Florida’s veteran frontcourt keeps stacking preseason hardware, and the latest round of recognition comes with Thomas Haugh at the center of it.
On Thursday, SEC coaches named Haugh the league’s preseason Player of the Year, while Rueben Chinyelu landed on the preseason All-SEC first team and Alex Condon earned second-team honors. The three Florida bigs also showed up on the 20-player preseason watch list for the 2027 NABC Division I Player of the Year, giving the Gators more selections than any other program in the country.
Florida’s trio was part of a national list that included only two other schools with multiple players: Duke and UConn, which had two apiece. No other program put three players on the watch list.
The SEC’s preseason teams also featured Alabama’s Amari Allen, Mississippi State’s Josh Hubbard and Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner on the first team with Haugh and Chinyelu. Condon joined Tennessee’s Juke Harris, Kentucky’s Milan Momcilovic, Texas’ Matas Vokietaitis and Arkansas’ Jordan Smith Jr. on the second team.
The coaches’ preseason All-SEC teams are being released for the 22nd year.
The NABC honor carries national weight, too. The 2027 NABC Division I Player of the Year will be chosen by a nationwide vote of Division I head coaches after the regular season, and the award has been given annually since the 1974-75 season. Duke’s Cameron Boozer won it last season, and the winner for 2027 will be revealed during the week of the Men’s Final Four.
Haugh’s latest honor adds to what is already a loaded preseason resume for a Florida team ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll. The Gators are one of seven SEC teams in the preseason top 25, the most from any conference.
Florida opens the regular season Monday against No. 17 Miami in Tampa.
In Other News...
Florida Just Made Its Biggest Offensive Decision Before Georgia
Aaron Philo is back in the spotlight at the right time for Florida, and the Gators have made their call for the Georgia game. After Philo was sidelined by injury and Tramell Jones Jr. stepped in to lead a recent upset win, the quarterback situation had become one of the biggest questions hanging over the week. Now the job goes back to Philo, who helped fuel Floridas strong start to the season before the setback.
The timing matters because Georgia brings the kind of defense that can expose even small flaws in an offense. Florida is banking on Philos return to steady the group against the top-ranked unit on the schedule, while Jones surge has only added intrigue to the decision. For a rivalry game with plenty at stake, the Gators are choosing the quarterback they believe gives them the best chance to match Georgias pressure and keep the offense moving. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Heads Into Georgia With One Huge Question Still Unanswered
Floridas trip to Georgia comes with the usual rivalry pressure, but there is a bigger football question hanging over the Gators as they try to sort out a season that has gone from impressive to baffling and back again. Joel Klatt pointed to that week-to-week inconsistency, noting that Florida has paired significant wins with puzzling losses while still showing enough talent to make this one feel live.
The matchup also puts the spotlight on how Florida wants to play it, because the ability to run the ball and lean on a strong defensive line could go a long way toward keeping the game on script. Even so, the quarterback picture remains unsettled, with no starter announced and Tramell Jones and Aaron Philo both listed as questionable, leaving one of the teams most important decisions open as kickoff approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Florida May Be Getting A Massive Boost Right Before Georgia
Floridas passing game has been searching for consistency while the receiver room works through injuries to Eric Singleton Jr. and Vernell Brown III, a hit that has shown up in the offenses overall effectiveness over the last few games. The two bring different traits to the field, and when both are available, the group gives the Gators more options in how they can attack downfield and on the perimeter.
As Georgia looms, there is at least some reason for optimism that the receiving corps could be getting closer to full strength at just the right time. If that trend holds, it could open up more of the game plan Florida has been unable to fully lean on lately, with the real question being how quickly those pieces can be worked back into rhythm before the rivalry game arrives. [Read more 🡒]