Paul Finebaum says hot seat talk for Billy Napier is real after USF loss
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Florida head coach Billy Napier is back on the chopping block following his team’s loss to South Florida in Week 2. And this time around, Paul Finebaum doesn’t think he’s going to find the escape hatch.
Finebaum joined Greg McElroy on Wednesday’s episode of Always College Football to discuss a variety of topics, including Napier’s perilous position with the Gators. The SEC Network host believes the smoke around Napier losing his job is legitimate.
“Yes, I believe [it’s real]. I think it was real last year,” Finebaum said. “It just so happened that he managed to take advantage of Ole Miss, of LSU, of a very weak [Florida State] team and went on this run that was exciting.”
Finebaum told McElroy he “didn’t expect the Gators to look so inept at various points” like they have in Napier’s tenure. Despite this, he did give Napier a puncher’s chance of retaining his job in Gainesville. However, it’d take a drastic change of course from how Florida traditionally operates its football program.
“He’s 20-20 in his fourth year. We know what happened to every other coach with far better records,” Finebaum told McElroy. “The only thing that will save him [is] if Florida decides to start thinking like a mid-level team and be happy with mediocrity. But I don’t think Gators fans [would] be happy with that.”
Napier could quickly quell the budding storm around his job status with a victory at No. 3 LSU on Saturday night. The Gators (+7.5; ESPN Bet) and Tigers will kick off at 7:30 p.m. E.T. on ABC.
