Brad White came to Florida with a clear mandate, and he hasn’t been shy about saying it: he wants the Gators’ defense to become the kind of unit offenses fear. The first real shot at proving that arrives on the evening of Sept. 5, when Florida opens its 2026 season under the lights at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium against a Florida Atlantic attack built to stress a defense from the jump.
That’s exactly the kind of test White signed up for. FAU played at the fastest pace in the nation in 2025, snapping the ball every 21.4 seconds per play, and it also led the country in passing yards per game at 338.7 in its first season under head coach Zach Kittley. The Owls don’t wait around, and they don’t mind forcing a defense to think on its feet.
White’s answer is rooted in a simple idea: let his players make plays, and create as many one-on-one chances as possible. “The fun part as a coach is to try to find as many ways to create one-on-one opportunities,” White said. “But if you want that, then you're going to have to put in the effort because to get those things requires you know more words.”
That philosophy has already shown up in the way he talks about this matchup. For White, the key is not getting caught off guard when FAU’s tempo and structure produce something unexpected.
“Don't be surprised if you don't get what you thought you were going to get,” White said. “Don't be surprised, and then don't miss the layup.
I said, ‘Hey guys, bad things happen when you just try to lay it off the glass, slam it home, man. Just put the ball through all the way through.’”
The Gators’ path to controlling the game starts with disruption. FAU coughed the ball up 2.6 times per game in 2025, the most in the FBS, and returning quarterback Caden Veltkamp threw 17 interceptions, the most in the country. That gives Florida a real opening if the defense can turn the Owls’ speed into mistakes.
Florida has reason to trust its back end in that kind of game. The veteran secondary handled several top receivers well last season, including Miami’s Malachi Toney, who finished with four catches for 40 yards, and Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion, who was held to two catches for nine yards. White’s defenses at Kentucky also showed the ability to clamp down on explosive wideouts, with Auburn’s Cam Coleman limited to five catches for 34 yards and Vernell Brown III held to one catch for 22 yards against the Wildcats.
This week, much of the attention has centered on fifth-year receiver Easton Messer, FAU’s most dangerous weapon. The 5-foot-9 Louisville, Kentucky, native put together a massive 2025 season with 104 catches for 1,052 yards and six touchdowns, ranking third in the nation in receptions. If Florida can take him away, it could force Veltkamp to search elsewhere and invite the kind of mistakes the Gators are hunting.
Up front, Florida will lean on a deep defensive line and pass-rushing group to heat up the quarterback early and often. Against an offense that wants to play fast and throw it around, pressure can turn into chaos in a hurry.
White has made it clear that there’s no room for pacing oneself against a tempo team. “Our guys, they can't take a break,” White said.
“The thing that tempo teams do is make defensive guys try to conserve [energy] … We can't. You've got to have an empty-the-tank mentality on every play.”
That message has been absorbed by the players, including fifth-year JACK rusher Kofi Asare and junior linebacker Myles Graham. Asare is behind sophomore Jayden Woods in the rotation, with true freshman KJ Ford also in the mix, but he’s trying to make his final season count after posting 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack in 2025. White called Asare “the most improved defensive player” from where he started in spring to where he is now.
Asare said he’s improved physically and mentally, but he still wants more. “Being in my last year, I want to have a lot of big role on defense,” Asare said.
“Play a lot more snaps, even special teams. I gotta be on special teams.
So, I'm just taking it in. I need everything.
Everything that's available.”
Graham is already one of the anchors of the defense. In 2025, the Gainesville native led Florida with 76 tackles and added two sacks and four pass deflections, and he believes there’s still a higher level in his game.
“I think it's saying something that I was the leading tackler and I didn't play up to my standard from last year,” Graham said. “I think I can play much better every single game.”
He also knows FAU’s pace will test the Gators’ discipline, but he believes Florida has the pieces and the plan to handle it.
“We just got to be ready for that,” Graham said. “Just settle down and focus. You know the tempo.”
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