Urban Meyer Addresses Future, Possible Interest in Gators' Job

Florida is searching for its fifth head coach since Urban Meyer resigned after the 2010 season.

Former Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer has the second-most wins in program history. | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The 2025 college football coaching cycle is shaping up to be one of the most active in history with high-profile openings at Florida, Penn State and LSU as well as other notable openings at UCLA, Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech and Oregon State.

With the Florida Gators currently undergoing its fifth head coaching search since 2010, many notable names have been mentioned as potential candidates, including Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin, Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz, Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm and former Penn State head coach James Franklin, among others.

A name many in Gator Nation have mentioned is Urban Meyer, who led Florida to two national titles in his six seasons with the program and is considered the last great head coach in program history.

However, it does not seem like he has any plans to return to the sideline anytime soon.

In an interview with WSYX ABC 6's Kellyanne Stitts, the former UF head coach said he did not "have the desire" to return to the sidelines as a head coach. Meyer, who had stints at Ohio State and with the Jacksonville Jaguars after his time with the Gators, has not coached since 2021 and has not coached in the college ranks since 2018.

Despite eight Power 4 schools looking for head football coaches, including Penn State, LSU, and Florida, Urban Meyer is not interested in getting back into coaching.

I also asked if #Buckeyes OC Brian Hartline is ready to be a head coach and he said yes.

"big Brian Hartline… pic.twitter.com/mGSHKAubiq

— Kellyanne Stitts (@KellyanneStitts) October 31, 2025

Meyer coached at Florida from 2005-2010, winning two national titles, two SEC titles, three SEC East Division and five postseason bowl games, including the two BCS titles. He finished his tenure with a 65-15 overall record, making him No. 3 in program history in wins and No. 2 in winning percentage (81.3 percent).

Since his departure from Florida, the Gators have had four head coaches in a 15-year span with Will Muschamp (2011-14), Jim McElwain (2015-17), Dan Mullen (2018-21) and, most-recently, Billy Napier (2022-25).

Napier was fired on Oct. 19, a day after the Gators' 23-21 win over Mississippi State. He finished his near-four-year tenure with a 22-23 overall record. Wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales, a former player and assistant under Meyer, is the interim.

Florida Gators interim head coach Billy Gonzales (right) previously coached under Urban Meyer at Florida. | Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

After being named the interim, Gonzales called Meyer for advice on being a head coach.

“I was taking a deep breath, saying, ‘I’ve got to help my guy here.’ This is not easy,” Meyer recently recalled on the Triple Option Podcast. “The most important thing is these darn players. Everything will be recorded on film. A player can ruin his draft stock by not getting coached.

“The first thing I said, and most importantly, was don't you dare take a shot at the previous head coach. Stay completely away from that.”

Gonzales explained that the two discussed adjusting a scheme to the pieces.

"I wanted to have a chance to talk to him a little bit about the team concept," Gonzales said. "One of the unique things he talked about and we talked about is you're walking into a situation where it's not the perfect situation for you, Billy, but at the same time you want to make sure you're here for the players."

Gonzales will make his debut as Florida's interim on Saturday against Georgia, while Gators athletic director Scott Stricklin searches for his third football head coach.