Florida will be without one of its starting defensive tackles Saturday night, and the Gators are also juggling a few other key injury questions heading into Oklahoma.
Jeramiah McCloud has been suspended for the game for conduct detrimental to the team, Florida said in a statement Wednesday. The sophomore from Georgia, listed at 6-foot-3 and 294 pounds, is currently out on the SEC’s intitial availability report. His status will be re-evaluated after the contest.
McCloud has been a regular part of the rotation for the No. 24 Gators, who enter at 5-3 overall and 3-3 in the SEC.
He has started five of eight games and has posted 22 tackles, second on the team to senior Brendan Bett’s 23. McCloud also leads Florida with six quarterback hurries and shares the team lead with three pass break-ups.
With McCloud unavailable, Bett, sophomore Joseph Mbatchou, senior Jamari Lyons and freshman Stive-Bentley Keumajou-Yondui are expected to handle the tackle spots against the Sooners, who are 4-4 and 2-3 in the SEC.
Florida’s receiving group is also still dealing with injury issues. Sophomore Vernell Brown III is trending toward missing his fifth straight game because of a right knee injury after being listed as doubtful. Brown aggravated the knee in practice last Wednesday, had it drained Thursday and then underwent a platelet-rich plasma procedure Monday in an effort to speed up the recovery.
Bailey Stockton has stepped into that role, but he is listed as questionable after a productive outing against Georgia. He led the Gators with eight catches for 76 yards, including 41 after the catch, and added 31 yards on two punt returns.
Defensive end Emmanuel Oyebadejo is also questionable. The Jacksonville State transfer has started four of the past five games and shares the team lead with Jayden Woods with 4.5 sacks. The 6-foot-6, 303-pound Oyebadejo also has five QB hurries and three pass break-ups.
Florida has three players listed out besides McCloud. Starting right tackle Emekga Ugori will not play, and senior Caden Jones, who started 10 games in 2025, is expected to take his place. Tight end Evan Chieca is also out against Oklahoma.
In Other News...
Oklahoma Defense Suddenly Has A Brent Venables Problem
Oklahomas defense took an uncharacteristic step backward against South Carolina, and Brent Venables did not try to soften the blow afterward. The Sooners gave up 521 total yards in a game that exposed basic issues across the field, with tackling at the center of the breakdown. Venables pointed to fundamentals as the problem, and the numbers backed up the frustration, with Oklahoma missing 25 tackles in the loss.
Even in a rough afternoon for the defense, there were a few individual bright spots on the other side of the ball. Ivan Carreon turned in a career day with 88 yards and two touchdowns, giving the Sooners something to build on offensively. On defense, though, the spotlight fell on linebacker Kip Lewis, who led the team in missed tackles and finished with a low performance grade, leaving Oklahoma with more questions than answers as it tries to clean up the issues that surfaced so suddenly. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Heads Into Florida With One Major Secondary Concern
Oklahomas trip to Florida is carrying a little more uncertainty than the Sooners would like this late in the week, with the secondary drawing the most attention. Cornerback Eli Bowen and safety Peyton Bowen are both listed as questionable, and that matters for a defense that will need every available body against a Florida offense that can test coverage in different ways.
The injury report does not stop there, either, with Jacobe Johnson, Dakoda Fields and Ryan Fodje already confirmed out or doubtful, which trims the margin even further. Florida has its own question mark in receiver Vernell Brown III, but for Oklahoma the bigger issue is whether it can get enough healthy pieces on the back end to feel comfortable before kickoff. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Heads To Florida With One Huge Offensive Mystery
Oklahoma heads to Gainesville this week for a rare regular-season trip to Florida, a matchup that brings the Sooners to campus for the first time against the No. 25 Gators. The timing adds another layer of intrigue, because this is not just another road test for a team trying to steady itself away from home.
The biggest question hanging over the trip is on offense, where Oklahoma recently moved on from coordinator Ben Arbuckle and handed play-calling duties to tight ends coach Jason Witten. There is also uncertainty at quarterback, with possible changes still not confirmed, leaving the Sooners to sort out both leadership and rhythm before they face a ranked opponent in a difficult setting. [Read more 🡒]