Billy Napier made sure to hit Florida Gators fans where it hurts at his James Madison introductory press conference
Florida Gators fans are likely furious at former head coach Billy Napier, as it took him getting fired before he gave up play calling.
The Florida Gators had a lot of faith that former head coach Billy Napier would be the next great head coach in Gainesville. The hire was praised across the board, and he was the hottest candidate from the Group of Five ranks ahead of the 2021 coaching cycle.
Ultimately, Napier didn’t work out in Gainesville. He was 22-23 as the head coach during his four seasons with the Gators, and there were multiple reasons it didn’t pan out. The biggest one frustrated Gators fans to no end.
Billy Napier won’t call plays for James Madison
On Wednesday, Napier was officially introduced as the head coach of the College Football Playoff-bound James Madison Dukes. It’s an interesting hire for the Dukes, as he is replacing Bob Chesney, who is heading to UCLA after two excellent seasons at James Madison. He succeeded Curt Cignetti, who is an incredible 24-2 at Indiana through two seasons and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
During his time with the media on Wednesday, Napier revealed a massive detail that we hadn’t heard yet. He will not be calling plays for the Dukes.
Yes, you read that correctly.
The biggest frustration that fans had with Napier was his insane insistence to call plays. It was crazy that he wouldn’t give it up, especially since it was the one thing that he was reportedly told after saving his job with a 4-0 finish in 2024. He didn’t hire a serious offensive coordinator, something that new head coach Jon Sumrall did within a week of being hired by bringing in Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech.
When you looked at the Gators, there was so much going right for Napier. His players played incredibly hard for him, there was real development at multiple positions, and the infrastructure and facilities were excellent. An explosive offense is the No. 1 thing that Gators fans want, and he failed miserably at making that happen.
What’s really frustrating is that he figured it out when he wasn’t in Gainesville anymore. We all knew it, everyone told him so, and there were dozens of articles written (myself included) about how much it needed to happen. The stubbornness to not try the one thing that likely would save his job drove Gators fans crazy.
It’s incredibly frustrating to know he’s willing to do it for his new job but not for his old one. Oh, and he’s yet to make any public comments thanking the Gators.