Florida has the inside track to do it again.
CBS Sports’ panel of Matt Norlander, Gary Parrish and Cameron Salerno has the Gators as the “on-paper favorite” to repeat as SEC champions in the 2026-27 college basketball season, and the reasoning starts with what Florida is bringing back. Parrish has Florida No. 1 in his Top 25 and 1 preseason rankings, and the Gators return six of their top seven scorers after winning the SEC regular-season title by three games last year.
Even with that kind of continuity, Parrish isn’t handing out a trophy in October.
"I wouldn't consider Florida a lock to win the SEC, because we've seen a preseason No. 1 team actually miss the entire NCAA Tournament before," Parrish said. "Sports are weird and often unpredictable.
An injury or two can obviously derail anybody's season. Nothing is guaranteed once the ball is in the air."
What gives Florida such a strong case is the front line. The returning “Big Three” of Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu gives the Gators one of the best frontcourts around, if not the best.
Haugh enters as a potential Player of the Year, Chinyelu was last season’s Defensive Player of the Year, and Condon has been drawing scout attention since his freshman year. That’s a lot of high-end talent packed into the starting lineup.
The biggest pushback comes from the usual suspects. Kentucky, Tennessee and Texas all have a path to the top of the league, but Texas might be the toughest matchup for Florida across the conference schedule.
Isaac Trotter pointed to the frontcourt edge the Longhorns can bring, writing that, "The physicality (and some sharp elbows) from a David Punch-Matas Vokietaitis frontcourt duo will raise Texas' floor instantly every night," and added, "... Five-star freshman Marcus Spears Jr. gives Sean Miller an athletic forward who loves to compete and play defense."
Tennessee is another major factor after a roster overhaul fueled by the transfer portal and a reported $15 million-plus investment. The Vols are chasing a Final Four, but an SEC crown would be a meaningful step along the way.
Kentucky, meanwhile, is never far from the conversation. With head coach Mark Pope on the hot seat, the Wildcats have to deliver after assembling the top-ranked transfer class.
Even with that competition lined up behind them, Florida is still the team most people would circle first. The rest of the SEC has work to do if it wants to knock the Gators off the perch.
In Other News...
Florida May Not Keep This Rising Assistant Much Longer
Greg Gasparatos stock is climbing fast enough that Florida may not get to enjoy him in the same role for long. The Athletic recently included the Gators linebackers coach among 25 rising coaches to watch before the 2026 season, a nod that reflects how quickly he has built momentum after stops as a defensive coordinator and interim head coach at Troy, then following Jon Sumrall to Tulane and on to Gainesville.
For Florida, that kind of recognition is good and complicated at the same time. Gasparato has already drawn Power Four coordinator interest, and he looks like the sort of coach who could be in line for a bigger job sooner rather than later, which only adds to the sense that his time as a position coach in Gainesville could be part of a longer audition than anyone first expected. [Read more 🡒]
Gators Fans Finally Get A Real Look At Sumrall's Roster Battle
Floridas Week 1 depth chart for the opener against Florida Atlantic did more than list names and positions. It marked the programs first public release of that kind in nearly two years, giving fans and the team a clearer view of where things stand heading into the new season. For a roster still taking shape under Jon Sumrall, the move offered a straightforward snapshot of roles for the contest and a little more clarity than the Gators have given the public lately.
Sumrall has made no secret of where he stands on the issue, saying he favors transparency with players about where they fit and what kind of playing time they can expect. That approach makes the depth chart more than a formality for the opener. It is a small but useful signal about how openly this staff plans to handle roster battles, and it gives Florida followers their first real look at how those decisions are being sorted out before the season begins. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Basketball May Be Closing In On A Recruiting Breakthrough
Florida basketball is spending part of its recruiting energy on two of the most intriguing high school visitors in the country, with Beckham Black and Colton Hiller both making their way through Gainesville. Black, a five-star point guard in the 2027 class, arrives with plenty of attention already attached to his name as the brother of NBA player Anthony Black, while Hiller comes in as the top-ranked player in the 2028 class and has emerged as one of the sports premier young prospects.
The timing matters, too, because Florida appears to be leaning harder into marquee prep recruiting as roster turnover looms. Both prospects carry multiple offers and the sort of national profile that can change the ceiling of a class, and Hillers family ties to Florida football recruit Maxwell Hiller add another layer of familiarity to the visit. For a program trying to build momentum on the trail, this is the kind of stretch that can hint at a bigger shift in how the Gators want to construct the roster going forward. [Read more 🡒]