At Florida, head coach Billy Napier went 22-23 while appearing in 1 bowl game (1-0). Before him, Dan Mullen went 34-15 as the Gators’ coach.
Mullen made 3 New Year’s 6 Bowl appearances and picked up victories in the Peach Bowl (2018) and Orange Bowl (2019). Despite this, Mullen — like Napier earlier this week — was fired during his fourth year in Gainesville.
Mullen, now at UNLV, doesn’t have to stress the weight of Florida expectations anymore. However, he seems to believe he’d still be with the Gators today if the university had listened to his pleas for more resources.
Instead of giving him what he asked for, though, they kicked him out the door and gave Napier everything he was seeking.
“Are they going to give the next guy a lot more than they gave him, as far as resources? [For me], everything was, ‘No.’ And then everything I asked for, [Florida] said, ‘Here you go’ to the next person,” Mullen told Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wolken in a recent interview. “So, what’s the plan to make it better? Not that, then what?
“They doubled the salary pool [for Napier] to hire coaches and staff members. I was always told no. Everything was no.”
Florida’s head coaching position is not for everyone. Some people wilt under the pressure the Gators’ fanbase provides.
Mullen, before a tough final campaign, was 23-9 as Florida’s coach. He may have left on unceremonious terms, but he is the most successful coach the Gators have had since Urban Meyer. The track record shows it.
