“Could Be Fired”: Cormani McClain’s Florida Choice Draws Scrutiny as Billy Napier’s Future on Thin Ice

For Cormani McClain, the transfer portal has been tough. While his other teammates found their new home, McClain was idle, waiting for programs to approach him. But the latest updates suggest that the cornerback could see light at the end of the tunnel. 

The former five-star cornerback seems to find trust in his old home and will likely get a ticket for the second time in the Florida Gators. However, the transition process will not be smooth for McClain since the Florida HC, Billy Napier’s future, lies hanging. 

Will Billy Napier find confidence in McClain?

McClain has dragged Deion Sanders and Colorado to the mud, accusing them of “playing for clicks.” Now that he wishes to be a part of a “real and great program,” he did not commit to any big name. Instead, it must be said that hardly any program approached him on their own based on McClain’s immature moves. After a lot of blame game, ESPN’s analyst Adam Rittenberg highlighted some leads about the player who, accompanied by his mother and an agent, visited Florida on May 10.

 

But as easy as it may sound, the reality is quite harsh for McClain. As pointed out by host Kevin Borba on the Locked on Buffs podcast, “Cormani McClain is going to have a chance he just needs to take advantage of it. Now the Florida situation is interesting considering Billy Napier is on like the hot of seats like if Billy Napier struggles this year, he could be fired by week seven.” Standing at a crucial juncture, Napier is unlikely to take a risk by giving McClain a chance. This opens up a detailed analysis as to why the cornerback is a risky take.

McClain’s faulty past with Florida Gators

Napier has not forgotten how Florida missed out on McClain the last time. In the summer of 2023, the cornerback was considered a Florida lean and had ticked all the boxes, reigning high probability of landing with the Gators. However, McClain then landed a surprising move when he chose the Miami Hurricanes over them. Still, it was kind of bearable since it’s common for players to switch their decisions. 

But what transpired after that almost closed the Florida gates for McClain. As the day of signing arrived, he committed himself to Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes instead of finding him on the Hurricanes’ list. From the outside, it looked like McClain was chasing whoever would pay him the most, allured by the charm of glitz and glamor. Even though, per reports, Napier is returning to McClain, and the two have been in talks, the Gators’ coach is not in a good position to endorse high amounts for the player.  

Besides, there is no strong reason why Florida will promise McClain a reasonable amount. The problem is that his raw talents from high school weren’t enough once he got to college, and he quickly caught the ire of Sanders. Hence, McClain’s path to Florida is full of thorns. Some of the few names that com e in Napier’s list before McClain are Graham Mertz, DJ Lagway, and Clay Millen.