The embarrassment on Saturday night did not end for Billy Napier and the Florida Gators once the final minute ticked off the clock in week four at Hard Rock Stadium, as the mocking off the program continued over the entire night, spanning from the Miami locker room to the millions that tuned in to watch yet another ugly Napier-lead Florida performance.
A heated rivalry, the Florida-Miami matchup was almost guaranteed to bring dramatics, regardless of just how lifeless the Gators offense may have looked on the field.
“That’s what makes the game great. I think there’s familiarity amongst the staff, amongst the players. Yeah, these guys all know each other. So I think that’s part of the game.” Napier said ahead of the bout. “There’s a lot of common relationships on both sides of the ball. I think there’s common relationships amongst every department. We’ve all worked together, and then obviously we are very familiar with each other from the past.”
The familiarities did not lead to pleasantries however, as the Hurricanes quickly took to social media to flaunt another domination of the Gators, their second over Napier and Florida in 13 months. Similar to last year, Miami was loud and proud after the in-state win.
“Eating some barbeque Gator from Gainesville, man,” Hurricanes edge Rueben Bain said while snacking on Alligator during a post game interview, “Billy Napier’s Finest.”
The talking continued from those in the winning orange, with on-field emotions carrying into instagram lives. For Anez Cooper and former Miami commit Cormani McClain, no love has seemingly been lost with Cooper calling out the former five-star on Instagram Live.
A former south Florida recruit, McClain wasn’t very popular all night in his return to Miami, hearing jeers from the crowd due to the history he had with the program. Despite the noise, he would make one of the bigger plays for the Gators, even if Florida would refuse to take advantage of the momentum.
Cormani McClain intercepting the Miami Hurricanes, a program and fanbase he has plenty of history with, is another awesome addition to a redemption story he has been building this year. #Gators
— Dylan Olive (@DylanOlive_UF) September 21, 2025
On top of Hurricanes players, Miami’s coaches even got in some petty blows. After plenty of back and forth in the offseason, former Gators defensive backs coach Will Harris made sure to get the last laugh after being on the winning side of the matchup this time.
Now an inadmissible 3-12 in rivalry games as head coach, the celebration of a Florida adversary has become somewhat common for Napier’s Gators. With much needing to be fixed, the lack of success in such matchups becomes just another stain on his tenure.
“Yeah, we got work to do,” Napier said after the loss. “We’ve got an obligation to do that, not only for our fans and our alumni, but for the players in that locker room.”
Florida still has multiple rivalry matchups remaining on the year, though time is quickly running out for Napier to possibly earn back some respect and dignity in such matchups before what now seems like the inevitable end of his stint in Gainesville.
