GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida head coach Jon Sumrall had several good one-liners this week as he discussed his team's disappointing homecoming loss to South Carolina.
He saved perhaps his best for his "Gator Talk" radio show on Monday night.
After Saturday's loss at The Swamp, Sumrall asked his wife, Ginny, where their 13-year-old son, Sam, was as he greeted his family.
"And she goes, 'Oh, he left. He could not stay and watch y'all get your butt kicked.' And I'm like, 'What? The dude left?' "
The story gets better.
"I'm so pissed off. I don't want to take a shower. I don't want to do anything other than maybe punch something," Sumrall said. "Finally, I grab my phone to just see: did my brother text, maybe check on Sam since he didn't stay to the end of the game? And Sam texts me and says, 'Dad, I don't know if this is forgivable.' And I'm like, 'Well, son, you've done a few things that I don't know if I can forgive you for either.' "
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Fortunately for Sumrall, the rest of the family offered a hug instead of a biting critique. The Gators got plenty of those after a second consecutive lopsided loss.
Florida (4-2, 2-2 in the Southeastern Conference) seeks to snap its two-game skid on Saturday at No. 7 Texas (4-1, 1-1). Sumrall has pulled out all the overcoming-adversity lessons from his coaching notebook over the past few days. The Gators looked like they needed a hug at halftime against South Carolina, which concerned Sumrall.
He stressed that winning in the SEC requires mental toughness week in, week out.
The Longhorns learned a similar lesson last week, dropping from their perch atop the national rankings after losing to Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry.
That word — adversity — bounced around Austin this week, too.
"I'm a little sick,'' Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. "I like a little adversity."
Surmall will be fine if Sarkisian stays sick Saturday. He wouldn't mind a hug from his son, either.
Here is our latest edition of The Opening Kickoff for a closer look at the Florida-Texas game:
THREE STORYLINES
None loom larger for the Gators than at quarterback, where backup Tramell Jones Jr. took significant reps this week as starter Aaron Philo nursed a shoulder injury. If Philo can't play, the Gators have confidence in Jones, a 6-foot, 195-pound sophomore who has completed 23 of 29 passes (79.3%) for 252 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Jones has a stronger arm than Philo but has never started a college game.
The Gators face their most difficult stretch of the season with a four-game stretch against No. 7 Texas, No. 1 Georgia, unranked Oklahoma, which knocked off then-No. 1 Texas last week, and No. 15 Kentucky. They viewed last week's 38-19 loss to South Carolina as a response game following the 28-point loss at Missouri. That did not go so well. The Gators must dig deep to find out what they are made of to resuscitate their season.
Texas quarterback Arch Manning is one of college football's most famous players. Manning has been good for the Longhorns, but consistent greatness has eluded him. Manning went 19-for-31 for 260 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in the loss to the Sooners. He posted similar numbers (16 of 29, 263 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT) in last season's loss at Florida. While he has been inconsistent, Manning has four wins against top-10 teams in the AP Top 25, tying him for most among FBS quarterbacks. Which Manning will show up Saturday against the Gators' much-maligned secondary?
THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Junior running back Jadan Baugh rushed for 600 yards and 11 scores during Florida's 4-0 start. He has carried 27 times for 72 yards and one touchdown over the past two games, both losses. Can the Gators get Baugh back on track against a tough Longhorns defense? It will likely determine Florida's chances of winning (See: chart below).
Longhorns edge rusher Colin Simmons is a matchup nightmare for opposing teams. Collins leads the FBS with 9.5 sacks through five games. A season ago, Simmons set a single-season program record with 61 quarterback hurries. Florida's offensive line cannot take a break against No. 1.
He is listed as a game-time decision for the third consecutive game, so it remains unknown if sophomore receiver Vernell Brown III will be available on Saturday. What is certain is that Florida's offense has not been the same without Brown. Why is that? Brown is a game-changer with the ball in his hands, on offense or on special teams. The Gators have missed the constant threat during Brown's absence.
FIVE QUESTIONS WITH … GATORS LB MYLES GRAHAM
A junior, Graham leads the team with 41 tackles and had a career-high two sacks in last week's loss to South Carolina. Still, that was not enough for a win, and Graham is pushing himself and his teammates to deliver results.
Linebacker Myles Graham lines up during last week's Homecoming game against South Carolina. (Photo: Emma Brugna/UAA Communications)
Q: What did you see with the approximately 20 missed tackles by the defense?
A: That's really unacceptable. That's not us. We're better tacklers than that; we're better players. Really just a lack of focus, a lack of strain, a lack of effort. That's really just unacceptable. We can't put that over there on the field and expect to win.
Q: How much are you trying to make sure everyone remains confident?
A: Yeah, that's a big deal. I mean, that's really everything when you get knocked out. It's about how you respond, and that's really the message to the guys this week. We got hit; now we've got to fight back. We can't just lay down and just keep taking blows. It's time to get back to who we know we can be. We've got to have each other's back to do that, but at the same time, we've got to push each other and hold each other accountable.
Q: What kind of atmosphere do you expect Saturday between two teams in need of a win?
A: It's definitely going to be an intense game. It's gonna be a dogfight; it's going to be a four-quarter matchup, just an SEC football game. Honestly, every game is intense, so it's gonna be a good one.
Q: What have you seen from Coach Sumrall's increased involvement with the defense?
A: He always has been involved with us in the defense. He's naturally a defensive guy, so it definitely helps us to have him over there and help push us because it does mean more coming from the head coach, like, it means a lot because he has so much going on and the fact that he takes his time to come over and go over to the defensive field with us and coach us through drills, and he comes in the meeting and watches film, it does mean a lot. We really appreciate it, and it definitely pushes us more.
Q: How difficult to reset and avoid another late-season collapse?
A: It's very hard. We've been through it, and we don't want to go through it again. It's very hard not to get down on yourself and be like, 'Oh, here we go again.' It's hard, but you have to be countercultural and just respond. Honestly, you have to respond. That really shows who you are more than when we're winning or when we're undefeated. It shows who you are. How you respond when things are going bad.
THREE DIGITS
14 — Years since Gators last beat two top-10 teams in a single season (2012). Florida can match that with a win over No. 7 Texas after defeating No. 4 Ole Miss earlier in the season. 6 — Years since Florida beat a ranked team away from The Swamp (44-28 win over No. 5 Georgia in Jacksonville). (11-29) — Florida's record away from Ben Hill Griffin Stadium since the start of the 2020 season. AVAILABILITY REPORT*
FLORIDA — OUT: RB Duke Clark (lower body).QUESTIONABLE: WR Vernell Brown III (knee), WR Bailey Stockton (undisclosed), QB Aaron Philo (shoulder). TEXAS — OUT: OL Jaydon Chatman (undisclosed), Kaliq Lockett (undisclosed). PROBABLE: OL Jordan Coleman (undisclosed), DL Justus Terry (undisclosed).
*Updated Thursday night NEWS, NOTES, NUGGETS
This is the sixth all-time meeting between the schools and the third as SEC rivals. Texas leads the series 3-1-1, including 2-0-1 in Austin.
A victory over the Longhorns would give the Gators their highest-ranked win in a true road game since defeating No. 4 LSU in 2009.
UF running back Jadan Baugh is the only FBS player with 10-plus rushing touchdowns and more than 600 yards rushing.
Former Gators head coach Will Muschamp, in his first season as Texas' defensive coordinator, directs the SEC's third-best defense (264.4 yards per game). The Longhorns lead the SEC with 40 tackles for loss, averaging eight per game.
Florida sophomore receiver Dallas Wilson made his first career start in last season's home win over Texas, catching six passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Wilson leads the team with 26 receptions for 376 yards and three touchdowns.
Texas has won 12 consecutive home games, tied for the fourth-longest active streak among FBS schools.
Florida returns to Texas Memorial Stadium for the first time since 2024 on Saturday. (Photo: Bryce Mitchell/UAA Communications)
With sophomore running back Duke Clark out due to injury, fifth-year Evan Pryor will back up Baugh. A transfer from Cincinnati, Pryor has rushed 16 times for 40 yards and caught six passes for 28 yards.
The Gators are ranked 15th defensively in the SEC on third down, allowing opponents to convert 43 of 92 attempts (46.7%). South Carolina converted 10 of 16 last week. Meanwhile, the Longhorns are eighth in the SEC on third down, converting 44.5% (33 of 74).
Billy Gonzales, who served as UF's interim head coach for five games last season, is an offensive analyst for the Longhorns, and former UF running backs coach Jabarr Juluke is in his first season as the Longhorns' associate head coach offense/running backs coach.
Texas dropped from No. 1 to seventh after losing to Oklahoma last week. The Longhorns spent four consecutive weeks atop the AP Top 25, their longest stretch since a five-week run in 1977.
CHARTING THE GATORS
The Gators go as running back Jaden Baugh goes. They are 9-0 in the past three seasons when Baugh rushes for 100 yards or more, including an upset win over the Longhorns a season ago at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium:
SEASON
OPPONENT
RESULT
STATS
2024
Kentucky
W, 48-20
22 for 106, 5 TD
2025
Long Island
W, 55-0
9 for 104, 1 TD
2025
Texas
W, 29-21
27 for 107, 1 TD
2025
Mississippi State
W, 23-21
23 for 150, 1 TD
2025
Florida State
W, 40-21
38 for 266, 2 TD
2026
FAU
W, 66-21
14 for 160, 3 TD
2026
Campbell
W, 52-3
14 for 136, 2 TD
2026
@Auburn
W, 44-39
26 for 162, 3 TD
2026
Ole Miss
W, 52-28
29 for 142, 3 TD
THEY SAID IT
"I love that our fans care enough to boo. Good. I'd rather the stands be full, and them be passionate and pissed off if something's not going good. I don't want to applaud when we're not playing well. We do need their support. We need them to be behind the guys." — UF head coach Jon Sumrall on fans booing during South Carolina loss
"I know that sounds crazy because you can't turn your ball over and that changes everything, but he really played within himself other than a couple of plays. He was throwing the ball on time." — Florida offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner on quarterback Aaron Philo against South Carolina
"First of all, I don't think it's a confidence thing. I think that these guys believe we're good and are going to play really good. And, we've gone up against three, in my opinion, really good defenses. And I think that'll shake out by the end of the year who Ohio State, Tennessee and Oklahoma are." — Texas coach Steve Sarkisian to questions about his team's offensive struggles
Gators running back Jadan Baughchecks in at No. 14 on ESPN's veteran NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr.'s initial 2027 big board.
WHY GATORS WILL WIN
They refuse to wilt when adversity hits and take Sumrall's message of mental toughness to heart. That is a good place to start. And of course, they win the turnover battle and the defense gets off the field on third down. If they can do that, they have a chance.
WHY LONGHORNS WILL WIN
They grab momentum early and force the Gators to play from behind, as Missouri and South Carolina did the past two weeks. The Longhorns are coming off a tough loss, too, so they will be fired up in front of their home fans at Texas Memorial Stadium.
