Sportsbook offering SEC pair as most likely to be first coach fired

The Florida Gators are more than a month away from their 2024 season opener, but coach Billy Napier is already on the proverbial hot seat.

The Gators’ third-year coach is being offered at +400 by SportsBetting.ag to be the first NCAA football coach fired this season. Napier, who is 11-14 in two seasons in Gainesville, failed to lead the Gators to a bowl game for the first time since 2017.

Napier leads a list of 18 names being offered by the sportsbook. The second shortest odds belong to Sam Pittman (+500), who is 23-25 through his first four seasons at Arkansas. Looking deeper, the Razorbacks are 11-14 over the past two years — identical to Napier.

Next on the list is Miami’s Mario Cristobal at +600. Those odds could shift significantly with Miami and Florida kicking off their seasons against each other in Gainesville on Aug. 31.

Cristobal, who is coming off signing a third consecutive strong recruiting class, is 12-13 entering the fourth year of the 10-year contract he signed to leave Oregon in 2022.

FIRST NCAA FOOTBALL COACH FIRED*

Billy Napier, Florida (4/1)

Sam Pittman, Arkansas (5/1)

Mario Cristobal, Miami (6/1)

Dave Aranda, Baylor (7/1)

Clark Lea, Vanderbilt (8/1)

Kalani Sitake, BYU (10/1)

Justin Wilcox, California (12/1)

Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh (12/1)

Ryan Day, Ohio State (12/1)

Neal Brown, West Virginia (14/1)

Scott Satterfield, Cincinnati (14/1)

Mike Locksley, Maryland (16/1)

Shane Beamer, South Carolina (16/1)

Tony Elliott, Virginia (16/1)

Dabo Swinney, Clemson (25/1)

Lincoln Riley, USC (25/1)

Brent Venables, Oklahoma (33/1)

Deion Sanders, Colorado (50/1)

*Odds by SportsBetting.ag provided for entertainment purposes only.

Following the first three names on the list is Baylor’s Dave Aranda at +700 and Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea at +800.

Aranda is 23-25 in four seasons at the helm of the Bears. Since winning the Big 12 in 2021, Baylor has only nine combined victories, including going 3-9 and closing with five consecutive losses last season.

Lea is 9-27 in three seasons leading the Commodores, including a 2-22 record against SEC opponents.

Perhaps the most intriguing name on the list is Ohio State’s Ryan Day. Despite a 56-8 record with the Buckeyes, he enters this season facing a significant amount of pressure with Ohio State riding a three-game losing streak against bitter rival Michigan.

–Field Level Media