Gators Name Interim HC After Firing Billy Napier

The Florida Gators are turning to an offensive assistant as the interim head coach in the wake of Billy Napier's firing.

Florida receivers coach Billy Gonzales is set to take over as the Gators' interim after Billy Napier's firing. | Kyle Lander / Florida Gators on SI

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales is set to take over as the Florida Gators' interim head coach after head coach Billy Napier was fired on Sunday, athletic director Scott Stricklin confirmed.

"Coach Gonzales has been a valued member of our program for many years, including being a part of multiple championship teams," Stricklin said in a statement confirming his decision to fire Napier. "He is a Gator through and through. His deep understanding of our culture, our student-athletes, and what it means to represent the University of Florida makes him well-suited to lead our team."

Florida Gators assistant coach for wide receivers Billy Gonzales returned to the program in 2023. | Matt Pendleton / USA TODAY NETWORK

Gonzales is in his third year of his third stint with the Gators.

He first joined UF in 2005 as part of Urban Meyer's first staff as the receivers coach until 2009. He was also the team's recruiting coordinator from 2008-09.

After stints at LSU (2010-11) and Illinois (2012), he reunited with former Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen at Mississippi State in 2013. From 2013-17, he was the Bulldogs' receivers coach and was the co-offensive coordinator for his final two seasons.

He followed Mullen to Florida ahead of the 2018 season for his second stint with the program. He held the co-offensive coordinator title with his receivers coaching duties from 2018-19 before transitioning to the passing game coordinator in 2020 and 2021.

Gonzales was not retained after Napier's hiring in 2022 and became FAU's receivers coach before returning to Florida in 2023.

"Yeah, always respected Billy G. I was a former receiver coach, had a ton of respect for Billy G as a young coach," Napier said at the time of Gonzales' return. "You know, I thought his guys always really played well. Very fundamentally sound, played well without the ball. Did a good job evaluating in recruiting and then did a good job with any talent in this room."

In Gonzales' place as the receivers coach, Florida will be expected to rely heavily on quality control specialist David Doeker, who unofficially coached the receivers in between Keary Colbert's departure and Gonzales' return.

Additionally, offensive coordinator Russ Callaway is expected to call plays offensively.

Offensive coordinator Russ Callaway is expected to be the Florida's offensive play-caller for the rest of the season. | Kyle Lander / Florida Gators on SI

In his announcement, Stricklin also briefly detailed his next coaching search for Florida's football program.

"I will conduct the search with a high degree of confidentiality to protect the privacy of those involved," he said. "The search will focus on the hiring of an elite football coach who will embody the standard we have at the University of Florida, and we will continue to provide all of the necessary resources for that coach, his staff and the players to be successful.

"Any time you conduct a head coaching search, especially for a high-profile sport like football or men’s basketball, you learn something. The lessons from past experiences will guide us through the work ahead."

Florida will be on a bye this week before playing its first post-Napier game on Nov. 1 against Georgia.