The Alligators are swimming in muddy waters as the name of Billy Napier keeps getting dragged through it. Before this season even began, the reports of Napier’s exit were swarming all over the program. It’s been 2 years since Napier first arrived in Gainesville. He is now stepping forth into his third, most likely his last season with the Gators. As of now, the current coaching record stands still at 12-16. This might be the cause of the termination of his contract soon. After the loss at the hands of the Texas A&M Aggies by a score of 33-20, the fans expected Napier to step down or either be released by the program immediately. To everyone’s surprise, he will be staying with the team for at least a little while longer. That being said, he’s still being ridiculed and trolled by the college football community, more notably, the team of ESPN.

On the 20th September episode of the ‘Kickoff with Gary Striewski and Randy Scott’, the duo talked about the coaches who are facing a lot of pressure at the moment in college football. In a later segment, they eventually brought up the name of Billy Napier who is under the most fire in terms of coaches who could potentially get fired.

Striewski was heard saying, “They didn’t have to do what they did and part ways with Dan Mullen, who was New Year’s 6 bowl game after New Year’s six bowl game. What’s Billy Napier? What bowl game? The toilet bowl game?” What followed next was an uproar of laughter, which is proof of the sad state of affairs that currently revolve around the career of Billy Napier. From being an expensive hire with a 7-year, $7.4 million-a-year contract, to now being practically chased away from the program with a stick, Napier has witnessed a dark turn in his career. As of now, the heat levels continue to boil up against him as the king of all critics, Paul Finebaum, also had a brutal opinion of the Florida HC.

Paul Finebaum lashes out at Billy Napier’s failures

The ESPN analyst has never been too kind to college coaches, whether it be Lincoln Riley of USC or Deion Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes. Paul Finebaum always has a sour take. Yet, his words for Billy Napier largely coincide with the public opinion of the Gators’ head coach, who faces a potential firing that could occur at any given moment on any day. Here’s what Finebaum had to say about Napier’s current situation and whether there is any chance of his contract being renewed in Florida.

Finebaum worded out his blunt and no-nonsense thoughts on Napier and said, “It really isn’t early for Florida. It’s close to midnight for Billy Napier. A lot of people are saying and asking the question, ‘Can Florida afford to spend $26 million to fire Billy Napier?’ I respond by saying, ‘Can they afford to keep him?’ And my answer is no, they cannot afford to keep Billy Napier because he has been an abject disaster.” 

Thus, Napier’s career seems to be at a point of no return. It will be interesting to see whether he lands a coaching job with any team anytime soon, given the destruction he left behind in his wake. For this season, he will continue to don the hat of the head coach.

If you’re interested in knowing more about college football and the current NIL landscape, do check out this ES Think Tank episode with Doug Sanders.