Major SEC Head Coach Under 'Most Pressure' After Disappointing Offseason

Major SEC Head Coach Under 'Most Pressure' After Disappointing Offseason originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The 2025 college football season is quickly approaching and there's no doubt that a number of teams, coaches and players face a tremendous amount of expectations.

However, some deal with more than others, and in an article from On3's Ari Wasserman ranking which head coaches face the "most pressure this season," he placed Billy Napier of the Florida Gators at No. 1.

"Napier was almost fired in the middle of last season, but the Gators turned it around in the back half of the year because of Lagway’s play," Wasserman wrote. "Now Florida has a chance to be much better, but Napier has to win this year — whether Lagway stays healthy or not. Napier is 19-19 through three seasons in Gainesville."

2024 Was Napier's Best Season with Florida

To some, putting Napier on this list could be seen as a bit of a surprise because things have been trending upward as he's coming off what is easily his best season with the Gators since taking over in 2022.

The team's 8-5 record marked their first winning season since 2020, while their 33-8 win over the Tulane Green Wave in the Gasparilla Bowl served as their first bowl game victory since 2019.

They also produced some nice regular-season wins, beating the No. 22 LSU Tigers and the No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels, both of which were at home.

The Gators Disappointed in the Transfer Portal

Of course, one way for Napier to ensure more success in 2025 would have been to load up in the transfer portal, which many of the top teams in college football did.

Florida essentially did the opposite, though, because not only did they see 20 players leave for new programs, they only brought in seven, which is tied with the Tennessee Volunteers for the fewest amount of any SEC team.

Even the ones they did bring may not move the needle too much, as three-star wide receiver J.Michael Sturdivant (UCLA), three-star EDGE Kofi Asare (UMass) and three-star safety Micheal Caraway Jr. (Southern Mississippi) are the three highest rated.

What's Florida's Outlook for 2025?

Unfortunately for Napier, as things currently stand, the expectation is for them to get worse, as ESPN FPI currently gives Florida a projected win-loss total of 6.4-5.2, while having just a 1% chance to win the SEC.

If Wasserman is right about his place on the hot seat and the Gators produce just a six-win season, then the program may soon be looking for a new head coach.

Related: LSU Facing Trouble as SEC Rival Named 'Top Competition' to Flip 5-Star WR

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.