Ousted after a disappointing tenure, the ex Florida head coach Billy Napier claims losing star tackle Caleb Banks derailed his final season, despite deeper systemic issues plagueing Florida’s struggling program.
Billy Napier went 22-23 during his four seasons with the Florida Gators.
The New head coach at James Madison had plenty of time to build a consistent winner in Gainesville, but only had two winning seasons.
Florida retained Napier for the 2025 season after his program went on a four-game winning streak at the end of 2024, including a 33-8 win over Tulane and Jon Sumrall in the Gasparilla Bowl.
The Gators win in the bowl game didn't set up the team for momentum in 2025, though Sumrall was able to get his Green Wave to the College Football Playoff. Napier was fired after a 3-4 start to the season.
When speaking to Adam Rittenberg of ESPN, Napier had an interesting excuse for why Florida didn't start out hot last season. He suggested defensive tackle Caleb Banks' for injury was a considerable issue for the team.
"The complicated part is the injury; it was very unfortunate," Napier said. "Obviously, it would have made a huge difference in our team to have a first-round draft pick type of caliber, an explosive player.
"Caleb can play on third down. I think that makes him different. Not only is he 6-6, 325, but he's got the twitch to be a matchup issue on third down as a rusher."
Banks played in just three games for Florida last season before dealing with a foot issue. He re-injured the foot during the NFL combine.
Fortunately for Banks, the Minnesota Vikings took a chance on him with pick No. 18, when many were projecting him to be a second-round pick after the injury and surgery.
Before the injuries, Banks was thought to be a potential top 10 pick in the draft.
Banks would have helped the Gators defense tremendously if healthy last seasons, but single handedly would not have elevate the program into the College Football Playoff conversation.
Napier failed the Gators at too many positions last season to be an SEC contender, much less a threat in the CFP.
The injury excuse comes off flat for Napier, who had a few seasons to build up depth to whether a couple of injuries like every other team in college football had to deal with last year.