The real reason the Florida Gators will not fire Billy Napier anytime soon

Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier entered the 2024 college football season as one of a few coaches squarely on the hot seat, which is where he still remains in the eyes of many.

In his first two seasons in Gainesville, Napier has failed to achieve a winning season going a combined 12-14 and missing a bowl game in 2023. Despite a 3-3 start to the 2024 season, the seat has remained hot after the Gators looked abysmal in losses early on to the Miami Hurricanes and Texas A&M Aggies.

To Napier’s credit, the Gators have somewhat righted the ship to a .500 record through their first six games, including a near victory this past Saturday against the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville which saw the Gators up 10-0 at one point in the second half.

The Gators would end up losing 17-10 but did show some promise with freshman quarterback DJ Lagway leading the team to overtime after completing a third and 18 passes for a touchdown.

Despite it all, many Gator fans and beyond seem to still think firing Napier is the right move for the program.

Whatever side of the fence folks may be on, chances are they will have to wait on whether or not the Gators part ways with Napier. Even if the administration wants the coach terminated, an open lawsuit is a big reason he may not be any time soon.

What lawsuit is Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier involved in?

This past off-season, former Gators quarterback Jaden Rashada filed a lawsuit against a few parties involved with the Florida Gators football program. One of those was head coach Billy Napier. Napier’s part of the lawsuit claims that in a phone call with Rashada and his father, Harlen Rashada, he falsely promised a partial $1 million payment towards Rashada’s NIL deal.

If this call indeed happened as Rashada claims and was recorded with Napier’s consent, the Gators could potentially fore Napier with cause, meaning they would not owe him any money towards his current buyout. At present, the Gators would owe Napier roughly $27.5 million if they fired him now, or at any point before the lawsuit concluded.

Chances are if the Gators do indeed want Napier gone, they are playing the waiting game crossing their fingers that Napier is found guilty in the lawsuit which would save them a substantial amount of money. It would also presumably make them wide open to paying Napier’s predecessor whatever they felt he was worth, without any potential financial restrictions.

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