Billy Napier’s luck seems to be going from bad to worse, and Florida fans feel it. Following a tough 18-16 loss to South Florida, the Gators are now 1-1, bringing Napier’s record in Gainesville to 20-20 halfway through his fourth year. Adding to the already immense pressure, Napier has to decide if defensive lineman Brendan Bett’s will play in Saturday’s game against No. 3 LSU. With a brutal upcoming schedule of Miami, Texas, and Texas A&M being next, Napier has little room for error.

Coach Napier said on Monday that they haven’t decided yet if Bett will play, putting Florida in a tough spot before a critical road game. Bett, a redshirt sophomore, was penalized and ejected in the fourth quarter for spitting on Bulls offensive lineman Cole Skinner.

It turned out to be a costly situation, with Napier conceding that the program had invested a lot of time analyzing Bett’s behavior. “We spent quite a bit of time with him yesterday,” Napier said. “Look, I think that the kid is remorseful. I think he feels as if he let the team down. In general, it was out of character for him, and he made a mistake, and he compromised the team. He made a selfish decision. He misrepresented our fans and our alumni, the university.” Bett’s ejection changed the game’s momentum, occurring during USF’s crucial drive in their loss at the end.

The penalty directly led to the Bulls’ game-winning drive. With just over two minutes remaining, officials flagged Bett, giving USF a first down after Florida had already committed defensive pass interference. Two plays later, the Bulls completed a 29-yard pass to get into field goal range, setting up Nico Gramatica’s 20-yard game-winning kick. And that’s what pushed Billy Napier to take additional internal disciplinary action to make sure this stuff never happens.

The hesitation in making a decision reveals more about Florida’s team than about Napier’s coaching style. The Gators began 2025 with defensive tackle as their most vulnerable spot. A weakness evident in April when they ranked last in a post-spring assessment. This group had trouble stopping the run in the spring game and lacked depth. A problem worsened by Caleb Banks’ injury. With Bett now in the rotation with Jamari Lyons and Michai Boireau, the Gators can’t afford another loss.

But the irony is striking, though. Bett wasn’t even on the roster during the spring, arriving only after D’Antre Robinson transferred to UNC, and Jamari Lyons was the last Florida lineman penalized for spitting in 2023. During the Week 2 South Florida game, Napier relied heavily on Bett, Lyons, and Boireau, while true freshmen Joseph Mbatchou and Jeramiah McCloud didn’t play despite logging over 10 snaps each against LIU. This rotation shows the staff’s lack of confidence in its depth heading into LSU. If Billy Napier thought Mbatchou or McCloud were ready for SEC play, the decision on Bett’s suspension would be easy.

Yet he isn’t denying taking accountability for the action. “He’ll have an opportunity today to apologize to the team, and he’s going to apologize publicly,” Napier said. “We’re even having him reach out to the young man on the other team. So, no stone unturned here in terms of maximizing this for him to learn, and also, I think, for our other players to see how to take ownership of a mistake and go about this the right way.” Even though that’s the plan, Napier insisted that a final decision hasn’t been reached concerning Bett’s availability for the LSU game. But that’s not the only misery striking Billy Napier and his team.

Billy Napier faces tough reality check

On Monday, Napier affirmed that he’ll continue calling plays, stating he hasn’t contemplated relinquishing those responsibilities. The Gators had struggled to convert scoring opportunities in Week 2, managing only three field goals by the half. Despite the loss, Napier insisted a change wasn’t needed.

DJ Lagway had a stat line of 23-of-33 for 222 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in the loss. Jaden Baugh led the running game with 18 carries for 93 yards. Florida amassed 355 yards of offense and controlled the ball for over 34 minutes, but the Gators still lost, despite being out-gained by only 36 yards. Head coach Napier didn’t blame the play-calling, instead focusing on execution.

But ESPN’s Paul Finebaum was more critical, calling Saturday’s loss a turning point and the “beginning of the end” for the Florida head coach. “He completely blew it,” Finebaum said on McElroy and Cubelic. “(These are) the same problems we’ve been seeing from Napier in terms of game management from the beginning, and at this point, there’s no reason for optimism. I’m sorry we went through that last year. It was a roller coaster, terrible at first, great at the end. And you just can’t keep playing with fans’ emotions. You have to get control of your program. And he clearly has not. So I think the end is near for Billy Napier.” Now, facing a tough schedule, the Gators need solutions fast if Napier wants to quell the questions about his leadership.