GAINESVILLE — The Jon Sumrall era began with a record-setting 66-21 rout of Florida Atlantic highlighted by an explosive offense and an impressive turnout from a fan base eager for a fresh start.
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Here are five things we learned about the Florida Gators after their season-opening victory:
When in doubt, give the ball to Baugh
Unlike Billy Napier, Jon Sumrall and his staff know they have a unique, if not unstoppable, weapon in Jadan Baugh.
He needed little more than a half against FAU to show he is Florida’s most talented tailback since Fred Taylor. After following a career-long 61-yard run with a six-yard touchdown, Baugh exited with 160 yards on 14 carries and three touchdowns.
Baugh closed the 2025 season with a 266-yard night against Florida State and has 426 yards and five scores in his last two games.
Baugh has been a force since Ja’Kobi Jackson’s injury forced Napier to adjust his two-tailback system last season. Baugh responded with 107 yards on 27 carries as Florida upset Texas. Two weeks later against Mississippi State, he rushed for a then-career-high 150 yards.
Following Napier’s ouster, interim coach Billy Gonzales unleashed Baugh against rival Florida State, which had never allowed a Florida player to rush for so many yards.
The Gators’ running back room is deep. Sophomore Duke Clark impressed with 65 yards and a touchdown on eight carries, while explosive Cincinnati transfer Evan Pryor, sidelined by a sore hip, should eventually be a factor.
Baugh will spearhead Buster Faulkner’s attack and give the Gators’ creative offensive coordinator options. He scored on a direct snap from the Wildcat and, despite not being targeted, is an elite pass catcher out of the backfield.
The 6-foot, 222-pound Baugh is a security blanket.
“I tell Buster all the time: You don’t know what to do, you just hand it to (No.) 13,” Sumrall said.
The Big Five was money well spent
Among the five Gators that Sumrall immediately targeted to return, Baugh delivered on his new coach’s investment.
He wasn’t alone.
Sophomore receiver Vernell Brown III ignited Florida’s record-setting night with a 49-yard touchdown — the first score of his collegiate career — and looked every bit like the playmaker the Gators hoped he could become. The former Orlando Jones standout finished with six catches on seven targets for a career-high 117 yards, repeatedly showcasing the instincts and explosiveness that make him so dangerous in space.
Dallas Wilson needed just three catches for 47 yards to make his presence felt. At 6-foot-3 and 218 pounds, the sophomore is a difference-maker whose combination of size and athleticism gives Florida another imposing weapon on the perimeter. Considering Wilson’s history of foot injuries, there was little reason to push him beyond five targets in a game Florida controlled from the outset.
Defensively, veteran linebacker Myles Graham set the pace with 10 tackles, including a half-sack. Sophomore edge rusher Jayden Woods added four tackles, three of them solo, while flashing the disruptive potential that should become more evident as the Gators move beyond a vanilla defensive game plan.
Baugh may be Florida’s best weapon, but Sumrall made sure to surround him with others.
Fans showed out for Sumrall
The team’s pregame “Gator Walk” was packed and the Swamp was standing-room only. Emotions swirled in the south endzone tunnel.
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“I had tears running down my eyes,” Graham said. “Seeing the fans, seeing my family. It just gave me chills.”
The passionate, personable Sumrall clearly had the fan base energized Saturday night. He then delivered it a product worth celebrating.
Sumrall also saw many flaws in Florida’s 45-point win featuring 66 points from a program that didn’t score 50 against an FBS school the past five seasons.
FAU fielded one of the nation’s worst defense in 2025 and could again. Florida’s defense, meanwhile, struggled early to keep up with coach Zach Kittley’s up-tempo offense.
Gator Nation, though, earned the game ball. Fans starved for a change showed up in force and were rewarded.
“It surpassed my expectations,” Sumrall said. “What an unbelievable crowd.”
Florida’s defense was serviceable, but tested
Kittley’s fast-paced attack had the Gators gassed and on their heels when quarterback Caden Veltkamp’s seven-yard run made it 24-14 after Florida staked a 17-0 lead.
Florida’s offense soon took over the game.
But the defensive-minded Sumrall called the effort on the other side of the ball “atrocious at times.” He hinted some players felt entitled — “We got some guys who feel like we’ve arrived.”
Knowing Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, Missouri’s run game and Texas’ Arch Manning-led offense are on the immediate horizon, Sumrall offered words of caution.
“We have got a lot of room to grow,” Sumrall said. “If it doesn’t happen real fast, we’re going to get embarrassed.”
Safety DJ Coleman was a bright spot, with an interception and a tipped pass that led to an INT for Dijon Johnson; nickelback Kayne Clark broke up a touchdown in the end zone; and tackles Brendan Bett and Jeremiah McCloud combined for 12 tackles and four quarterback hurries.
Despite his coach’s criticism, Graham, the team’s defensive leader, expects the Gators will learn — and improve — from the experience.
“It’s never easy preparing for tempo,” Graham said. “So, it was great for us to come out and play that first game.”
Don’t read too much into a season-opening romp
Sumrall’s team impressed. Napier’s Gators also did during a 29-26 upset of No. 7 Utah in the first game of his failed tenure.
Ron Zook’s 2002 team beat UAB 51-3. Jim McElwain’s Gators scored 61 points in his first game, then fielded one of the nation’s worst offenses for three seasons.
The previous seven coaches won their home debuts by an average of 30.6 points.
But Sumrall’s Gators look different, especially on offense. The future looks bright. Now comes the harder part: proving Saturday night was the beginning of something real, not simply another false start.
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Edgar Thompson can be reached at [email protected]
Up next
Campbell (2-0) at UF (1-0)
When: 5:30 p.m., Saturday
Where: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville
TV: SEC Network+
Favorite: UF by 27.5 points