GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Florida looks increasingly likely to get a key piece back for its showdown with No. 3 Georgia, as wide receiver Vernell Brown III moved to probable on Wednesday’s availability report.
Brown III has missed the last three games with a knee injury, but that designation gives him a 75 percent chance to play as the Gators head into one of their biggest tests of the season.
Head coach Jon Sumrall said Brown III “looked normal” in Monday’s practice, and the way he moved stood out after a couple of weeks of concern.
“I’ll put it like this: everyday, the last couple weeks, when he’s been running, I’m like, ‘Hey, how you feeling today?’ Because there's been some times I've wondered, that it didn’t quite look right.
Today he looked good and I didn’t go up to him at all today and ask ‘Hey how you feeling?’ I just let him practice and he looked like he was feeling pretty good.”
Florida has felt Brown III’s absence. At the time he was hurt, he was the team’s leading receiver and starting punt returner, with 17 catches for 271 yards and two touchdowns, along with two punt return touchdowns. Without him, the Gators’ offense has slipped, averaging just 18 points in losses to Missouri and South Carolina.
Even in the win over Texas, Florida didn’t consistently stretch the field, producing only two completions of more than 10 yards.
“I've said before, we know what he means to this offense. He's an explosive player,” offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner said.
“He can take, you know, five-yard catches and turn them into 15, 20-yard gains. So yeah, it's a huge part of what we want to do, getting him the ball, getting him involved in the game.
So hopefully he's able to get out there, play some for us, and add a whole 'nother element to what we've kind of maybe been missing.”
If Brown III is cleared to go, it would also be the first time since Florida’s opening offensive drive of the season that he, Dallas Wilson and Eric Singleton Jr. are all on the field together. That trio only lasted five snaps in the opener against FAU before Singleton Jr. suffered a calf injury while blocking on a screen for Brown III, which kept him out for the next two games.
Running back Jadan Baugh said Tuesday that getting those three on the field together would mean “everything” for Florida.
“I was telling somebody earlier that I don't think nobody in the country can guard 1,” Baugh said. “1 is different. Having him on the field, he opens up the field just with his presence.
Even just having 2 on the field. 6, 2, 3.
Any of those guys. I don't too much see anybody guarding them because y'all see it.
When they're all on the field at one time, it's very dangerous and electric.”
Florida’s report also listed quarterbacks Tramell Jones Jr. and Aaron Philo as questionable, though Sumrall said both are expected to be fully available this week after missing the Texas win with shoulder injuries. Running back Duke Clark is also questionable after suffering a lower body injury in the loss to South Carolina.
Receiver Bailey Stockton and linebacker Jaden Robinson were listed as doubtful, giving each a 25 percent chance to play.
The Gators will release updated availability reports Thursday and Friday around 8:10 p.m. ET, followed by a game-day report Saturday at 2 p.m.
ET. Florida and Georgia kick off at 3:30 p.m.
ET on ABC from Atlanta.
In Other News...
Floridas Georgia Game Just Got A Lot More Unsettling
The buildup to Floridas game against Georgia has taken a familiar late-October turn, only this one comes with a deeper layer of uncertainty. The Gators top two quarterbacks, Aaron Philio and Tramell Jones Jr., are both listed as questionable because of injuries, even though coach Jon Sumrall said each practiced this week. Jones, in particular, is now dealing with fresh bumps and bruises, which only adds to the unease around a matchup that already carries plenty of weight for Florida.
If neither of them is available, Florida would be pushed down the depth chart and into a much different kind of plan with Aidan Warner or Will Griffin in line for the job. The injury picture extends beyond the quarterback room, too, with several players on both sides showing up on the report before the Oct. 31 game in Atlanta, leaving the Gators to sort through a week of uncertainty at a critical position. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Could Make Georgia Sweat In Rivalry Game For One Reason
Georgia rarely walks into Jacksonville with much reason to worry about Florida, but this years rivalry game carries a little more intrigue because the Gators may be able to make the Bulldogs uncomfortable in the one spot where game plans can get scrambled fast. The Week 9 preview around college football flagged Florida as a team worth watching against Georgia, with the focus landing on the uncertainty under center and what that could mean for how the Gators approach one of the SECs biggest stages.
For Florida, the question is less about matching Georgia blow for blow and more about whether the quarterback situation gives the Gators enough stability to test a rival that is still chasing its own goals in the College Football Playoff picture. The Bulldogs are one of several ranked powers under scrutiny this week, and with the first playoff rankings approaching, even a game that usually feels familiar could carry more weight than usual if Florida can turn that uncertainty into something a little more stressful for Georgia. [Read more 🡒]
Florida May Have An Edge For Basketballs Next No. 1 Recruit
The Gators are still riding the momentum of their NCAA title from two seasons ago, and that run continues to matter in recruiting circles. Todd Golden has Florida positioned as a perennial threat again, with a roster built around players like Boogie Fland, Rueben Chinyelu, Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon giving the program the kind of on-court credibility high school stars notice.
That matters now because Florida is already in the mix for one of the biggest names in the next wave, Colton Hiller, the No. 1 prospect in the 2028 class. Hiller is down to Florida and Duke, and with Golden continuing to sell both the program's recent success and its long-term trajectory, the Gators have at least put themselves in a conversation few schools get to enjoy this early. [Read more 🡒]