The University of Florida fired head football coach Billy Napier on Sunday, after the Gators stumbled to a 3-4 record through seven games of the season. It marks the end of his three-plus-year tenure with the program.
Napier’s time in Gainesville was plagued by inconsistency. He had a 22-23 overall record and only one bowl win, failing to restore the Gators to national prominence despite high expectations upon his hiring.
In the wake of the dismissal, UF athletic director Scott Stricklin named Wide Receivers Coach Billy Gonzales as interim head coach, with a search for a permanent replacement expected to intensify in the coming weeks.
Who might that permanent replacement be? One former NFL star has suggested a very familiar name.
Florida head coach Billy Napier has been fired, per @PeteThamel.
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) October 19, 2025
Napier’s buyout is about $20 million, half of which must be paid in 30 days.
And since Napier’s contract doesn't have any offset language, he will be paid all $20 million even if he gets another job.
Unreal. pic.twitter.com/9nmewTOok8
Could Tim Tebow find himself on the sidelines?
Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III advocated for hiring Tim Tebow as the next head coach of the Florida Gators.
He made the comments during an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show” on Monday.
“I’ve said this for years now. I think they should hire Tim Tebow,” Griffin said. “I think they should hire Tim Tebow. If Tim Tebow goes into any home in Florida, you’re telling me that those parents aren’t saying, ‘Yep, sign me up. I’m coming.'”
Tebow, a former Florida quarterback who led the team to national championships in 2006 and 2008 under Urban Meyer, remains an iconic figure in Gators history.
Griffin added that for Tebow to be successful, “You gotta put a great staff around him.”
But he’s right – Tebow’s star power would instantly appeal to Florida recruits and their parents.
"You look at #Florida, I've said this for years now, I think they should hire Tim Tebow!" 👀
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) October 20, 2025
– @RGIII sees a potential fit for the new head coaching vacancy in Florida. pic.twitter.com/jlbphZV9Za
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It seems unlikely
Although Tim Tebow has shown no interest in coaching and is currently more focused on anti-human trafficking efforts, he is a college football analyst for the SEC Network. So he’s stayed up to date on things.
And AD Stricklin has vowed a thorough search for the program’s next leader. One would think such a search would include an icon in the program’s history.
Tim and his wife, Demi-Leigh, a former Miss Universe, welcomed their first child, a daughter named Daphne Reign Tebow, over the summer. Would he want to dive headfirst into a major college coaching stint right now? It seems unlikely.
Tebow, a former NFL quarterback with the Denver Broncos and Heisman Trophy winner himself, is a strong advocate for God and life. And children, specifically.
The one-time Minor League player for the New York Mets spends his time fighting to save trafficked children. He testified on the matter before the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance last year.
Tebow also built a new Down syndrome facility in Guatemala.
Nobody is better known for showing his faith, even on the playing field, than Tim Tebow. His very act of kneeling in prayer on the gridiron became a verb – ‘Tebowing.’
Could that pose make its way back to the sidelines in Gainesville?