Florida Gators make key announcement that will affect 2025 matchup with Tennessee Vols
Many Tennessee fans (and those of other schools around the SEC and the state of Florida) have been hoping that the Florida Gators would find a way to hang onto their embattled head coach despite another lost season in Gainesville. On Thursday, it looks like they will be getting their way. Florida Athletics Director Scott […]
Many Tennessee fans (and those of other schools around the SEC and the state of Florida) have been hoping that the Florida Gators would find a way to hang onto their embattled head coach despite another lost season in Gainesville. On Thursday, it looks like they will be getting their way.
Florida Athletics Director Scott Stricklin issued a statement on Thursday, announcing that the university is keeping Billy Napier as its football coach. According to Action Network's Brett McMurphy, that means the Gators are expected to not just stick with Napier for the rest of this season, but also for the 2025 season.
As every Vol fan knows, the Florida game has been mostly a recurring nightmare for Tennessee since Steve Spurrier got Phil Fulmer's goose for the majority of the 1990s. Since Tennessee won 3 out of 4 from 2001-2004, Tennessee won just once (in 2016) until Josh Heupel took the job in 2021.
Since then, Heupel is 2-2 against the Gators and 2-1 against Billy Napier, including a 23-17 overtime win back on October 12. In this rivalry, from Tennessee's perspective, that's basically dominance for the Vols. Through three seasons, Napier has an overall record of 15-18 and 8-13 in the SEC. Tennessee and Florida have been matched by the SEC to play in Gainesville in 2025.
Napier staying for at least one more year also means that the Gators won't be turning their program around next season with a new coach who could, quite frankly, be an upgrade. Someone like Indiana's Curt Cignetti or Ole Miss's Lane Kiffin. It's already hard enough to win in Gainesville for the Vols' but, frankly, it would very likely be harder if someone else was calling the shots.
It's still way too early to know what each team is going to look like, as the transfer portal will shake things up for both rosters and the date of the game hasn't been announced. However, it appears as though Napier will be on the opposing sideline from Heupel when they meet. And that's been mostly a good thing for the Big Orange.
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