ole Miss on Nov. 15 and home against No. 11 Tennessee on Nov. 22.
Latest update from Florida football coach Billy Napier’s Monday press conference
The Sun’s Kevin Brockway discusses key points from Florida football coach Billy Napier’s Monday media availability.
“The challenge of playing against the best is why you do it as a competitor,” Napier said. “To see if you can do it. There’s a leadership challenge. There’s a competitive challenge. There’s a strategy challenge. Look, we’re at the top of the food chain here. We play against the very best every week.”
Familiar problems plagued UF in its loss to Texas A&M, including questionable play calls and an inconsistency to play on a high level on both lines of scrimmage against SEC competitions. Florida surrendered six sacks against the Aggies, while recording none, and wound up with just one quarterback hurry.
Napier’s win percentage is the worst for a Florida coach since Raymond Wulff who went 13-24-2 for the Gators from 1946-49. Yet Florida players have maintained support for their embattled coach.
“We still have a positive mindset, and that comes from having a lot of veteran leaders that have been through this program for a few years and being able to keep the young ones lifted,” Florida defensive lineman Kamran James said. “Having some great older players is a key to that.
“I don’t see anyone hanging their heads or giving up on the plan. There’s still a lot of ball in front of us and we still have a lot to prove.”
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators’ national championship basketball season in “CHOMP-IONS!” — a hardcover coffee-table collector’s book from The Sun. Details at Florida.ChampsBook.com
