Todd Golden Makes Major Florida Coaching Changes After National Championship

Fresh off delivering Florida its third national championship, head coach Todd Golden is already making big moves to shape the Gators’ future.

Golden told Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman on Tuesday that he is promoting Jonathan Safir to assistant coach and bringing in Dave Klatsky, the head coach at NYU, to fill another assistant role on his staff.

The changes come just over one week after Florida edged out Houston in a dramatic national title game, capping off a breakout third season for Golden in Gainesville. 

With staff turnover expected following the championship run, Golden wasted no time in locking in key voices for the next chapter.

Safir, who has been with the Gators since 2022 as the program’s Director of Basketball Strategy and Analytics, now moves into an on-court coaching role. Safir’s promotion highlights Golden's commitment to program continuity, as Safir has quietly been working behind the scenes for quite some time. 

Klatsky, 44, brings a massive amount of basketball experience to Gainesville. 

He’s spent the last three years as NYU’s head coach, leading the program to a 29-2 record last season, including a deep run to the Division III NCAA Tournament Title Game. 

Prior to that, he spent over a decade on the staff at Colgate, where he helped guide the Raiders to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances.

Golden’s revamped coaching staff perhaps signals both loyalty and ambition—rewarding a key internal contributor while adding an experienced, development-focused coach with national tournament credentials.