Florida has excellent candidates to replace Billy Napier, including multiple from SEC rivals and the one who got away

There are some high profile names who could replace Billy Napier.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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After a very up-and-down three-plus years at the helm, it’s becoming more and more evident that the Florida Gators need to move on from head coach Billy Napier.

When the Florida Gators hired Napier after the 2021 season, the hire was widely praised across the industry. He was viewed as the next big up-and-comer in the coaching ranks after a successful tenure at Louisiana-Lafayette. He came to Gainesville with a long-term plan and vision to build up an infrastructure similar to the one Nick Saban built for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where Napier served as the wide receivers coach.

Ultimately, Napier couldn’t get things off the ground. Recruiting was up and down, but it was his in-game coaching that was the bigger issue, costing the team multiple games, including the now infamous spit game on Saturday afternoon.

If the Gators move on from Napier, who could come in and take over for him? They will likely be going big game hunting.

Florida Gators head coach candidates

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin

The Gators are likely going to want to go big game hunting. The program has been down for far too long since Urban Meyer left the program after the 2010 season. Dan Mullen had them playing well for a short time, but the lack of recruiting quickly ended his tenure.

Kiffin has seen a ton of success at Ole Miss, posting a 37-15 record during his time in Oxford, but he hasn’t taken that next step. The resources that Kiffin will have at Florida will be the best he’s had as a head coach. It would be a bold move for Kiffin to leave Oxford for Gainesville, but he’s never been afraid to make one.

Washington head coach Jedd Fisch

This one feels odd on the surface. Fisch took the Washington job ahead of the 2024 season and has that program looking good to start his second year. Why is he on the list? Simple: he’s a Florida alum.

Would Fisch leave Washington after two seasons for a relatively lateral move? This might be the only chance he would have to coach his alma mater, which can be a huge draw for some.

Purdue head coach Barry Odom

If the Gators choose to go for the upstart coach from the G5, Odom is an intriguing choice. He’s revitalized the UNLV Rebels program with the Go-Go offense and offensive coordinator Brennan Marion, with a 19-8 record before taking the Purdue job.

Odom also spent a lot of time in the SEC with 14 years at Missouri, including as the head coach from 2016-2019, on top of spending three years as Sam Pittman’s defensive coordinator at Arkansas before taking the job at UNLV. He understands the landscape in the SEC, which matters when it comes to recruiting.

Tulane head coach Jon Sumrall

Another really impressive head coach from the G5 level is Sumrall. He did just take the job at Tulane for Willie Fritz, but was great in his two seasons at Troy, going 23-4. He understands the landscape of the SEC, having been the defensive coordinator at Kentucky the year before he got the Troy job.

Sumrall would instill toughness in the program and do a great job coaching up the players. Recruiting would be somewhat of a question on a major scale for Sumrall, but the coaching ability there.

Liberty head coach Jamey Chadwell

Offense has been the calling card for the university since Steve Spurrier took over. They made the Fun N Gun thrive in Gainesville, and Meyer and Mullen brought the spread option to major college football. Why not bring in another fun offense? It’s something the fanbase craves.

Chadwell runs a modernized version of the triple option with spread concepts, and it revolutionized college football at Coastal Carolina. Chadwell went to Liberty and, in his first season with the Flames, they went undefeated and played in the Fiesta Bowl against Oregon. With a career record of 120-63 across three divisions, Chadwell could be an intriguing option that could appease the Gators’ thirst for a high-powered offense. Just imagine DJ Lagway in that system.

Georgia defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann

The Georgia defensive coordinator is an intriguing name on this list. At just 35 years old, his only two jobs in football were for Alabama from 2008-2016, and he was one of Kirby Smart’s first hires when he took over Georgia.

He became the co-defensive coordinator in 2019 and has been the sole defensive coordinator since 2022. His defenses have been the catalyst behind Georgia’s back-to-back national championships.

Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly

This one is a wild card. Kelly has a long history as a head coach, but his creative offense at New Hampshire catapulted him to the offensive coordinator job at Oregon, and he later took over as the head coach. Those propelled Kelly to the head coaching job with the Philadelphia Eagles, which was a mixed bag. He coached the San Francisco 49ers for one year and was promptly replaced by Kyle Shanahan before taking the UCLA job in 2018.

Why would Kelly be the guy? His offense led Ohio State to a National Championship, and the Gators have made runs at Kelly before, but it never came to fruition. He also just went to the Las Vegas Raiders. If it were to happen, it might happen now. It’s worth noting that Kelly likely won’t take another head coaching job after leaving UCLA for Ohio State, but considering he’s been a major target before, he could be again.

Arizona State HC Kenny Dillingham

One of the interesting elements of pursuing Dillingham is the inverse of why the Gators would go after Fisch: he’s already at his alma mater.

Since taking over two years ago, Dillingham has already taken the Sun Devils to the College Football Playoff and a Big 12 title. In fact, they were a play away from beating Texas in the quarterfinal matchup in the first overtime. He made his name for himself as the offensive coordinator at Oregon before becoming the youngest Power Four head coach at Arizona State. He would be less likely to take it because he’s at his alma mater, but the Gators have enough money to force him to say no.

Iowa State HC Matt Campbell

I don’t think the Gators will try to make him the hire, but he’s going to be on every coaching candidate list, and you know his agent will use it to get Campbell an extension.

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