All Gators

Gators' Billy Napier Odds-On Betting Favorite to be First Coach Fired

Billy Napier's Florida Gators needed a win against the Miami Hurricanes. Instead, they were embarrassed at home, and Las Vegas has taken note.

Cam Parker

Florida Athletic Director Scott Strickland shakes hands with Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier during Gator Walk for the season opener vs. Miami.
Florida Athletic Director Scott Strickland shakes hands with Florida Gators head coach Billy Napier during Gator Walk for the season opener vs. Miami. / Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK
In this story:

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- There was no question that after back-to-back losing seasons to begin his tenure as the Florida Gators’ head coach that Billy Napier would be a betting favorite as a fired head coach, even if there was a solid chance he could keep his job after the 2024 season no matter the team’s record. 

After the Gators’ abysmal 41-17 loss to No. 19 Miami to open the season, though, he has quickly become the clear-cut odds-on favorite to be the first head coach fired in this season with 2/3 odds (-175), according to SportsBetting.ag’s recent update. 

Napier, who began the season with the second-highest odds at 4/1, moves ahead of Arkansas’ Sam Pittman, who has 2/1 odds.  

This comes off the heels of a blowout loss against the Hurricanes, after which Napier called “embarrassing” and said he had no excuses for the Gators’ performance. In his Monday press conference, Napier was asked multiple times about handling outside negative reactions to his team’s play. 

“We've got a responsibility to represent this place, and we need to do it better,” he said. “I keep it very blunt. I think as coaches we need to do our part to help the players. Obviously we have a handful of players that can play better, as well. Yeah, I mean, I think it's part of the job.” 

The task at hand won’t get any easier for Napier and his team, who still have seven ranked opponents left on the schedule. According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, the Gators have a less than 50% to beat 10 of its 11-remaining opponents.

The only game Florida has a more than 50% chance to win is Saturday’s home matchup against Samford, an FCS opponent. 

Since the loss, outside noise against Napier, his tenure as the head coach, and the team’s overall performance has overtaken social media and was evident on Saturday in The Swamp. An initial crowd of over 90,000 dwindled as fans left early while those who stayed echoed boos throughout the stadium. 

“I think ultimately a loss early can be a blessing if you don't waste it,” Napier said. “One thing I can say is we have a group that's working hard. I do think that we have character. We got to go to work on the football part. I think we got to become a more consistent team and we have to execute better.

“If we can focus on those things and not necessarily what some guy in his basement is saying in rural central Florida on social media, then we got a chance to get better.”

Napier and the Gators will have another chance to improve its odds and outside perception of the program with a matchup against Samford on Saturday at 7 p.m. before beginning SEC play against No. 20 Texas A&M on Sept. 14 at 3:30 p.m.

Published
Cam Parker
CAM PARKER

Cam Parker is a contributing writer at AllGators.com of FanNation-Sports Illustrated and is a recent graduate of the University of Florida with a degree in journalism. He also covers and broadcasts Alachua County high school sports with The Prep Zone and Mainstreet Daily News. When he isn't writing, he enjoys listening to '70s music such as The Band or Lynyrd Skynyrd, binge-watching shows and playing with his cat, Chester.