Florida coaching search: 2 SEC head coaches named top-5 candidates to replace Billy Napier
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The firing of Florida head coach Billy Napier already has the wheels of the coaching cycle spinning, and the Gators figure to search far and wide to find the perfect fit to revitalize a program that has gone through an increasingly-rocky stretch since the early 2010s.
A plethora of names have surfaced when it comes to who could next take over in Gainesville, and the Orlando Sentinel’s Edgar Thompson released his list of the top five candidates to replace Napier on Sunday.
Two of Thompson’s coaches currently reside at other SEC programs, making this mid-season change even more noteworthy considering the implications of such a move.
Ole Miss’s Lane Kiffin was the first name listed, with the 50-year-old coach having been rumored for the job for a while now. Kiffin has coached in the state of Florida before, as he was the head coach at FAU from 2017-19. Kiffin has been linked to other SEC jobs in the past as well, most notably the Auburn opening after the 2022 season.
Thompson also included Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz, with the Tigers’ head coach being another young option with an offensive background from within the SEC. Thompson’s report notes that Drinkwitz would be an expensive option for the Gators, as he currently makes $9 million annually thanks to a recent contract extension he signed with Mizzou.
Thompson listed Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, Washington’s Jedd Fisch and former Penn State head coach James Franklin as other potential candidates.
Parker is currently the sports editor with the Enterprise-Journal in McComb, Mississippi. He's a graduate from Mizzou who has experience covering the Tiger football and basketball beats for SB Nation, and he's worked for a variety of sports news outlets in the past.
