Yusuf Shakir's coaching journey in football lands him at Florida with Billy Napier

Yusuf Shakir’s coaching journey in football lands him at Florida with Billy Napier

Posted by author January 25, 2025 Football

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Yusuf Shakir figures he’s in an ideal position as a football operations assistant at the University of Florida.

‘I am getting so much experience coaching by not coaching,” Shakir said.

“I am enjoying my time learning and progressing. I miss coaching. … but sometimes in life, life takes you different ways.”

Shakir, 47, a former Lincoln High player who as a head coach led his alma mater to the Class 4A state title in 2010 and also coached at Manatee and Gibbs High, joined UF coach Billy Napier’s staff in 2022.

Shakir was one of five former FHSAA head coaches Napier hired he said in order to have “a pulse for that landscape.”

Yusuf Shakir a familiar face to Tallahassee football fans

Big Bend football fans familiar with Shakir probably noticed him shadowing Napier on the Gators’ sideline in UF’s victory over Florida State last November at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Shakir charts games and is available to immediately answer Napier’s questions that might involve stats, penalties and trends.

“You have to be prepared and consistent on facts, not feelings,” Shakir said.

“It has been a great experience for me in processing the game.”

Shakir’s love for the game started as a youth in Frenchtown on Copeland Street, where he said he learned about “competition and competitiveness.”

He was raised on FAMU and FSU football, and was an All-American linebacker and at Lincoln under coach David Wilson.

Following a college career at Wisconsin and Western Illinois, Shakir turned to coaching.

He spent six seasons as a Lincoln assistant coach, was hired as head coach at St. Petersburg’s Gibbs High School and then returned to Lincoln two years later as its head coach.

Lincoln’s Yusuf Shakir left program to pursue other career opportunities

Shakir resigned in 2017 after eight seasons, punctuated by a state title, state runner-up and eight district titles, to pursue other opportunities.

That included four seasons at Manatee, where he led the program to an 8-2 record and Class 7A region semifinal appearance in his final year; one year at Florida A&M, where he was an assistant to the Dean of Education and earned a Master’s degree; and at UF.

Shakir also helps serve as a liaison between the Gators’ multiple departments inside football.

“Each department has its own focus, but you want to make sure each department is working well with each other,” Shakir explained. “Everyone still has to work together to be successful.”

While there might be a time when Shakir returns to the sidelines as a head coach, he’s making the most of his opportunity at UF.

“I really enjoy working with coach Nape (Napier),” Shakir said.

“He’s very detailed, very organized. It (football) has changed so much since I played and first got into coaching. The personnel department (in college) is closer and closer to an NFL model. But the NFL doesn’t have to recruit (players). There’s a large number of people and players you have to evaluate.”