The Surge

In October of 2025, the University of Florida (UF) moved to remove Billy Napier as their head football coach due to a lack of progress and performance issues. Napier served as the Gators’s head coach for four seasons, previously considered a rising star who is most notorious for leading the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns to success. At the time, this seemed to most Floridians, including myself, a great accomplishment.

Unfortunately, the success expected from Napier did not translate to UF’s gameplay. Through the four seasons Napier coached, the Gators received a record of 22-23; which is the worst winning record they had received by a non-Floridian head coach since the early 1900s. Napier’s fans preached patience and told Gator fans to “trust the process” when it came to his coaching tactics. In 2024, the doubtfuls were nearly proved wrong when the Gators claimed a Gasparilla Bowl Victory, however, during the 2025 season, they failed to keep consistency on the field and even lost to one of their statistically weakest in-state rivals – the University of South Florida (USF).

Failures like this led to outrage, as UF was painted to be often unprepared and the management of the team was questioned by the public. Chants of “Fire Billy!” were heard across the stadium after the UF game against Mississippi State, leaving athletic director Scott Stricklin with no choice but to respond and take action. He stated that decisions like these are made through results, and if no progress is being observed, then it is important that something is being done about it. 

The firing of Napier caused heated debate among the Gator Nation. Although some believed that it was long overdue, others argued that UF did not give Napier nearly enough time to fully exercise the vision he had for the Gators. The opposing party claimed that the firing of Napier was too costly for the Gators to afford at the time, his buyout being just over twenty-one million dollars. Regardless, there was one thing that all fans had in common: their strive to win. 

The question of who was going to take over as the Gator’s head coach circled around the college football community, while names such as James Franklin and Jon Sumrall were mentioned, it was confirmed that receiver coach Billy Gonzales was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season while they searched for a more permanent replacement. 

By November of 2025, it was confirmed that the open position would go to Sumrall, who was considered a success at Tulane University and put on Florida’s radar for their high overall rankings amongst college football teams. It is with high hopes that Sumrall will be able to take the Gator’s out of this rut before the 2026 season where they will attempt to redeem their title as champions. Meanwhile, Napier continues his career at James Madison University, where he was offered a coaching position and a chance to rebuild his title.

Bottom Line: Overall, Napier’s era with the Florida Gators is officially over and will be one of remembrance – however the question of whether the players will be able to restore their skills for the upcoming season is still in the air. I think it is clear the Gators made the right choice for the best of the team and their reputation, but it will be a difficult recovery.