Category: College Sports

GAINESVILLE — The first schedule for Jon Sumrall at Florida offers a chance to quickly see how he stacks up against fellow first-year SEC coaches at schools interested in Sumrall’s services to fill their job openings. Following a soft opening with visits from Florida Atlantic Sept. 5 and Campbell University Sept. 12, Florida heads to Auburn Sept. 19 to face former USF coach Alex Golesh and the Tigers as the first game of the new nine-game SEC schedule. The trip will be the Gators’ first to iconic Jordan-Hare Stadium since a 17-6 loss in 2011. On Sept. 26, Ole Miss will visit the Swamp with...

GAINESVILLE — Florida signed three defensive backs to wrap up coach Jon Sumrall’s inaugural class and place the Gators No. 16 nationally even as Sumrall finishes his tenure at Tulane and transitions his new job. Safety Kaiden “KD” Hall of Milton, located on Florida’s Panhandle, completed the 2026 class when he signed Friday. On Thursday, cornerback CJ Hester of Cocoa High also signed, while safety Dylan Purter flipped his commitment from LSU. The Gators experienced their own signing period drama Friday evening when tight end Kekua Aumua of Hawaii changed his commitment to Washington,...

GAINESVILLE — With Steve Spurrier and Urban Meyer in the audience and a skeptical fan base tuned in, new Gators football coach Jon Sumrall made a Tim Tebow-like promise he expects to keep. Sumrall didn’t shy away from the enormous — and at times unrealistic — expectations at Florida when he was introduced Monday at the Heavener Football Center. “The standard here is championships,” he said. “That’s why I came. I’m built for this job. I was made for this job. Winners win; I’m a winner; we’re going to win.” UF hired the 43-year-old away from Tulane to resurrect a once-proud program with three...

GAINESVILLE — If Florida wasn’t going to play football again in 2025, the Gators wanted to make sure Florida State didn’t either. A year with little to celebrate finished on a high note as the Gators ended Florida State’s season during a 40-21 win to stop a four-game skid Saturday night in the Swamp. Tailback Jadan Baugh led the way with a career-high 266 rushing yards and two scores while quarterback DJ Lagway threw three touchdowns for the first time since a season-opening win against Long Island University.  “The way we finished today, it was the first time we played a complete game,”...

GAINESVILLE — Florida’s 7-foot-9 Olivier Rioux stepped to the foul line during a Gators’ blowout win but with plenty at stake for the tallest player in college basketball history. After missing his first attempt off the front rim, Rioux tried for the rebound, thinking it was a lost one-and-one opportunity. Instead, a review by officials determined the 19-year-old — and world’s tallest teen — had been fouled in the act of shooting. Rioux calmly sank his second attempt as a sellout crowd erupted Friday night at the O’Connell Center to celebrate his first points as a Gator and cap the No. 10...