Billy Napier’s position as head coach of the Gators (4-4) is precarious. He is sitting in a seat that’s hotter than the Florida Sun. Napier’s stint in the swamp is yet to produce the desired results for an ambitious program. Calls for his exit are reverberating within the fanbase, and one CFB insider reinstated Billy’s Napier presence on the chopping block.

The Gators began year 3 under Napier rather abysmally, losing 41-17 to arch-rivals Miami. Since they have failed to garner any momentum and string together a run of results. The strength of their schedule has not absolved Napier either, despite all 4 losses coming to ranked opposition. The dialogue surrounding his future in Gainesville seems no closer to letting up. ESPN’s Pete Thamel expressed his thoughts on the matter.

Guesting on the “Todd McShay” YouTube channel, Thamel was asked which head coach’s jobs are in jeopardy, to which he said “Billy Napier. That’s a conversation”. Coming from a reporter of Thamel’s ilk, that’s affirmation to the fact that there is motion amongst the powers that be for replacing Napier. He offered thoughts on Napier’s predicament and how the team is still buying into him. “I would say that I give Billy Napier a lot of credit, because, you know, they were dead on arrival coming out of that A&M game. Back to back home blowout losses. It’s hard in this era, especially, to keep a team together [and] rallied in sync with a lot of noise around them. So I think Billy Napier has done an excellent job coaching this football team”

Whether Thamel believes Florida’s poor season falls on Napier’s shoulders, the stakeholders and fans seem to. More so, they believe they have found their knight in shining armor. Paul Finebaum said after Saturday’s loss to Georgia, “I am talking to people in the parking lot at EverBank stadium, so I will say that on the front end, they want Lane Kiffin. You can agree or disagree, America. But that’s who they are fixated on and that has not changed in ten weeks.”

Lane Kiffin has been a revelation in Mississippi. His Ole Miss team are no.16 in the first iteration of the CFP rankings, just on the outset of a playoff berth. Under Kiffin, Ole Miss Rebels have had their two winningest regular seasons in program history. His offensive-mindedness appeals to Gators fans who have a starwalt in DJ Lagway at QB. If that wasn’t enough, Kiffin has previously claimed his coaching idol is Gators legend Steve Spurrier. Kiffin has a certain luster to him right now and Napier faces a tall task to keep his job.

 Billy Napier’s possible path to staying in Gainesville

One could make the argument that the Gators have, ever so slightly, been trending upwards. They put up a good fight against Georgia, and, if not for Lagway getting hurt, they may have been able to ruffle more feathers. Perhaps even cause an unlikely upset due to the performance of the opposite QB.

Their schedule still doesn’t instill optimism, facing 3 ranked teams in their next 3. The last of which is against Kiffin’s outfit. Then, they play Florida State in rival’s week. You get the gist. Napier is really clutching at straws here. He still requires 2 wins consolation in the form of bowl eligibility.

There is a rationale to be made that Napier’s best hope is for Ole Miss to win out, including an upset vs Georgia this Sunday. Making the playoffs could deter Kiffin from offboarding. For the Gators, their Saturday will be spent battling the Longhorns in Austin. For CFB neutrals, the storyline of Napier and Kiffin going head to head in the penultimate weekend with everything on the line beckons to be a classic. Watch this space.