Gators punter Alec Clark is keeping his parents up late in Australia in his first season at UF. (Photo: UAA Communications)
No Punt Intended: Alec Clark Is Ready When Gators Need Him
Friday, October 2, 2026 | Football
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By: Ryan Roddy, FloridaGators.com Student Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — It is hard to evaluate talent on the other side of the globe.
So, when it came time for Florida punter Alec Clark, an Australian, to show off his skills, he had to FaceTime special teams coordinator Jonathan Galante.
Clark, like many Australian punters in college football and the NFL, grew up playing Australian football, a sport that requires many of the same skills as punting in American football.
"Basically, on a footy field and got film of punting and sending it out to coaches," Clark said of his recruitment. "With Coach Galante, he asked for a FaceTime one day and so I punted live on FaceTime in front of him. It all worked out."
It definitely did.
Galante, who was at Marshall at the time, took a chance on Clark and helped bring him to the United States. Clark had some academic work to do first, completing additional online classes after some of his Australian high school credits did not transfer.
Once that was taken care of, Clark made his way to Huntington, West Virginia, where he punted for the Thundering Herd for two seasons. He played in 14 games, averaging 42.2 yards per punt with a long of 67 yards.
Then Galante got a job offer from Jon Sumrall at Tulane.
Galante headed to New Orleans.
Clark wasn't far behind.
He took another step forward with the Green Wave in 2025, averaging 46.5 yards on 48 punts, with a long of 70 yards, as Tulane won a conference championship. Clark was named American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week and earned first-team All-American Athletic Conference honors.
A year later, Galante and Clark followed Sumrall to UF, where another Australian punter, Jeremy Crawshaw, stood out earlier this decade.
Clark and kicker Patrick Durkin were the only two players to make the move from Tulane to Florida.
After nearly four years together, Clark doesn't really see Galante as his coach anymore.
"I absolutely love Galante; he gives me a lot of confidence going out there," Clark said. "It's not really that coach-player relationship; we're kind of just friends and mates and going back and forth with each other, which I really love the relationship we have."
There is, however, one problem with that relationship.
The better Florida's offense plays, the less Galante and Florida fans get to see Clark at work.
And that's just fine with Sumrall.
In Florida's season opener against FAU, the Gators scored a field goal or touchdown on every possession except one that ended in a turnover.
Clark never punted.
"He was fine with it," Durkin said. "I mean, if he's not punting, his offense is rolling. He's so selfless, all that matters is the team and us winning. And especially his unit, all that matters is positively impacting the team and helping us win games. Because all the individual stuff, it really doesn't matter. It's all about the team and us winning games, and that trumps everything."
The fiery Sumrall, who Clark said hasn't changed since he first met him, felt the same way.
"I'd love to never punt," Sumrall said after Florida's 66-21 win over FAU. "I love Alec Clark; he's a great holder. He might be as good of a holder as he is a punter. He's a pretty good punter. But yeah, I don't care if I ever see him play."
Punter Alec Clark and kicker Patrick Durkin are the only two Tulane players who followed head coach Jon Sumrall to UF. (Photo: Imagn Images via Reuters Connect)
Clark finally got his chance in Florida's second game against Campbell.
His first punt came in the third quarter and traveled 49 yards before being caught for a fair catch.
His second was a little more memorable.
With Florida leading 52-3, Clark took the snap out of punt formation and ran down the sideline for 13 yards. He came up a yard short of a first down, turning the ball over on downs.
Still, for one play, at least, Clark became a running back.
Sumrall had signed off on the fake punt. He just didn't realize how far the Gators would have to go to convert it.
"I'd already told Galante to run it no matter what happened," Sumrall said. "And we got to 4th and 14th. I'm like, it's a little longer than I'd like to do it, but let's go ahead and cut it loose anyways and just see what happens."
That has been about the extent of Clark's involvement through the first four games of the season.
Florida's offense has made sure of that.
The No. 8-ranked Gators (4-0, 2-0) enter Saturday's game at No. 25 Missouri (3-1, 0-1) second nationally in scoring (53.5 points per game), fifth in total offense (532.8 yards) and eighth in yards per play (7.58).
Clark has served primarily as a sideline statue.
But when his opportunities come, his parents are watching. From 11,353 miles away in Perth, Australia, they have adjusted to a new version of football viewing: Sunday morning football.
During Florida's win over Ole Miss, they were awake at 3:30 a.m. when Clark lined up for his first punt.
This one was worth the early wake-up call.
Clark launched a 70-yarder that tied his career long and pinned the Rebels at their 2-yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining before halftime.
His parents got to see him do what they have followed from the other side of the world since the day he first put a football in the air for Galante on FaceTime.
"My mom doesn't really know too much on the rules," Clark said. "She was like — was it good? Yes, I thought it was pretty good. But no, they were both pretty happy."
It has been a long journey for Clark, literally and figuratively.
From an Australian footy field to a FaceTime audition with Galante, from Marshall to Tulane to Florida, Clark has had the same coach — and now, as he puts it, the same mate — along for the ride.
His parents have made adjustments to their weekend sleep schedule. Clark has made the adjustment to American football.
And Florida has made one thing clear: Nobody wants to see Alec Clark on the field very often.
But when they do, the Australian is ready to flip the field.
