Florida appears to be on the verge of hiring Louisiana’s Billy Napier the program’s next coach, according to The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman and Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel. Napier’s name had been connected to the Gators for days with CBS Sports previously noting he was the leading candidate for the position as Florida acted quickly to replace Dan Mullen, who was fired on Nov. 21 following a 24-23 overtime loss to Missouri.
Napier has established himself as one of the top up-and-coming stars of the coaching industry. He is presently leading the Ragin’ Cajuns to their most successful stretch in program history. Louisiana has enjoyed three straight double-digit win seasons, including an 11-1 effort in 2021 that will culminate in a Sun Belt Championship Game appearance against Appalachian State. Napier’s first season at Louisiana marked the first year of the Sun Belt title game, and the Ragin’ Cajuns have qualified for all four championship opportunities.
As a branch from the coaching trees of both Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney, Napier has been mentioned among SEC coaching circles for several years, including last year when Auburn was in the market after firing Gus Malzahn. It’s been reported that Napier has been offered a handful of Power Five jobs over the last couple of offseasons, all of which he turned down as he patiently waited for the right opportunity.
Napier’s 39-12 record as a head coach speaks for itself, but his recruiting connections through his stints as an assistant at Alabama, Clemson and Florida State make him the perfect fit for Florida.
Part of Mullen’s shortcomings with the Gators included a lack of focus on the recruiting trail. Wins and losses ultimately cost him his job — the loss to MIssouri was the team’s fourth straight conference defeat with a close call against FCS foe Samford wedged in between — but UF was getting out-recruited by multiple SEC teams. Most notably, Florida wasbeing lapped by rival Georgia, which led to depth issues that came into focus late last year and throughout the 2021 season.
Florida beat Florida State 24-21 in Week 13 to finish 6-6 and become bowl eligible.
CBS Sports will update this breaking news story as it develops.
