Florida’s coaching search turned into a comedy show.
Gator fans got desperate with their dream hire.
And Ron DeSantis mocked Florida’s Nick Saban fantasy with one brutal comparison.
Florida fires Billy Napier after disastrous four-year run
The University of Florida pulled the trigger on head coach Billy Napier after a 3-4 start to the 2025 season.¹
Napier’s tenure in Gainesville was a complete disaster from start to finish.
The Gators finished 22-23 overall under Napier — the worst winning percentage by a Florida coach since Raymond Wolf in the 1940s.²
Florida fans hammered Napier with "Fire Billy!" chants during what turned out to be his final game — a narrow 23-21 win over Mississippi State.³
Athletic Director Scott Stricklin finally did what everyone knew was coming.
"The standards and expectations for Gators football are to win championships — not simply to compete," Stricklin said in a statement.⁴
Napier will walk away with roughly $21 million in buyout money despite never getting the Gators to a bowl game in consecutive seasons.⁵
Lane Kiffin emerges as top target for desperate Gators
Florida immediately turned to Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin as their top target to dig the program out of the hole Napier left behind.⁶
Kiffin has turned Ole Miss into one of the hottest programs in college football with three straight 10-win seasons.
The 50-year-old offensive mastermind has deep ties to the SEC and Florida after previous stints at Tennessee, Alabama as offensive coordinator, and Florida Atlantic.
But Kiffin threw cold water on speculation about leaving Oxford during an emotional speech where he called Ole Miss "home."⁷
That reality check sent some Florida fans into fantasy land.
Social media report floats Nick Saban pipe dream
An X account posted that Florida would be "interested" in former Alabama coach Nick Saban if Saban were interested in returning to coaching.⁸
The post was essentially stating the obvious — of course Florida would want to hire the greatest college football coach in history.
Saban retired from Alabama after the 2023 season with seven national championships and a legendary 50-year coaching career.⁹
The 73-year-old is now thriving as an ESPN College GameDay analyst and has shown zero indication he wants to return to coaching.
Saban’s wife Terry already shot down Florida speculation earlier this year.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — a die-hard Gators fan — saw the ridiculous post and delivered the perfect response.
"Sources confirm that I am ‘interested’ in winning the lottery," DeSantis posted in reply.¹⁰
DeSantis crushes Gator fans’ Saban delusions
DeSantis nailed exactly how absurd the Saban-to-Florida speculation really is.
The Governor calling out the wishful thinking shows how desperate some Gators fans have become after years of mediocrity.
Florida hasn’t won an SEC championship since 2008 despite the resources and recruiting advantages the program enjoys.
DeSantis later added that Saban "would hate dealing with NIL" and should stay in his TV analyst role where he’s "great."¹¹
The Governor has been vocal about wanting Florida football to return to its glory days.
He told a Gainesville crowd earlier this year that "Nick Saban has retired from Alabama.
So this is the window" for the Gators to return to championship contention.¹²
But that window doesn’t include hiring Saban himself — that ship has sailed.
The reality is Nick Saban coaching Florida has about the same odds as him coaching Auburn the next time that job opens up.
Saban is comfortable on College GameDay, advocating for the future of college football without the headaches of modern coaching.
The transfer portal, NIL, and constant roster turnover drove him away from Alabama.
Florida will have to settle for a real candidate like Kiffin or one of the other big names being floated — James Franklin, Rhett Lashlee, or Jedd Fisch.
Gator Nation better hope Scott Stricklin gets this hire right after striking out on their last four head coaches.
¹ "Florida fires coach Billy Napier after 3-4 start in 2025," ESPN, Oct. 19, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ "Florida fires Billy Napier: Gators oust football coach seven games into Year 4," CBS Sports, Oct. 19, 2025.
⁴ "Florida fires coach Billy Napier after 3-4 start in 2025," ESPN, Oct. 19, 2025.
⁵ Ibid.
⁶ "Florida coaching candidates: Lane Kiffin, James Franklin among options to replace Billy Napier," CBS Sports, Oct. 19, 2025.
⁷ "Lane Kiffin Clears Up Florida Rumors With Heartwarming Ole Miss Story," EssentiallySports, Oct. 22, 2025.
⁸ "Ron DeSantis jokes about Nick Saban’s prospects of becoming Florida’s head coach," Yellowhammer News, Oct. 23, 2025.
⁹ "Lane Kiffin weighs in on if Nick Saban will coach again," FootballScoop, July 14, 2025.
¹⁰ "Ron DeSantis jokes about Nick Saban’s prospects of becoming Florida’s head coach," Yellowhammer News, Oct. 23, 2025.
¹¹ "Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Trolls Rumors Of Nick Saban’s Gators Links Following Billy Napier Firing," College Sports Network, Oct. 20, 2025.
¹² "’We’re looking forward’: Florida governor Ron DeSantis hopes for the Gators to regain its status as ‘CFB capital’ following Nick Saban’s retirement," Sportskeeda, May 11, 2024.
