Florida football practice sees improvement in LJ McCray, new WRs and more

Florida football held its fifth practice on Thursday, March 12, at the Sanders Practice Fields.

It's the final practice before the Florida Gators take off for spring break. UF will then continue with nine more practices before the spring game on Saturday, April 11, at The Swamp.

Florida football coach Jon Sumrall said he wants players to stay sharp during spring break. Strength and conditioning coach Rusty Whitt has provided a workout plan for them to follow during the off days.

"They do need some recovery time," Sumrall said. "I do kind of like being able to do a few days before spring break; catch your breath, come back, get away, catch your breath, you know, decompress a little bit, because we're pushing them hard mentally and physically and in every way possible. But they can't lose the physical that we've built up through the offseason to this point."

Here are three takeaways from the opening portion of practice:

Florida football DL LJ McCray showing signs of progress

Florida redshirt sophomore defensive lineman L.J. McCray has answered the challenge so far from defensive line coach Gerald Chatman to raise his level of play in workouts.

A former five-star recruit from Daytona Beach, the 6-foot-6, 270-pound McCray missed most of the 2025 season with a broken foot.

"I just talked to him today on the field about I'm not gonna let him let up, not gonna let him get comfortable," Chatman said. "Sometimes when you tell guys like, ‘Hey, good job,’ then some guys tend to like, ‘OK, I did it now. All right, take a deep breath.’ I told him, ‘I'm not giving an inch.’"

New WRs continuing to shine in Florida football practice

Wake Forest transfer Micah Mays Jr., Auburn freshman wide receiver Eric Singleton and true freshman wide receiver Justin Williams are among new receivers continuing to stand out through the first two weeks of practices.

All three are continuing to get more reps due to redshirt freshman Dallas Wilson being out with a foot injury. Wilson was on the practice field in a blue jersey and a boot but did not go through drills.

Alec Clark shows big leg in Florida football punting drills

Tulane transfer Alec Clark showed a big leg and good hang time in Florida football punting drills. Among those returning punts during drills included Vernell Brown III, Justin Williams and Jaylen Lloyd.

Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1. Read his coverage of the Gators’ national championship basketball season in “CHOMP-IONS!” — a hardcover coffee-table collector’s book from The Sun. Details at Florida.ChampsBook.com

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Three takeaways as Florida football holds final practice before spring break