Clemson and Florida have experienced rocky starts to their 2025 college football seasons. Clemson entered the season with five projected 1st round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, 16 returning starters, and the presumed best defensive line in college football. Florida entered the season with DJ Lagway returning as the starting QB, 13 returning starters, including four returning starters on the offensive line. Despite returning loaded rosters, these two programs have quickly seen their hopes for the 2025 season disappear.
Dabo Swinney
Dabo Swinney’s head coaching career at Clemson has three phases:
. 2009-2014: 57-23
. 2015-2020: 79-7
. 2021-present: 41-17
The big question that Clemson fans must ask themselves is whether Dabo can recreate the formula that worked from 2015 to 2020. Given that this period was guided mainly by two generational-level college QBs in Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence, I wouldn’t expect a quick turnaround any time soon.
Given Oklahoma’s 10-sack performance against Auburn on Saturday, it feels like an appropriate time to point out the impact that Brent Venables had at Clemson while serving as defensive coordinator.
. Dabo Swinney at Clemson with Brent Venables: 121-17
. Dabo Swinney at Clemson without Brent Venables: 56-30
Brent Venables feels like a forgotten factor in the Clemson success equation. His defenses consistently fielded NFL talent at every level, and Clemson had some of the nation’s best defenses during his tenure. Dabo Swinney will likely never again hire a DC as talented as Brent Venables.
Billy Napier
Believe it or not, Billy Napier was one of the hottest coaching names in college football just a few years ago. After turning around Louisiana, Napier was considered a must-hire program builder.
. Louisiana in the three years before Napier: 15-22
. Louisiana in Napier’s four years: 40-12
Napier was 22-2 during his last two seasons at Louisiana. In back-to-back seasons, he had the Ragin’ Cajuns ranked as high as 15th and 16th in the AP Poll. Before Napier was hired at Louisiana, the football program had never had a double-digit win season. That’s 45 straight seasons without winning 10 or more games. Napier won seven games in his first season, followed by 11, 10, and 12 wins in his next three seasons.
Napier was also an elite recruiter at Louisiana. In fact, he led three consecutive recruiting classes that finished #1 in the Sun Belt Conference recruiting rankings.
He now has Florida sitting at #12 in the nation in composite recruiting talent. Is that good? Yes. Is that great? No. Napier seemingly cannot reach Florida’s talent ceiling. This program has no excuse for not consistently recruiting within the top 10. Florida has recruited outside of the top 10 in two of the last three recruiting cycles, and it’s on pace to finish outside of the top 10 again in the 2026 class.
At Florida, Jim McElwain went 22-12. He was fired. Dan Mullen went 34-15. He was fired.
Billy Napier is now 20-22. The writing is on the wall in Gainesville.
Potential Head Coach Candidates
Schumann is the most popular potential candidate whenever a major job becomes available. This is primarily due to his laundry list of elite players that he has recruited over the years. Schumann has been under the wing of Kirby Smart since 2016. At this point, he should be familiar with everything about building a program. Schumann would come with uncertainties around his offensive philosophies, but his elite recruiting potential in the state of Florida will likely place him at the top of Florida’s candidate list.
A Josh Heupel disciple, Golesh would undoubtedly build a great offense at either of these programs. His current job as the head coach at USF provides him with recruiting ties in one of the nation’s premier recruiting states. His ability to recruit and coach the quarterback position should be attractive to Clemson, a team that yearns for its previous days of elite quarterback play. 247 Sports credits Golesh with the recruitment of Nico Iamaleava, who was arguably the most sought-after QB prospect in his class.
Stein is the boom-or-bust candidate on this list. He’s only been a coordinator in college football for a few seasons. He has limited ties to the Southeast corner of the United States. However, Stein’s play-calling is regarded as elite by his peers in college football. He’s a young coach who can connect with recruits, having just coached high school football in 2019.
Brown is another young coach. He has been involved in college football since 2012, primarily serving as a position coach. He’s now in just his second season as a head coach. However, Brown’s short resume is nothing short of impressive. He’s considered one of college football’s most elite recruiters and was considered the top assistant on Georgia’s coaching staff before being hired as Syracuse’s head coach. Clemson and Florida would likely need to deal with an adjustment period in Brown’s on-field coaching, but his recruiting potential is immense.
