Former Florida Gators coach Billy Napier is now the coach at James Madison, which suffered a second straight narrow loss on Thursday night. (Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Billy Napier’s James Madison Loses Second Straight in Overtime

For the second straight week, former Florida coach Billy Napier and James Madison fell short to an inferior opponent.

Up 21-7 by the second quarter thanks to a 14-yard run by Seth Cromwell, James Madison was in the driver’s seat to right the wrongs of its Week 8 loss to Appalachian State.

However, Troy’s 17 unanswered points, including kicker Hayden Wolfe’s 27-yard game-winning field goal in overtime pushed the Trojans past the Dukes for a 24-21 win on Thursday at Bridgeforth Stadium.

For the second straight game, James Madison gave away the lead, and now, for Napier, it’s his fifth straight year of losing at least two straight. Before the last two weeks, he was off to a hot start, going 7-0 before the Mountaineers ended the Dukes’ undefeated season hopes last week.

At Florida, Napier was charged with leading the Gators into a new era, replacing Dan Mullen following a 5-6 season in 2021.

In his first game in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, he faced No. 7 Utah, where the unranked Gators upset the Utes 29-26, earning a No. 12 ranking before finishing the season 6-7 with a loss to Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

After the promising first year, Napier coached the Gators for the next four seasons, going 22-23.

Last season, Florida started with a Week 1 win over Long Island University before losing four of its next five. After beating Mississippi State on a late fourth-quarter interception, Napier was fired a day later on Oct. 19, 2025.

On Dec. 6, 2025, he signed a five-year contract to return to the Sun Belt to coach JMU.

The Dukes are currently 7-2 and 4-2 in conference play, with both losses coming down to a final-whistle field goal in overtime. On Nov. 5 they travel to face Southern Mississippi (2-5).

Category: Gator Sports, Gators Football