Florida went heavy in the transfer portal last offseason, bringing in 29 players. But when you sort through the results, the haul looks thin on difference-makers and heavy on guys who either barely played or never got much traction at all.
That was part of the backdrop to Jon Sumrall’s comments Monday, when he said he didn’t feel he did a good enough job evaluating the roster for Florida. He also pointed to the fact that he finished the season with Tulane as part of the issue.
The biggest chunk of the portal class wound up in one of two buckets: players who mostly sat, and players who played but didn’t move the needle much.
Among the players who barely saw the field were Ace Ciongoli, Mason Clinton, Miller Fealy and Jaylen Lloyd, who did not play at all. Hunter Solwold appeared in three games and logged 13 special teams snaps.
Jordy Lowery played in three games and recorded two tackles. Cam Dooley got into five games and finished with two tackles.
Eagan Boyer appeared in one game and played 10 snaps at left tackle. Carter Milliron played in four games and had 13 special teams snaps.
Liam Padron appeared in one game, went 1-for-1 on extra points and never attempted a field goal.
Dooley and Boyer stand out on that list because both were clearly targeted additions. Dooley was the safety Brad White wanted from Kentucky, while Boyer was the tackle Phil Trautwein brought over from Penn State. Neither ended up becoming much more than depth pieces.
The group that did play, but with limited production, tells a similar story. Eric Singleton Jr. played in six games and finished with 13 catches for 101 yards and no touchdowns, plus five carries for 10 yards.
Evan Pryor had 19 carries for 41 yards and six catches for 28 yards across eight games. London Montgomery contributed as a kickoff returner, where he had 15 returns for 356 yards and a long of 74 yards, but he only managed 13 carries for 56 yards and two catches for 14 yards as a runner and receiver.
Lacota Dippre had six catches for 49 yards and two touchdowns in eight games, along with two kickoff returns for 30 yards. Evan Chieca caught one pass for 11 yards in six games.
Micah Mays Jr. had seven catches for 57 yards in eight games. TJ Bullard appeared on special teams in all eight games but did not record a tackle.
There were a few more encouraging individual lines, but even those came with caveats. Aaron Philo played in seven games and completed 110 of 156 passes for 1,367 yards, nine touchdowns and five interceptions, while also rushing 44 times for 104 yards and three scores.
TJ Shanahan Jr. started all eight games at right guard and played 516 offensive snaps. Luke Harpring had 14 catches for 165 yards.
DK Kalu posted seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one quarterback hurry. Kanye Clark started eight games at STAR and finished with 25 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, one pass breakup, three quarterback hurries and one fumble recovery.
Emeka Ugorji started all eight games at right tackle and logged 531 offensive snaps. Harrison Moore started all eight games at center and played 547 offensive snaps.
Still, the overall picture is hard to ignore. Florida’s offensive line additions were mostly middling, Aaron Philo was benched against Georgia, Luke Harpring had flashes but not enough consistency, and both DK Kalu and Kanye Clark had uneven seasons. The portal class produced some useful pieces, but not nearly enough impact players to justify the size of the investment.
The best returns came from just five solid pickups, and two of those were kickers. Bailey Stockton gave Florida 35 catches for 365 yards and two touchdowns, plus three punt returns for 47 yards.
Emmanuel Oyebadejo delivered 14 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, three pass breakups, five quarterback hurries and a forced fumble in seven games. DJ Coleman had 32 tackles, two interceptions, a tackle for loss, three pass breakups and a forced fumble in eight games.
Alec Clark averaged 48.0 yards on 26 punts, placed 11 inside the 20 and had a long of 75 yards. Patrick Durkin went 11-for-12 on field goals, hit all 33 extra points and scored 66 points.
For a class that started with 29 names, that’s a pretty slim hit rate. The real question now is whether Sumrall sees the problem as part roster evaluation, part divided attention between Tulane and Florida, and whether the next portal cycle in 2027 looks a lot different.
In Other News...
Florida Faces A Tricky Oklahoma QB Situation After Major Shakeup
Oklahomas offense is heading into the Florida game with a new voice in the booth after the Sooners fired offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle following a disappointing Week 9 showing. Head coach Brent Venables has moved quickly to steady things by naming Jason Witten as the interim offensive playcaller, a notable shakeup with the Gators now preparing for a team that is trying to regroup on the fly.
Even with the change on the sideline, Venables plans to stick with senior John Mateer as the starting quarterback against Florida. Mateer has had an inconsistent season, but he came out of the South Carolina game with a solid performance, which gives Oklahoma at least one familiar piece as it tries to sort out the rest of its offense before facing the Gators. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Freshman Justin Williams Is Suddenly In Position To Matter
Justin Williams has already started to carve out a role for Florida as a freshman receiver, and his recent showing against Georgia offered another small but meaningful glimpse of why the staff is paying attention. He finished with two catches for nine yards in that game, modest numbers on their own, but the bigger takeaway is that the Gators have seen enough from him to keep his name in the conversation as the season moves along.
Jon Sumrall said Williams could be in line for more snaps as injuries have thinned the receiving corps, turning a young depth chart into a more immediate opportunity. Florida also has other freshmen and first-year transfers making progress in practice, which gives the staff some options as it tries to patch together production now while also building for what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Suddenly Faces A Bigger Problem Than Just Losing To Georgia
The loss to Georgia did more than dent Floridas playoff path. It left Jon Sumrall looking for signs that his team can absorb a gut punch and keep moving, because the next stretch will tell him plenty about where this group really stands. Sumrall said the Gators have to own the defeat and turn quickly toward the games still in front of them if they want to keep a nine-win season within reach.
That task is made tougher by what comes next, with Oklahoma, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Florida State still on the schedule. Florida no longer has the luxury of dwelling on what happened in Jacksonville, and the bigger question now is whether the Gators can respond with the kind of emotional toughness that keeps a season from slipping away. [Read more 🡒]