I do. I might be dead wrong but idk. I think there is some form of a "handshake" agreement with SS and BN on how the rebuild will look. I think due to the past 3 coaches getting booted as soon as things went south.... SS made a deal that BN will have much more time. TBH I was thinking he was going to get 5 years. That also explains why the buyout is there... BNs insurance policy incase UF does not give him the time he thinks he needs. Also seeing that UF has an interim president right now... who is going to be the one to sign off on that buyout? Unfortunately BNs UF career has been off to much worse start than anyone was hoping. All we can hope is that somehow, some way, we catch a little lightning in a bottle and win at least 6-7 games... Retain Lagway and hopefully hire a big name OC.
The difference between Nape and the previous coaches being let go as soon as things went south is that for them they at least went north first. Nape has been a letdown from day one and nothing has changed. The flight tracker indicates a search for talent ATM.
I almost find it hard to believe we would be on the hunt already. Not sure what coaches would take the meeting during the season. I do think Lane Kiffin will be priority 1. If not him its Dan Lanning depending on how Oregon looks this year.
I think that there are two things that could save Napier. First, announcer that you are surrendering play calling duties and that one of your OCs will take on those duties. The second, start the freshman QB. At least you can say that there is something to the building process.
On Florida Football Future: It seems like we need to go big, as in big boy football, and shell out major bucks for a well established winning football coach as USC West did or Go small as in the Vanderbilt Model. We are at the point that the decision needs to be made. I am not sure the Florida Administration is on board with the big boy model. Boston Whaler Gator
J Bud Davis laid out some reasonably well thought out scenarios in which he would pick the one that reatins Napier for now and starts the rebuild from the top down.
If Billy had shown even the slightest bit of improvement I’d say there’s a chance he’s coach in 25. The fact is, the team somehow regressed with a 2nd year quarterback in his system and his own players in place. I don’t care if it was Georgia in that game, we looked like we did nothing the entire off season.
If Florida wins 9+ games this year, sure. Dealing with reality based on the past 2 years and game 1 (after another losing season with between 4 and 6 wins), no. The ONLY way I see him coaching next season is that we lack a University President and the AD who hired him still has a job. However, if the season plays out like the last two years with bad losses (?UCF, UK, etc) followed by 4/5 game losing streaks, I think the NIL/boosters will stop all donations, fans will tune out, and the University will recognize that $30-40M of buyouts/new salaries pales in comparison to lost donations, gate revenue, bowl/tv money from winning. As to BN “deserving” 5 years to build a program, he talked a good game and the recruiting has been reasonable. However, the eye test (defense, offensive schemes, technique, discipline) along with the most objective test of wins/losses shows that claiming any progress is dubious. I think saying BN (or any coach) needs 5 years is reductive and binary. Why not 10 years? BN certainly deserved time to show that he is building a program. I think he deserves to at least to get thru most of this year, but if the wheels come off then I just don’t understand why he deserves 2 more years to do a job he is so clearly failing at? The players deserve to be coached to their potential and that is not happening. This concerns me more than BN deserving more time.
The comments from former players are absolutely scathing. How does he do any damage control when the most knowledgeable and what should be loyal supporters of the program, former players, have lost enough faith that they publicly shame the staff to the detriment of recruiting?
Getting coaches to leave success rarely happens. Guys at lesser programs doing well is almost always how the story goes. Don’t expect Kirby. Who else is there? Kiff would come if the check was big enough but he already has a big check. How much for Kiff? I say 150 guaranteed?
I like the fire SS first approach. I’d only keep Napier if you can’t land a top guy. He would also be required to fire some staff and hire a solid OC. Basically a financial stop gap until you have the AD department flushed out.
That is my thought. What makes us an attractive job for a high level coach? I think if we want Dan Lanning, he may want to get back into the SEC. But for Kiffin... why would he leave Ole Miss? The money has to be irrelevant at this point. Maybe if both programs are at peak, yes Florida is a better job to have. But right now he is rocking it at Ole Miss. And if they go on to make the CFP... they are throwing the checkbook at him. I cant imagine SS goes back to back and cans BN mid season to go all in on another "up and coming" coach. We have to make a splash hire
Normally I'd say no way but who knows. I guess it depends on how much the boosters squawk and if they want to pony up. I do not expect the rest of this season to go well. That much I know.
My 2-cents: The sentiment from those whose opinions carry significant weight was that he got until 2025. I posted that over and over again . . . "unless something unexpected happened." Well, it may have. We were all surprised and disappointed Saturday . . . including some of them. The team just didn't look prepared or coached up. Now I think it will depend on whether he can rally the team and win some games Florida wasn't expected to win but it is certainly no longer anywhere near a sure thing.
I say 50% he see's Georgia in Jax. 5% he figures out a gauntlet to be here in 2025. And 4.9% of that is because we have an interim President and he might not want to make that big of a change until a full time President is picked.
He’s gone, but I admire folks who try and find the positive. At some point in every one of these deals, the noise gets loud enough that it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. Recruits bail, money dries up etc., and there is no choice. And our schedule this year likely wont allow for a miracle run to bail him out. We are favored next week, and then not again this year as of today. So again, barring a miracle, you can’t have three straight losing seasons and survive, while recruiting isn’t a saving Grace, with an offense that excites no one….so it becomes inevitable, which is where we are now.
