Florida didn’t just handle Campbell on Saturday. The Gators looked sharper, faster and cleaner in just about every phase, rolling to a 52-3 win that left them with far fewer questions than they had after the Week 1 victory over FAU.
The offense kept humming, special teams made a real impact, and the defense settled in after Campbell’s opening possession. For Florida, the day was as close to a complete performance as it gets this early in the season.
Vernell Brown III was the biggest spark of the afternoon. The third-generation Gator piled up 216 all-purpose yards and turned that into major production, including 173 punt return yards and two touchdowns. He also added a receiving score, giving Florida a weapon who was dangerous every time the ball found his hands.
Jadan Baugh keeps looking like a back who has moved into another gear. Through two games, the All-SEC runner has 296 yards on 28 total attempts, a ridiculous 10.6 yards per carry. Even with the level of competition in mind, the way he’s running makes it easy to see why Florida believes this pace can carry into next week’s trip to Auburn and beyond as the conference schedule tightens.
Dallas Wilson also continues to look like the best pure wide receiver in the room when he’s healthy. Florida got a brief reminder of that in last season’s opener against Texas, when Wilson went for 111 yards on six catches and scored twice. Injuries limited him to only four games after that, but when he’s on the field, he brings a bigger outside threat than anyone else in the group.
At quarterback, the early read on Aaron Philo keeps getting stronger. There was a point in the offseason when Tramell Jones Jr. seemed to have the edge, but after two games, Philo has made a convincing case that he was the right starter.
He’s completing 76% of his passes with five touchdowns and one interception, and he has avoided the kind of mistakes that can swing a game. Jones Jr. has been efficient too, but he did throw the interception on a bad ball against Campbell.
Right now, Philo’s poise sits a step above.
Florida’s defense also showed real progress. After Campbell opened with two deep throws and a field goal, the Gators largely took control.
The front seven was especially active, finishing with eight tackles for loss and two sacks. That group will get a better read next week at Auburn, where Florida will face a team that hasn’t strung together complete offensive performances through two games.
In Other News...
Floridas 2026 Schedule Is Already Showing One Serious Warning Sign
Florida opened with two straight wins under Jon Sumrall, including a 52-3 rout of Campbell, but the early buzz around the Gators is already running into a bigger-picture concern. A glance at the 2026 schedule suggests there wont be many easy Saturdays waiting down the road, and the latest results from those opponents only sharpen that view.
Auburn beat Southern Miss, Missouri handled Kansas, South Carolina leaned on a dominant rushing attack against Towson, and Texas stunned Ohio State with a comeback win. Georgia looked sharp on both sides against Western Kentucky, Michigan pulled off an upset of Oklahoma, and Kentucky fell to Alabama, a snapshot that makes Floridas future slate look loaded with teams carrying real momentum. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Walks Into A Familiar Auburn Test With More At Stake
Jon Sumrall and Alex Golesh know plenty about each other long before they meet on opposite sidelines in an SEC game, which gives Floridas trip to Auburn a little extra texture. Their coaching paths have crossed through the years, and the matchup brings back familiar names, familiar schemes and a fresh layer of stakes for a Florida staff trying to make its mark in league play.
Auburn also turns the page at quarterback, with Brown set to make his first SEC start after transferring from USF. Sumrall said Brown has shown clear improvement, and he knows the challenge does not stop there, especially with Auburns home-field edge waiting in the background. For Florida, it is the kind of conference test that can expose details quickly, and the kind of game where the familiar can still get uncomfortable in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Heads To Auburn With One Roster-Building Bet Under Pressure
The trip to Auburn brings more than a conference road test for Florida, because it also puts the Gators roster-building approach next to one of the sports more aggressive transfer pipelines. Jon Sumrall brought only a handful of players with him from Tulane, leaving Florida with a roster shaped mostly by Power Four talent, while Auburn under Alex Golesh has leaned much more heavily on familiar faces from USF, including 13 former Bulls who have already carved out meaningful roles.
That contrast is part of what makes this matchup worth watching for Florida fans. Auburns offense features several players who came from non-Power Four programs, and Goleshs history against Power Four defenses has not always been easy reading, which leaves this game feeling like a stress test for both coaches ideas about how to build a team. For Florida, it is a chance to see whether a more traditional talent base holds up when the other side is built from a different kind of bet. [Read more 🡒]