Watch how happy our rivals are with the announcement. That’ll be telling. And while we are at it ( and this is not in ANY WAY critical of your post), I’d bet the average fan has no idea we have the worst recruiting class we have had in any least 30 years, and no real path to substantively improve it with consistent 4* talent.
We don't take winning seriously any longer. As long as the money keeps flowing in, why would they bother to change? These folks are not athletes, they are bean counters, and they want coaches they aren't afraid of.
I think Stricklin and the Administration realized this and also that the uncertainty was killing recruiting. Had to be done. I'm guessing they had talks with the Lagway team as well.
I dunno, the media is framing this as he will be back for 2025 but the numbers 2, 0, 2 and 5 don’t appear anywhere in the actual carefully worded statement. If he intends to keep him for next year what does it not SAY that?
How does one “shore up” the — what? — 50th-place recruiting class in the country? One might argue the method is to replace the leadership with someone who knows how to recruit. I certainly won’t place my money on the recruits come running in now that they know Napier has a guaranteed fourth and final season.
It has been idiotic, and I mean IDIOTIC, to think Billy was going to get fired this season. This season has *never* been about wins and losses. It has *always* been about progress, and the progress has been impressive. Too many people on this board are embarrassing themselves with ridiculous nonsense given the changing nature of college football *AND* our record of firing coaches since Urban. We need to support *this* man because he has clearly established a proper culture. I was stunned to see Ali Peek the other day talking yang about wins and losses in order for him to keep his job. What !?!? Hush up that nonsense, and I love me some Ali Peek but good God Almighty. This is not college football from a decade ago. Player sentiment is *MUCH* more important these days given that you have to recruit those on your current roster *every* year. When you have a phenom at Quarterback, and we have one, you are a FOOL if you're talking about firing a coach he loves. Ali said player buy-in isn't the determinant. This year? It damn sure is. We've got the right coach. Stop talking all this stupid yang about him. Go Gators
Perhaps it is just to fight the battle against negative recruiting by other schools but in reality it is going to continue for as long he Napier lingers at the top, throwing away games he should win out of sheer incompetence.
It kind of makes sense... Let him go another year- reduce the buyout by what $6-$7M... Acknowledge how much better we have looked (and we have.) Hopefully keep Lagway, Baugh and many more... Hopefully stabilize the program.. And again hopefully BN makes much needed changes to the program... See if he grows into the job. If not- do something next year. Get a Cignetti in and have $7M more savings... I'm not endorsing this- but I could see SS's side.
They played hard for Muschamp too... especially on defense... and we still fired him... and Muschamp had a better overall record than Billy
