GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Billy Napier won his first game as Florida’s head coach and his last. He went undefeated in homecoming games. He ushered the Gators into a new era when they moved into the Heavener Football Training Center in August 2022.

Napier led the Gators with class and served as a stand-up role model for his players. But when you are provided resources to hire an army, you can’t afford many misfires.

Hence, that is why on an overcast, rainy Sunday afternoon on the UF campus, Napier was informed by Athletic Director Scott Stricklin that, unfortunately, sometimes nice guys do finish last.

Or get fired.

If winning wasn’t so important, Napier would undoubtedly have been Florida’s head coach for a long time. However, following Florida’s adventurous victory over Mississippi State on Saturday, Napier’s record improved to 22-23. That’s just not good enough at UF.

Napier’s stint as Florida’s full-time coach is the worst in more than 70 years. Not since Raymond Wolf, hired to rebuild the program following World War II, has a Gators head coach finished with a losing record.

 

Change in Leadership for Florida Football.https://t.co/4vC93BERtS

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) October 19, 2025

Each era has unique challenges, and Napier’s is no different. He didn’t have to deal with WW III, but the transfer portal, NIL and revenue-sharing reshaped the landscape of college football during his tenure. Napier adjusted and often succeeded in the non-sideline part of his job. The won-loss record (and how it was created) was Napier’s kryptonite.

Napier’s record dropped to 15-19 last season after the Gators were blown out at Texas a few days after Stricklin offered the old, dreaded vote of confidence. The Gators pulled it together behind freshman quarterback DJ Lagway and a renewed defense to win four consecutive games, finishing 8-5.

The hot streak included back-to-back home wins over ranked LSU and Ole Miss, which, in retrospect, turned out to be the zenith of Napier’s tenure. And coincidentally, the victory over the Rebels included a handshake with Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, the man the majority of Florida fans seem to want as Napier’s replacement.

Of course, the Gators have five regular-season games remaining, so there is much football to play before anything is resolved beyond 2025. Veteran assistant and three-time Gators receivers coach Billy Gonzales, a well-respected figure inside the Heavener Center, will serve as interim coach.

Florida is 3-4, 2-2 in the Southeastern Conference, and has a bye week before facing Georgia in Jacksonville. The Gators have road games at Ole Miss and Kentucky left on the schedule, and home games against Tennessee and Florida State.

In fact, Gonzales has an opportunity to do something Napier could rarely do: beat Florida’s three biggest rivals (Georgia, Tennessee and FSU). Napier went 2-7 against the trio, and if you add Miami and LSU to the mix, Napier went 3-12 against the biggest rivals in program history.

Meanwhile, Napier’s record against AP Top 25 teams away from Ben Hill Griffin Stadium dropped to 0-14 after Florida’s loss at No. 5 Texas A&M nine days ago. That is not only not good enough, but it is shocking when you step back and consider where the Gators have been over the past three decades.

Florida has won three national championships since 1996, but is now looking for its fifth head coach in the last 15 years. The Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer years are fading deeper and deeper into the rear-view mirror, and the Gators are still seeking their place in this College Football Playoff era.

The Gators have yet to advance to the CFP since it started in 2014, and after opening this season ranked for the first time in the preseason under Napier, the season went off the rails in the second game with a home loss to USF. Road losses at LSU and Miami followed, and while a victory over No. 9 Texas momentarily restored hope, the loss to the Aggies and Saturday’s squeak past Mississippi State were enough for Stricklin to make a change.

Stricklin had plenty of free advice in the stands on Saturday, when, after the Gators were penalized for 12 men on the field on a potential two-point attempt, chants of “Fi-Re, Bil-Ly” erupted.

The penalty moved Florida back five yards and forced UF to kick an extra point. That allowed Mississippi State to drive down the field for a potential game-winning field goal. The Bulldogs did precisely that, but before they could try a field goal, Gators defensive lineman Michai Boireau intercepted a pass with 21 seconds remaining.

Still, a dark cloud hung over Florida Field afterward. It was a win, but it felt like something else. The confirmation officially arrived about 18 hours later. It was the end of Napier’s tenure.

The numbers provide ample proof and reasons to make the move. Napier was not good enough. He did a lot right Sunday through Friday, but he did too much wrong on Saturdays.