Florida Predicted to Be Surprise 'Sleeper' in SEC This Season

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For much of the offseason, the talk around the Florida Gators was about how the program could start building itself back up to national relevance.

Florida has seen losing seasons in four of its last five years, only making two bowl games. But coming into this year, there seems to be some level of optimism around the Gators.

New head coach Jon Sumrall comes in from Tulane, a program that he turned into a College Playoff Team. Sumrall is now being tasked with a tougher challenge, however: getting the Gators back to being a title contender.

Sumrall has helped turn around multiple programs in his career, with Florida being the next in his plans. The coach won back-to-back Sun Belt titles while at Troy, going 12-2 in 2022 and then 11-2 in 2023.

He then joined Tulane, helping the Green Wave go 9-5 in his first season. Then last year, he went 11-3, getting the team to the CFP, while winning the American Athletic Conference.

Now, with Florida, the first goal is to become more relevant in the SEC. This won't be an easy feat for Sumrall, especially in his first year.

But the Gators believe he is the right person to right the ship. And now Florida is being seen as a potential sleeper around the country this season.

The Athletic spoke with 18 coaches across the college football landscape, and the Gators were mentioned as one of the bigger sleepers.

One defensive coordinator from the SEC weighed in on the Gators, giving some thought to them surprising people across the country this year.

“Watch out for Florida. Jon (Sumrall) is really, really good. And from what I’ve heard from people who have been down there, the Gators are pretty talented," one SEC defensive coordinator said.

Transfer quarterback Aaron Philo comes in to be the starter for the Gators, giving them some hope at the position. Philo doesn't have that much experience in college football, but he has impressed coaches so far in camp. 

The signal-caller has appeared in eight games total over two years with Georgia Tech. During this time, he has completed 59-of-102 passes for 938 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions.

If Philo can play serviceable football, the Gators could surprise some people this season. Sumrall has done well with his teams over the years, and if he can turn Florida around, it will be his biggest accomplishment yet.

Florida opens the season against Florida Atlantic this weekend.

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