Scott Stricklin emerges as a big winner for faith in his coaches
- Franz Beard
- Jan 28, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 30, 2025
"Stand by your man; give him two arms to cling to" -- Tammy Wynette
If there is a song that seems appropriate for Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin, that is the one. There isn't an athletic director in the country who has gone out further on a limb for two coaches more than Stricklin has in the last three months.
First it was Billy Napier. Thought to be on a way too hot seat and with one foot already out the front door of the Heavener Center, along came Stricklin. Stricklin gave Napier the dreaded vote of confidence at a time when a good number of national pundits thought Stricklin was as much a goner as his football coach.
We know how that worked out. Four straight wins in November including going back-to-back over LSU and Ole Miss, effectively eliminating both of them from College Football Playoff consideration. A dominant win in the bowl game brought the Gators to a respectable 8-5, quite a way to end what only weeks before seemed like dead man walking toward college football’s equivalent of the chair.
Nobody pulled down the switch. Suddenly, Billy Napier is back in vogue once again. That guy who most in the media questioned his coaching chops is thought once again to actually know what he’s doing. Having a quarterback like DJ Lagway certainly helps, but it wasn’t Lagway only that turned the Gators around. It was all those other players, too. They believed whatever Billy was selling and they participated in a rather shocking reversal of fortune, enough of which that the Gators are thought to be one of those teams that will actually challenge for the playoff.
Thanks, in large part, to the faith Scott Stricklin showed in him.
Next came the news that a Title IX complaint had been filed against basketball coach Todd Golden for sexual harassment, stalking and exploitation by women including University of Florida students. In this era when “believe the woman” has become so prevalent, the easy thing to do would have been to dismiss or at least suspend Golden indefinitely. Probably that happens at most schools.
At Florida, Stricklin once again stood by his man. There were no news conferences, no boisterous claims of innocence by either Golden or Stricklin. It was simply business as usual. Golden took care of basketball, Stricklin took care of running the athletic department.
So look what has happened. Golden has the Gators off to an 18-2 start, the best since the 2014 Florida team that won the SEC and made it to the Final Four. The Gators are ranked fifth nationally and have become the team absolutely nobody wants to play.
Take a moment to contemplate this: With 11 SEC games remaining – five at home where the Gators are 10-1 – a 6-5 record the rest of the way will give the Gators 24 regular season wins. An 8-3 finish is entirely possible. Do that and the Gators might very well win the SEC and earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. A 26-win team from the SEC would be hard to keep off that No. 1 line.
Stricklin didn’t stand by Golden because he thought the Gators have the kind of team that can make the Final Four. He trusted his instincts once again and believed – as he did with Napier – in a coach he personally hired. It paid off Monday when the University of Florida announced in a statement that the Title IX investigation, conducted by an independent California firm, could find no evidence that Golden had committed any Title IX violations.
Case dismissed. Now Todd Golden can go the rest of the year without catching it from SEC crowds, known to be among the most hostile in all of college basketball. Golden is free to turn his entire attention to coaching a team that can beat anybody in the country.
For the second time in three months, Scott Stricklin’s faith in his coaches and instincts have paid off in a very positive way for the University of Florida. Let’s not kid ourselves here. If the Gators hadn’t closed the football season on such a roll, Napier and Stricklin would have been goners. If the Title IX investigation had uncovered evidence that Golden was guilty, it would have been a real stain on the University of Florida and the athletic department would have been set back years.
Stricklin hasn’t been the most popular athletic director. A lot of fans still think he blew it when he couldn’t bring home Chip Kelly after the firing of Jim McElwain. Those same fans think Stricklin took the easy way out when he hired Dan Mullen, who had worked for him at Mississippi State. Then Mullen goes in the tank in year four after 29 wins and three New Year’s Six bowl games in the first three years. Two straight losing seasons by Napier had the Gator Nation ready to send Stricklin and Napier packing, but patience has paid off.
That doesn’t say if the Gators have a poor 2025 that the fans won’t be calling for the heads of both Napier and Stricklin. However, with a quarterback like Lagway, an offensive line that might be as good as there is in the country, exceptional skill people and a potentially dominating defense, Napier looks like a coach who will be at the University of Florida for years to come. And Scott Stricklin looks like an AD whose patience has really paid off.
Golden obviously has more wiggle room than Napier. It would take his team going on strike for the Gators to miss out on the NCAA Tournament. It’s a relatively safe bet that Florida will be a top four seed and you would be foolish to think the Gators can’t make it to the No. 1 line. He is a very strong candidate for national coach of the year this year and he has the basketball program on such firm footing that the Gators figure to be yearly challengers to do well in the NCAA Tournament, which is what they were when Billy Donovan was the coach.
A lot of athletic directors would have bowed to pressure and done the expedient thing. It takes guts to stand firm rather than taking the easy way out. Stricklin showed he has the guts in sticking by his coaches. And now, with the Gators entering the winning season, he could go down as the top athletic director in the country. Nobody should be surprised if the Gators come home with two or three national championships between now and when the College World Series concludes the collegiate athletic year.
Sometimes a little bit of faith, a lot of instinct and guts to make the tough decisions go a long, long way.
SEC BASKETBALL
Coaches top 25: 1. Auburn 18-1; 2. Duke 17-2; 3. Iowa State 17-2; 4. Alabama 17-3; 5. Houston 16-3; 6. FLORIDA 18-2; 7. Michigan State 17-2; 8. Tennessee 17-3; 9. Marquette 17-3; 10. Purdue 16-5; 11. Kansas 14-5; 12. Kentucky 14-5; 13. Mississippi State 16-4; 14. St. John’s 17-3; 15. Texas A&M 15-5; 16. Memphis 16-4; 17. Wisconsin 16-4; 18. Oregon 16-4; 19. Texas Tech 15-4; 20. Illinois 14-6; 21. Missouri 16-4; 22. Louisville 15-5; 23. Ole Miss 15-5; 24. UConn 14-6; 25. Clemson 17-4
Associated Press top 25: 1. Auburn 18-1; 2. Duke 17-2; 3. Iowa State 17-2; 4. Alabama 17-3; 5. FLORIDA 18-2; 6. Houston 16-3; 7. Michigan State 17-2; 8. Tennessee 17-3; 9. Marquette 17-3; 10. Purdue 16-5; 11. Kansas 14-5; 12. Kentucky 14-5; 13. Texas A&M 15-5; 14. Mississippi State 16-4; 15. St. John’s 17-3; 16. Oregon 16-4; 17. Wisconsin 16-4; 18. Illinois 14-6; 19. Memphis 16-4; 20. Missouri 16-4; 21. Louisville 15-5; 22. Texas Tech 15-4; 23. Ole Miss 15-5; 24. Vanderbilt 16-4; 25. UConn 14-6
Tonight’s games
No. 9 Kentucky (14-5, 3-3 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (17-3, 4-3 SEC)
Oklahoma (15-4, 2-4 SEC) at No. 13 Texas A&M (15-5, 4-3 SEC)
South Carolina (10-10, 0-7 SEC) at Georgia (14-6, 2-5 SEC)
Wednesday’s games
No. 1 Auburn (18-1, 6-0 SEC) at LSU (12-7, 1-5 SEC)
No. 4 Alabama (17-3, 6-1 SEC) at No. 14 Mississippi State (16-4, 4-3 SEC)
Texas (14-6, 3-4 SEC) at No. 16 Ole Miss (15-5, 4-3 SEC)
Saturday’s games
No. 5 FLORIDA (18-2, 5-2 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (17-3, 4-3 SEC)
No. 1 Auburn (18-1, 6-0 SEC) at No. 16 Ole Miss (15-5, 4-3 SEC)
Georgia (14-6, 2-5 SEC) at No. 4 Alabama (17-3, 6-1 SEC)
Arkansas (12-8, 1-6 SEC) at No. 9 Kentucky (14-5, 3-3 SEC)
No. 13 Texas A&M (15-5, 4-3 SEC) at South Carolina (10-10, 0-7 SEC)
No. 22 Missouri (16-5, 5-2 SEC) at No. 14 Mississippi State (16-4, 4-3 SEC)
Vanderbilt (16-4, 4-3 SEC) at Oklahoma (15-4, 2-4 SEC)
Texas (14-6, 3-4 SEC) at LSU (12-7, 1-5 SEC)
I’m just an everyday civilian and regular fan to Scott Strickland. But, my sole interaction with him after one of the weekly radio broadcasts from Celebration Point was lengthy, candid, and very informative.
Not that it’s particularly noteworthy, but I was asking him questions about the upcoming Florida Field remodeling. He answered everything that I asked and was very cordial. I’m pulling for the man, and for my Beloved Gators!
It’s once again great to be a Florida Gator! Stricklin deserves credit.
Thanks, Franz, for writing this column on Scott Stricklin, the man behind the two guys out front. Stricklin has already accomplished a great deal for UF from facilities, including an unprecedented amount of construction, to hiring and sustaining successful coaches. Aside from the above he’s an amiable, kind-hearted gentleman. He deserves respect and admiration. These two coaching challenges, though, have been beyond the pale. Hats off to our courageous AD!
Thank you Franz for a great article that was well deserved for the three men you wrote about! Go Gators!