Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin stands on the field following the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. [Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images]

College Football Coach Buyouts Hit Record Numbers

Following the flurry of “fire Billy” chants that rained down on former Florida coach Billy Napier as the team headed to the locker room following the narrow victory against Mississippi State, Gators athletic director Scott Strickland relieved Napier of his duties Sunday.

Napier signed a 7-year $51.8 million contract with the Gators in 2021 to replace the fired Dan Mullen. Florida will owe Napier $21.2 million for his buyout. Wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales was named the interim.

This college football season has seen a variety of head coach firings. Through Week 8, there have already been nine coaches who have been relieved of their duties. The total buyout for these coaches totals a whopping $116 million.

The first firings came during Week 3 when UCLA fired Deshaun Foster following a 0-3 start to the season. The Bruins will have to pay Foster $6.43 million for the buyout. Similarly, Virginia Tech released Brent Pry after a 0-3 start. The school owes Pry $6 million.

One of the more shocking firings of the season occurred following Week 6 when Penn State parted ways with James Franklin. Despite reaching the National Championship semifinal game the prior season, he was fired following back-to-back losses to UCLA and Northwestern.

Sitting at the top as the most expensive buyout, the Nittany Lions will pay the former head coach $49.7 million. However, because Franklin had a mitigating clause in his contract, he must make an effort to find a new coaching position to lessen the amount Penn State will owe him.

On the flip side, Colorado State’s Jay Norvell will be given the least expensive buyout for a head coach thus far. The firing resulted from a 2-5 start, including a loss to Hawai’i. The Rams will fork over $1.5 million to Norvell for his buyout.

Expect more firings to come this season, as the ‘hot seat’ continues to sizzle across the college football landscape for various coaches.

For example, Florida State coach Mike Norvell is feeling the pressure of a four-game losing streak after the loss to Stanford last week. The Seminoles released a statement explaining the school will conduct a comprehensive review of the football program when the season ends. Norvell has a $54.4 million buyout.

Category: College Football, Football, Gainesville, Gators Football, Not Latest, SEC