Timing lined up perfectly for UF to hire Napier

Billy Napier exits the plane after being hired by the Gators. UAA Communications photo by Isabella Marley.In the tumultuous dozen years since the Gators went 13-1 in 2009, the program has had to make four head coaching hires. One underappreciated aspect of how hires happen is the timing of when exactly they occur.

Sometimes timing is an obvious factor. Urban Meyer didn’t tell anyone about his hospital trip following the 2009 SEC Championship Game, and he waited weeks after before deciding to resign. Had he made his choice shortly after the game, there’s a good chance that Jeremy Foley engineers a smooth transition where the news of Meyer’s resignation and Charlie Strong’s ascendance happens…