Florida Fires Football Coach Billy Napier After Controversial Win

The Florida Gators have fired head football coach Billy Napier following a controversial 23-21 victory over Mississippi State. The game, marked by two turnovers and seven penalties, was not enough to salvage Napier’s tenure, leading to his dismissal. Athletic director Scott Stricklin and fans expressed dissatisfaction with the team’s performance, which included a 22-23 record over four seasons and a 5-17 mark against ranked opponents.

Napier was 22-23 in four seasons as the Gators’ head coach, including 12-16 against SEC opponents. He was 5-17 against ranked opponents, including 0-14 away from home. He declined to give up his play-calling duties despite calls to do so.

Florida hired Napier after he revived the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns program. He led Louisiana to three seasons of at least 10 wins. The team was 12-1 in 2021.

He joined the Gators in 2022 after the Dan Mullen era came to an end. He was 6-7 in his first season and never won more than eight games.

The Gators started the 2025 season with a 55-0 win over Long Island. But they followed that up with a two-point loss to South Florida and blowouts against LSU and Miami. The Gators topped Texas and Arch Manning but fell to Texas A&M last week.

Receivers coach Billy Gonzales is expected to be named the interim head coach. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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