Tag: Scott Stricklin

ESPN inadvertently roasted Florida retaining Billy Napier during awful game against Texas

Yikes, Florida.

Florida coach Billy Napier earned a major vote of confidence from his school’s athletic director on Thursday.

The Gators then spent Saturday laying one of the ugliest eggs of the college football season against Texas, going down 35-0 at halftime.

After playing close with Georgia last week until a late collapse, the Gators spent Saturday afternoon getting bulldozed by the Longhorns.

This stinky performance really did come off the heels of Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin writing a passionate defense of Napier’s standing with the program, which is a tough look for folks in Gainesville.

Somehow, it’s also not the worst moment in Florida athletics this week.

Goodness gracious, Gators. Florida is down bad right now, at no fault but to those in charge of stewarding the school’s two biggest athletic programs.

If this brutal ESPN graphic juxtaposition doesn’t sum this all up, we’re not sure what will.


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Florida football sticking with Billy Napier as its head coach

Gators have no plans of making changes at head coach and will stick with Billy Napier.

Billy Napier will continue to serve as the head coach for Florida football, according to athletics director Scott Stricklin in a letter he wrote on Thursday.

“I wanted to let you know that Billy Napier will continue as head football coach of the Florida Gators,” Sticklin wrote. “As we’ve seen these past several weeks, the young men on this team represent what it means to be a Gator. Their resolve, effort and execution are evident in their performance and growth each week – building a foundation that promises greater success next season and beyond.”

Ever since their initial bye week earlier this season, this Florida football squad has looked like a completely different team, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

Their 4-4 record certainly does not indicate how talented this group of players is, and all of the credit goes to Napier for keeping his players focused and prepared each and every week.

A common theme this season that Napier has mentioned time and time again is unity. This team has each other’s backs and they all serve as one. Despite the unlucky cards they’ve been dealt as of late with the injuries piling up, Napier has not used that as an excuse and is constantly preaching the next-man-up mentality. And the players understand that as well.

To end Stricklin’s letter, he wrote, “I am confident that Billy (Napier) will meet the challenges and opportunities ahead. We will work alongside him to support any changes needed to elevate Gator football. As college athletics evolves, UF is committed to embracing innovation and strategy, ensuring the Gators thrive in today’s competitive landscape.

“Gator Nation has remained strong, showing up game after game to stand with our team. This loyalty creates an incredible environment that inspires our players to compete with heart and determination. Now, I call on all of Gator Nation to continue standing behind Billy (Napier) and his dedicated team while we work together to build a championship program.”

What’s next for the Gators?

Florida will go on the road and face the Texas Longhorns in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Nov. 9. Kickoff is set for noon ET and will be broadcast on ABC.

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Florida-Georgia rivalry to return to Jacksonville after playing in Atlanta, Tampa

Florida and Georgia will indeed play in Tampa and Atlanta during the two years; then, the rivalry returns to Jacksonville through 2031.

Negotiations have concluded and speculation has become fact as the University of Florida and Georgia announced its future site schedule for the annual rivalry game through 2031 on Friday.

The game will move to the neutral sites of Atlanta in 2026 and Tampa in 2027 once the current contract with the City of Jacksonville ends next year and renovations begin on EverBank Stadium, according to the schools, Tampa Bay Sports Commission and Mercedes Benz Stadium.

Following the two-year break, the rivalry returns to Jacksonville at the “Stadium of the Future” from 2028 to 2031.

“The Florida-Georgia Game has enjoyed a longstanding and special relationship with the City of Jacksonville, and we are pleased to continue one of college football’s great traditions there in 2028 once the impressive renovations to EverBank Stadium are complete,” said Florida Athletics Director [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag].

“For 2026 and 2027, the chance to continue the neutral site history of the series, while also maximizing revenue opportunities that are so critical during this transformative time in college athletics, make playing games in Atlanta and Tampa incredibly attractive.

“Both cities are special to Gator fans and offer venues that will provide wonderful experiences for both fans and players.”

The game last took place in Tampa more than 100 years ago, when the Gators and Bulldogs met for just the third time. Since then, a historic rivalry has formed, primarily being played in Jacksonville, a middle-ground area for the two Southeastern Conference powers.

“We are honored to extend the time-honored tradition of the Florida-Georgia rivalry game in Jacksonville for four more years,” Jacksonville Mayor Donne Deegan said.

“It is the result of many months of close collaboration with our partners at the University of Georgia and the University of Florida. There is shared excitement by all parties for the game to return to Jacksonville in the ‘Stadium of the Future,’ which will be a world-class stadium that meets NFL standards, starting in 2028.

“We are grateful that this matchup will continue bringing our communities together to celebrate college football and drive economic impact.”

How to watch Florida-Georgia in 2024

Florida and Georgia face off for a Week 10 rivalry battle in Jacksonville on Saturday, Nov. 2 with kickoff slated for 3:30 p.m. ET. The pregame festivities will be featured on SEC Nation and the game will be broadcast on ABC.

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Florida football head coach on hot seat, needs to ‘start improving now’

Billy Napier is not on the hottest seat, but the temperature is rising rapidly underneath him.

The current decade has not been kind to Florida football which has seen three straight losing seasons — two of which came under the tutelage of head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag], who took over a troubled program after the departure of [autotag]Dan Mullen[/autotag].

The program has dealt with all sorts of problems on and off the field, unable to get over the hump as the Gators often prove to be their own worst enemy. As the leader of the team, the buck stops with Napier and time is running out to turn things around.

CBS Sports senior writer Dennis Dodd published his 2024 hot seat rankings, which inevitably included Florida’s HC but not in the hottest spot. That designation belongs solely to Arkansas Razorbacks skipper Sam Pittman, who is in the “win or be fired” category and a 5 on the 1-to-5 scale.

Napier is in the next tier entitled, “Start improving now,” which is 4 on the 1-to-5 scale.

Breaking down Billy Napier’s hot seat

“It just hasn’t worked for Napier to this point,” Dodd laments. “The Gators went 6-7 in 2022 with [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag], the No. 4 overall pick, at QB. After a 5–7 season in 2023, the grumbling grew louder.”

What seemed like a good fit between Napier and the Gators has devolved into desperation over the past two seasons.

“Napier appeared to be exactly what Florida needed when he joined from Louisiana in 2022, but he’s walking a tightrope now. The Gators’ schedule — the nation’s toughest in 2024 and one of the most difficult of all time — offers a rough road with 11 Power Four opponents (eight likely ranked). And they’ll have to play an almost identical slate in 2025.”

The Gator Nation can expect their head coach to give his all this season, but it just might not be enough.

“A top-five transfer class should help, but Napier has to win now. He starts the season on a five-game losing streak. If he doesn’t turn it around, AD [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag] may not get to make the next hire.”

In Dodd’s 2023 edition of his hot seat rankings, Napier was in category 2 entitled, “All good… for now.”

Florida’s 2024 season opener

The Florida and the Miami Hurricanes open their schedule on Aug. 31 in Gainesville, Florida. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

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Florida Gators excel in Academic Progress Rate scores

Yet another successful year in the classroom for members of the Orange and Blue.

The NCAA announced its annual Academic Progress Rate data on Tuesday and the Florida Gators had 15 teams that exceeded or equaled its respective sport’s national average.

Four members of the Orange and Blue earned the maximum score of 1,000: gymnastics, women’s swimming and diving, men’s tennis, and volleyball. UF’s overall average APR is 986 — above the national four-year rate of 984.

“This APR report shows that academics are important to Gator student-athletes,” Florida athletic director [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag] said. “Getting a degree from a top public university is a goal our Gators are working toward.”

Among the 15 teams to score average or better was football’s 981, which is above the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision national average of 968. Men’s (984) and women’s (985) basketball, as well as baseball (993), also exceeded the national averages of 968, 981 and 978, respectively.

Since 2020, a portion of NCAA revenue has been distributed to members based on the student-athletes’ academic achievement — including APR scores. Schools earn one academic achievement unit per year if their student-athletes meet at least one of these requirements:

  • Earn an overall single-year all-sport APR of 985 or higher
  • Earn an overall all-sport Graduation Success Rate of 90% or higher
  • Earn a federal graduation rate that is at least 13 percentage points higher than the federal graduation rate of the student body at that school

Florida qualifies for the NCAA revenue distribution as it meets the first two points.

The APR provides a real-time look at a team’s academic success by tracking eligibility and progress toward graduation of each student-athlete on scholarship. The current report contains multi-year rates based on the four years from the 2019-20 academic year through the 2022-23 academic year.

To compete in 2024-25 postseason action, teams must achieve a 930 four-year APR in this report. This is the 20th year of the APR.

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Florida AD Scott Stricklin touches on Jacksonville stadium renovation plans

The details are still way up in the air but Florida’s athletic director addressed the issue on Wednesday.

Jacksonville’s TIAA Bank Field is planned to undergo a $1.4 billion facelift in the near future which will have significant ramifications for the annual World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party between the Florida Gators and Georgia Bulldogs.

During the Southeastern Conference’s spring meetings this week, UF athletic director [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag] addressed the renovation, which is set to begin following the conclusion of the 2025 NFL season. The construction is expected to span over two years.

Stricklin addressed the timeline, which has a start date that is quickly approaching.

“Probably after the city and the NFL and everybody approves exactly what’s going in Jacksonville with their stadium it’ll be a good time for us (to make a decision),” Stricklin begins.

“We’ve had some conversations. We have a general sense of the direction that might be heading. That would be the timeline. I think that’s going to be later this summer. When the city approves formally the stadium work there in Jacksonville and then the NFL (approves it as well).”

There is also the possibility that the Jacksonville Jaguars will play inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in 2027. But the UF-UGA game was at the forefront of the discussion.

“We’ll look at all the options,” Stricklin offered. “Home-and-home is an option.”

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Florida football’s facilities among best in nation, per 247Sports

Florida AD Scott Stricklin’s master plan of “build it and they will come” is right on schedule.

The name of the game in this era of college football is recruiting and one of the cornerstones of establishing dominance when it comes to attracting the top players in the nation are everyday facilities that host the players and coaches.

The University of Florida has long been known as a top destination due to its academics and geographical location, but not too long ago, the Gators’ facilities were lacking in comparison to many of their peers. [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag] made upgrading the program’s infrastructure a top priority when he took over the athletic director position from the legendary Jeremy Foley back in 2016 and appears to have made some significant progress on that front.

Brad Crawford of 247Sports ranked the top-30 college football facilities, which has Florida at No. 12 overall thanks to recent renovations that include the Bill Heavner Center.

“There’s a $400 million renovation coming very soon to iconic Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, but the Gators did get a facelift ahead of the 2022 season with a 140,000-square foot, $85 million facility with everything everyone else has — a barber shop, resort-style pool, updated weight room, recording studios and other perks.”

“Planners visited various programs for ideas and incorporated what they felt was best for Florida, per reports. The best feature might be the Gators’ new locker room, which is modeled after several recent digs at elite programs. Each player’s locker cost roughly $15,000 per unit.”

There are still improvements in the works, so expect to see the Orange and Blue crack the top 10 in the coming rankings

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Florida Gators athletic director alludes to more changes on football staff

The Florida Gators are rebuilding and making changes to its coaching staff, but athletic director Scott Stricklin has been aware all along

The Florida football program has made many changes to its football staff as of late, with head coach Billy Napier at the forefront of making the hard decision to move on from certain coaches.

Now it’s being reported by Gators Online that UF athletic director Scott Stricklin and Napier have always been on the same page when it comes to making these moves, such as parting ways with secondary coach Corey Raymond and defensive line coach Sean Spencer.

Stricklin gave an exclusive interview with Gators Online, detailing his relationship with Napier and when they considered what moves to make in the offseason.

“Our regular communication during the season is pretty frequent, right? We see each other. I stop by and talk to him at least once a week in addition to other run-ins,” Stricklin said. “We sat down midweek during the open date and started having some of those more in-depth conversations and those are some things that were on his mind back then even. And so, this wasn’t something like, end of the season, ‘OK, now it’s time to evaluate.’ It’s a constant evaluation.”

Stricklin added that he understands how Napier operates and that he’s always quick to realize what’s holding back his team from winning.

“Billy is almost maniacal in the way he evaluates things. And so, when fans get frustrated with an area and they want to comment and express their opinion, they don’t ever need to be concerned, ‘Does Billy realize this is a problem?’ Because he’s probably realized it’s a problem before it showed up out there on the field.”

It appears that evaluations are still taking place for the Florida Gators and there may be more moves ahead. Napier already brought on Ron Roberts as co-defensive coordinator and the linebackers head coach. Roberts also earned the moniker of executive head coach for defense.

The rebuild continues for Florida football all offseason, so stay tuned for more updates, especially as national signing day approaches.

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Florida Gators athletic director says he’s not going anywhere

Florida Gators athletic director Scott Stricklin spoke Gators Online and said there’s no interest to move anywhere.

Florida Gators athletics director [autotag]Scott Stricklin[/autotag] was the subject of many rumors this week following the job opening at Texas A&M.

Despite being connected to the vacancy, Stricklin confirmed with Gators Online that he’s here for the long haul with the Gators.

“The University of Florida is the best job in the country for college athletics,” Stricklin said. “It’s the best location. It’s the best school. We’ve got an awesome fanbase. I love being a Gator and I have no interest in working somewhere else at this time.”

Stricklin’s stint at Florida has certainly been a success, with 11 total national championships across seven different sports, including 37 SEC championships. The athletic director joined the University of Florida staff in 2016 after his six-year stint with Mississippi State.

Throughout his eight years at UF, Stricklin has overseen many projects, hoping to improve the campus and athletics department one renovation at a time. His latest success was the new James W. Bill Heavener Football Training Center, which opened its doors in August 2022.

Although most of the training center is utilized for football purposes, the rest of the building is accessible for all student-athletes at Florida. It was a project to help the recruiting process, something that Stricklin takes seriously.

“The recruiting piece, to me, the most important thing,” Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin noted.

“There’s a reason why a bank lobby is really nice and why churches build really nice facilities. It’s because that’s a representation of the quality of what’s going on at those institutions. The facility says a lot about what is important to this enterprise.”

It sounds like Stricklin enjoys his current position at UF, and is putting a lot of thought into his next move as the current athletic director. He’s currently working on renovating Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

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Florida Gators athletic director reveals details for stadium renovations

Florida Gators athletic director Scott Stricklin appeared on WRUF/ESPN Gainesville to detail the renovations of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

The Swamp… where only Gators get out alive.

An iconic structure in the college football universe, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is being set to undergo a large renovation following the 2024 football season, and there’s a lot of negative opinions stemming from the Florida faithful because its reported the project may reduce the total capacity of the stadium.

The Florida Gators always carry a significant advantage while playing at home with a 88,548 capacity, so rumors of reducing the number immediately sparked an uproar among Florida die-hards.

UF athletic director Scott Stricklin made an appearance on Sportscene, a WRUF/ESPN Gainesville radio program to clear the air and shed more light on what Striklin and the UAA are planning.

“At one point I think we might have mentioned that we might have to reduce capacity. That is not the goal,” Stricklin said. “The goal is to be in a situation where we can have the same number of Gator fans that have been coming the last 30 years to continue to come. In a perfect world, we don’t impact capacity negatively and we’re able to be at the same number.”

Stricklin also stated that he sees the project as more of a “restoration” and that is why he hired Crawford Architects, a company that oversaw the update of the historic baseball stadium Fenway Park in Boston. The athletic director wants to keep the iconic structure intact, but improve the overall quality.

“The wing walls, the proximity of the fans to the field,” Stricklin said. “Not putting a bunch of chairbacks everywhere just because that does take away from what makes it unique. We’re going to be very careful whatever we do. We don’t know exactly what that is.”

“We’ll start in the next eight to twelve months and come up with an idea that we can take to Gator Nation and say, this is the vision,” Stricklin continued. “That’s going to be significant because obviously, it’s the most important facility we have.”

Only time will tell what happens to the beloved stadium, but Florida fans are rightfully anxious to see what results will show from the project. The important part is Stricklin is listening to the fans and understands the concern for arguably the most important building on campus.

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