Billy Napier explains why veteran DB Asa Turner is not on 2025 roster
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Billy Napier clarified the conflicting reports on defensive back Asa Turner from the past few days.
The Florida head coach said on Tuesday that the veteran safety is “transitioning out of football,” and won’t be on the Gators’ roster this fall because of past injuries that have taken their toll. Billy Napier talked about the 3 years of significant injuries that have prevented Turner from reaching his former level.
The 2025 season would have been Turner’s 7th year of college football after he was granted an extra year of eligibility in the spring. But Turner has dealt with numerous injuries during his time at Florida and Washington, where he played from 2019-23. He would have been a redshirt senior in 2024 at Florida, using the COVID waiver, but Turner only played briefly in Week 1 before suffering a season-ending injury.
Apparently, Turner was going to give it 1 more shot this fall, with Zach Goodall of 247Sports reporting on Monday that Turner was a part of the 2025 roster.
Goodall then posted a correction on Tuesday about the situation being “fluid in the last 24 hours” and that after a meeting on Tuesday morning between Napier and Turner, the situation changed.
On Tuesday, when the Gators’ updated roster was revealed with fall camp starting, Turner wasn’t on it. Nick de la Torre, the director of content for Florida’s NIL collective, tweeted that Turner wouldn’t be playing this season.
Not too long afterward on Tuesday came Napier’s comments about Turner transitioning out of football, which ruled out any attempt by Turner to return to college football in 2026.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
