Position Preview: Lovett, Ugorji emerge at offensive tackle
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Florida's offensive tackle room enters the 2026 season with plenty of questions, but the picture has started to clear during fall camp.
Bryce Lovett has surged into the projected starting left tackle spot after spending much of spring at guard, while Stanford transfer Emeka Ugorji is currently in line to start on the right side. Both have experience, but neither entered camp as a sure thing.
The competition behind them remains active. Caden Jones started 10 games at right tackle last season, while Eagan Boyer and TJ Dice Jr. are still firmly in the mix for snaps. Fletcher Westphal is also working his way back after missing all of 2025 and spring camp because of injuries.
Florida has additional developmental depth behind that group, including three true freshmen and walk-on Mark Faircloth. Jon Sumrall has said the Gators could rotate multiple tackles early in the season before settling on the best long-term combination.
Here's a closer look at Florida's offensive tackles heading into the 2026 season.
Check out Gators Wire's other position previews:
Note: With the new age-based eligibility system in place, player classifications will no longer include redshirt status. For example, a redshirt sophomore (R-So.) listed on the official roster will be considered a junior (Jr.) — freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, 5th year.
Projected Starting Left Tackle: No. 53 Bryce Lovett (Sr.)
Lovett is entering his fourth year at Florida, and his story is one of progression and position flexibility. He opened 2025 as Florida's starting right tackle but lost the job to Caden Jones after allowing five pressures in the first two games. He still played more than 250 snaps in 2025 and took the field for more than 350 in 2024, albeit across four different positions.
Regardless of snap count, Lovett looked like a vastly improved version of himself from Game 1 to Game 12 of last year. He credited daily competition against veteran Florida defensive linemen such as Tyreak Sapp and Kam James for sharpening his game and building confidence.
Lovett entered camp working at guard, but a challenge from Sumrall led to elevated play at left tackle. After the second scrimmage of fall camp, Sumrall said that Lovett and Jadan Baugh were the two best players on the opening drive and projected him as the starting left tackle.
“Bryce Lovett, man, y'all asked about him a week ago," Sumrall said. "I've challenged him. Our staff's challenged him. He's responded. I think he has really elevated at tackle.”
Projected Starting Right Tackle: No. 66 Emeka Ugorji (So.)
Ugorji is the projected starting right tackle, according to Sumrall's recent comments, which is a bit surprising given his struggles as a true freshman at Stanford last season. Offensive line coach Phil Trautwein acknowledged those concerns but also noted that the then-17-year-old showed improvement with each game he played in.
“He’s gonna play for us," Trautwein said. "You’ll see him on the field. Don’t know when, don’t know where, but I know that he will because of his mentality and his mindset.”
Ugorji has stepped up in fall camp and earned the starting job, at least for now. His 523 total offensive snaps were the most by an ACC true freshman and the 10th-most nationally in 2025. Of those snaps, 434 came at right guard and 89 at right tackle, so he had to earn the job on the outside.
Pass protection will be the key for him. He allowed 24 pressures and seven sacks a year ago and had a 27.6 pass-blocking grade, according to Pro Football Focus. Those numbers have to improve if he's going to stay a starter at tackle.
Top Tackle Competition: No. 55 TJ Dice Jr. (So.), No. 64 Eagan Boyer (Jr.) and No. 63 Caden Jones (Sr.)
Caden Jones
Jones is entering his fourth year at Florida and has the most experience at tackle in the group. He replaced Lovett at right tackle in Week 3 of last season and played 541 offensive snaps. Through 309 pass-blocking snaps, Jones allowed just one sack; however, his 27 total pressures allowed were the most on Florida's offensive line.
Despite his in-game experience, Jones' 56.4 PFF run-blocking grade left a lot to be desired. The two players listed above have passed him by on the depth chart, for now, but Jones is the favorite to back up either tackle spot. Meaningful snaps in the rotation are expected.
TJ Dice Jr.
Dice was one of the top offensive line priorities in Florida's 2025 recruiting class. Even though he signed under the previous coaching staff, there are some obvious developmental traits Sumrall and Co. can appreciate. At 6-feet-3.75-inches and 302 pounds, he has SEC offensive line size, plus the length to stay at tackle and the power to fit at guard.
He spent his prep career at left tackle, protecting the quarterback's blind side, but whether or not he ends up there long term remains to be seen. Trautwein likes Dice's athleticism, length and ability to play in space, and Sumrall included him in the group of players "very much alive" in the competition for snaps at tackle. It wouldn't be surprising to see him get snaps at either tackle spot early in the year.
Eagan Boyer
Boyer is another strong candidate to be part of Florida's early tackle rotation, and he could end up making starts down the line.
He followed Trautwein from Penn State after getting meaningful bowl-game reps, and he's added a lot of weight since arriving in Happy Valley as a freshman, which reminds Trautwein of his own progression.
“Eagan came to Penn State at 235 pounds," Trautwein said. "Now he's 300. That was kind of me. I wasn't the biggest, but I had to gain weight. He's doing it. He trusts me. He's developing. He started in the bowl game versus Clemson, did a heck of a job. I love who he is, and he's coming out every single day and helping me set the standard and helping me embrace my culture and everything.”
Boyer only has 135 career snaps, with 78 coming against Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl, but he has yet to allow a sack. Like Dice, Sumrall categorized Boyer as “very much alive” in the competition for a spot in the rotation.
Injured/Developmental Tackles: No. 68 Fletcher Westphal (Jr.) and No. 56 Jahari Medlock (So.)
Fletcher Westphal
Westphal should be in the competition group, but his development was frozen after missing the 2025 season with wrist and hip injuries. He underwent five surgeries in eight months and also missed spring camp under Sumrall. Once viewed as the heir apparent to Austin Barber at left tackle, Westphal is just getting back into the tackle competition.
At 6-feet-8-inches, 309 pounds, Westphal has the size to be an SEC tackle, but he has to re-establish himself under a new staff after losing a crucial developmental season.
“Just consistency. I mean, that's what everything comes down to, right?” Westphal said. “I don't want there to be any, like, a wild play where it's like, ‘Oh, he let up a sack,’ or for this and it was some stupid thing he did with his technique.”
Jahari Medlock
Medlock is another developmental tackle who has been limited by injury. A four-star recruit who signed as a member of the class of 2025, Medlock did not see game action and redshirted last season. Billy Napier's staff loved his "freak of nature" athletic profile, but he hasn't gotten a chance to show it off in a game yet.
Medlock has added significant weight since joining the team as a 281-pound freshman. He checks in at 309 pounds and 6 feet 5 inches on Florida's official roster.
A spring injury has him working to the side in fall camp, and he's unlikely to contribute much in 2026.
Freshmen: No. 79 Chancellor Campbell, No. 51 Tyler Chukuyem and No. 54 Javarii Luckas
Chancellor Campbell
Campbell picked Florida over Georgia, Ohio State and Penn State. He's 6-feet-8-inches and 318 pounds, making him one of the largest tackles on the roster. His 35-inch arms, 85-inch wingspan and 11-inch hands are also measurables that confirm he has prototype tackle dimensions. Florida’s signing-day bio had him as a consensus three-star prospect, the No. 44 offensive tackle and No. 60 player in Florida according to 247Sports.
Still, he's a long-term developmental piece who shouldn't figure heavily into the rotation this season.
Tyler Chukuyem
Chukuyem stayed with Florida despite late pushes from Georgia and North Carolina. He's 6-feet-6-inches, 300 pounds, up about 15 pounds from his recruiting measurements. Despite his size, Chukuyem has some impressive athletic testing. He clocked a 5.15-second 40-yard dash and a 4.51-second 20-yard shuttle, both of which would rank in the top 10% among NFL Combine offensive tackles since 1999.
Like Campbell, Chukuyem is expected to be a developmental piece in Florida's tackle room. This is standard for first-year linemen in SEC programs.
Javarii Luckas
Luckas picked Florida over West Virginia, USF and Florida Atlantic. He has tackle size at 6-feet-6-inches, 313 pounds, but his 80.2-inch wingspan is a bit short for the position. A transition to guard could be in his future, but he was signed as a high school right tackle. Like the other freshmen, this should be a developmental year for Luckas.
Walk-On: No. 76 Mark Faircloth (Jr.)
Last but not least is Faircloth, a walk-on tackle who has 35 career offensive snaps, 32 coming at left tackle against Long Island. Faircloth had an 80.5 PFF run-blocking grade in that game, albeit against an FCS program.
Faircloth is 6-feet-5-inches, 312 pounds and entering his third year with Florida. He's an emergency/depth option, but the five-for-five rule means Florida can risk playing freshmen before him without worrying about burning a redshirt.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Position Preview: Lovett, Ugorji emerge at offensive tackle
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