Florida Gators football coach Billy Napier already received a vote of confidence from the school's athletic director, but after going under .500 in two seasons, one former Gator legend is expressing some concerns about the state of the program.
Steve Spurrier, known around college football as "The Old Ball Coach" and for his legendary playing and coaching career at Florida, which included a national championship in 1996, is worried about the shape of the program.
In particular, Spurrier is concerned about the size and direction of the operation.
"There's a feeling around the Gators of 'what the heck are we doing?' There's a lot of questions that I don't have the answers to about organization," Spurrier told Jacksonville.com.
"Just because you hire the most people doesn't mean you're going to win. All these extra people, I question how much that really helps. Billy is a good guy who works his tail off. I like Billy. Good family man. But we do wish the organization was a little bit more tidy."
So far, the win-loss record for Florida under Napier is a little untidy: the Gators have won 11 games and lost 14 over the last two seasons, and went 3-5 in SEC play both years.
But there's some hope for the future: Florida finished No. 10 in our national football recruiting rankings coming out of the 2024 cycle, a ranking boosted by the addition of five-star quarterback DJ Lagway.
Moreover, the Gators return veteran quarterback Graham Mertz, who is coming off a personal-best 2,903-yard, 20 touchdown effort this past season.
But Florida is also acknowledged to be facing the toughest overall football schedule in the SEC, and some analysts project that the Gators could be playing the hardest slate in the nation.
A perfect opportunity for Napier to improve the Gators' fortunes in the SEC and nationally and put some of this criticism behind him and the program. Because if he doesn't, Florida could be put in a position to make a choice.
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