Florida Gators Football

The Florida Gators' quarterback controversy may have reached an unfortunate settlement as redshirt sophomore Kyle Trask reportedly suffered a serious knee injury at practice on Wednesday. 

According to 247Sports' Thomas Goldkamp, Trask had to be carted off the field on Wednesday after suffering a non-contact leg injury.

The full extent of the injury is not yet known, but Graham Hall of the Gainesville News reported that it could be of the season-ending variety.

Trask is a former 3-star recruit, according to 247Sports. He redshirted his first year on his campus and underwent multiple operations last year. He required knee surgery in the spring of 2017 to repair a torn meniscus and later went under the knife for a foot injury suffered days before the 2017 season opener, missing the entire campaign as a result.

Redshirt sophomore Feleipe Franks has been the Gators' starting quarterback this season, completing 55.6 percent of his passes on the season for 1,595 yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions; he also has 173 rushing yards and three scores on the ground.

However, as Florida was on its way to its second consecutive loss last week, Mullen opted to bench Franks in favor of Trask in the middle of a 38-17 defeat to Missouri. Over the last two games, Franks completed just 22 of 43 passes for 189 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Trask went 10-of-18 for 126 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions against the Tigers in relief duty.

Earlier on Wednesday, Mullen declined to provide any details as to who would be under center against South Carolina on Saturday.

"I'm not going to share what our strategy is," Mullen told reporters, per the Orlando Sentinel's Edgar Thompson.

Well, that decision may have been made for him after Trask's injury.

Florida's hopes of winning the SEC East came to an end last week as Georgia wrapped up the division, but the Gators (6-3) are still fighting for better bowl positioning. They have three games remaining on their regular-season schedule, South Carolina (home), Idaho (home) and Florida State (road).

2007 Heisman Trophy winner and two-time national champion Tim Tebow was inducted into the Florida Gators' ring of honor at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium after the first quarter of Saturday's game against LSU.

The former dual-threat quarterback became the sixth member of the ring of honor, joining Wilber Marshall, Emmitt Smith, Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel and Jack Youngblood.

BR Video

"I want to thank my mom and dad for making me a Gator on Day 1," Tebow said, according to ESPN.com's Andrea Adelson. "I want to thank all of my teammates and coaches for having my back through thick and thin. I love you guys. And Gator Nation, I love you guys. Thank you.

"I was born a Gator. I played as a Gator, and I'll die a Gator."

Tebow finished his four-year stay in Gainesville with 9,285 passing yards, 88 passing touchdowns, 2,947 rushing yards and 57 scores on the ground.

College football isn't always filled with feel-good moments, but the Florida Gators enjoyed one recently when head coach Dan Mullen surprised R.J. Raymond and Nicholas Villano by telling them they'd received scholarships in front of their teammates: 

That apparently would have never happened under former coach Jim McElwain.

Former Florida walk-on quarterback Luke Del Rio said on a video McElwain sometimes took scholarships back from walk-ons after he awarded them with one, which is why there were never videos like the one involving Mullen.

Adam Spencer of Saturday Down South shared some of Del Rio's words explaining that the players wouldn't even find out they were pulled from scholarships until they received a letter:

"So, he's put on scholarship, silently, like I was. The team wasn't notified, nothing. Every half year … you are sent a letter—an official scholarship letter stating here's what you're going to get paid. Well, R.J. got his letter—and this happened to several people, all of the dollar values were goose eggs. Now, if you can think of a better way to more passive aggressively tell somebody they are no longer on scholarship, tell me. You're a f--king coward if you do that."

Del Rio alleged McElwain would do so if the Gators needed the additional scholarships for recruiting.

Del Rio is the son of former Jacksonville Jaguars and Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio and played at Florida after stints at Alabama and Oregon State. He appeared in eight games with the Gators in 2016 and 2017 and threw for 1,496 yards, nine touchdowns and nine interceptions.

McElwain went 22-12 with the Gators from 2015 through 2017 before he and the school parted ways in October of last year.

Edward Aschoff and Mark Schlabach of ESPN.com reported school administrators were looking into potentially firing him before they parted ways "after failing to find any evidence to substantiate claims made by McElwain this week that his family and players received death threats."

Florida hired Mullen this offseason with the hope of returning to national prominence. The Gators are just 52-36 since Urban Meyer left following the 2010 campaign after going 65-15 and winning two national titles under his direction.

Mullen will have his work cut out for him against the formidable SEC on the field, but he is apparently already treating the walk-ons better given the differences between his approach and McElwain’s as described by Del Rio.

Florida Gators football players Kadarius Toney and Kyree Campbell were caught on video in May wielding simulated weapons at Flavet Field on the campus of the University of Florida in Gainesville.

The University of Florida Police Department (via the Gainesville Sun) released the following video of the May 28 incident on Monday:

According to Kevin Brockway of the Gainesville Sun, police said seven University of Florida football players were involved in the incident.

Toney and Campbell were the ones who brandished the guns, which were actually airsoft rifles.

Per Brockway, Toney and Campbell were pointing the guns at 21-year-old Devante' Zachery.

According to Juliette Dryer and Matthew Head of First Coast News, Zachery told police he gave Florida football players discounts on rental cars at Enterprise.

Zachery also reportedly told police that he believed his life was in danger after a friend of his "knocked out" Gators wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland.

Toney is a sophomore wide receiver who primarily played quarterback in high school. Last season, Toney finished with 15 receptions for 152 yards and 14 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown.

Campbell is a sophomore defensive tackle who had 12 tackles and 1.0 sack as a freshman last season.

Brockway added that while none of the seven players have been charged, Toney, Campbell, Cleveland, tight end Kemore Gamble, quarterback Emory Jones and wide receiver Rick Wells have been recommended to appear in front of the Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution department.

All of them could face discipline for lying to police about the incident.

Freshman cornerback Justin Watkins announced Friday that he is leaving the University of Florida's football program in a since-deleted tweet, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald.

Watkins was arrested Tuesday for the second time in three months and charged with third-degree felony kidnapping/false imprisonment and domestic battery by strangulation, according to ESPN.com's Edward Aschoff.

He is also facing two misdemeanor charges of first-degree battery.

Gators head coach Dan Mullen previously announced that Watkins had been suspended indefinitely from team activities.

According to the arrest report published by WCJB in Gainesville, Florida, Watkins allegedly held a woman down on a bed while punching, slapping and choking her on July 20.

Watkins was previously arrested in May for allegedly following a female student to a gas station before breaking her cellphone and kicking her car, per Aschoff.

The Clermont, Florida, native played both corner and wide receiver at East Ridge High School before committing to play at the University of Florida.

According to 247Sports, Watkins was a 4-star recruit who ranked as the No. 89 overall player in the Class of 2018.

Watkins was released from Alachua County Jail on Wednesday on $40,000 bond, per Thomas Goldkamp of 247Sports.

Several Florida football players could face discipline from the school after an on-campus incident in May, according to Matt Head of First Coast News.

The players reportedly were involved in a confrontation with a group including Devante' Zachery, a gambler from the area known as "Tay Bang."

Those named in the report face possible student conduct violations.

According to the police report, Zachery and others got into a confrontation with the players, who brought out airsoft rifles that looked like assault rifles.

Wide receiver Kadarius Toney and defensive tackle Kyree Campbell were recommended to the University of Florida's Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution for their roles in the conflict while holding weapons.

Wide receivers Tyrie Cleveland and Rick Wells, along with tight end Kemore Gamble and quarterback Emory Jones, were also listed for lying to the police after the incident.

“We were made aware of the incident when it occurred and immediately began following campus protocol,” Florida head coach Dan Mullen said in a statement Wednesday night, via Graham Hall of Gatorsports.com. “This has been an opportunity for us to educate our players about the dangers and negative perceptions that can occur when conflict arises, and how important honesty and good decision making is.”

None of the players have been charged with a crime.

Florida Gators freshman wide receiver Justin Watkins has been suspended indefinitely from all team activities following his second arrest of the offseason. 

According to arrest records from Alachua County in Florida (h/t Saturday Down South's Adam Spence), Watkins was arrested and remains in custody after he was charged with two counts of first-degree misdemeanor battery that caused bodily harm, one count of felony kidnapping and false imprisonment and one count of felony domestic battery by strangulation. 

"Justin Watkins has been suspended immediately from all activities," head coach Dan Mullen said in a statement provided to 247Sports.com's Thomas Goldkamp. 

In a since-deleted tweet on Friday, Watkins wrote "I will be leaving the university of Florida to better my opportunities."

According to the arrest report (via Graham Hall of Gainesville.com), Watkins "struck his 18-year-old girlfriend with an open and closed fist on both sides of her head and on her shoulders while holding her down on a dorm room bed."

The report also says Watkins "got on top of her, pinning her to the bed again, the report says, wrapped his hands around her neck and choked her three times, once for 15 seconds and twice for about eight seconds."

Watkins is accused of blocking his girlfriend's exit before she "sprayed mace in his face and fled."

Watkins was previously arrested in May on a misdemeanor charge of trespassing on school grounds after he allegedly kicked a woman's car and broke her phone, according to the Tampa Bay Times' Matt Baker. 

A 4-star recruit, Watkins was the class of 2018's 89th-ranked player overall and 16th-ranked wide receiver. The Clermont, Florida, native was also the Sunshine State's 20th-ranked player, regardless of position. 

According to Goldkamp, Watkins was "expected to contribute at cornerback" and provide some speed on special teams as a freshman. 

Recruit information courtesy of 247Sports.com. 

Florida commit Justin Watkins, a 4-star wide receiver, was arrested Tuesday after allegedly kicking an unnamed female high school student's car and breaking her phone. 

Police records obtained by Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times say Watkins was arrested on trespassing charges because he was not a student at the school. Police say he took a cell phone from the student and shattered it on the ground after a verbal altercation.

"We are aware of the incident with Justin and are still collecting information," Gators coach Dan Mullen said.

The police report said Watkins had "no legitimate purpose for being on the school campus."

Watkins was released early Wednesday morning on $500 bond.

University of Florida defensive end Cece Jefferson reportedly underwent shoulder surgery this week that will require a four-month recovery.

Robbie Andreu of the Gainesville Sun first reported the "significant" procedure on Wednesday night. Edward Aschoff of ESPN.com noted the lineman is expected back during the Gators' fall camp in August.

The program would not confirm the surgery, with new head coach Dan Mullen "reluctant" to provide information about injuries, per Andreu.

Jefferson decided to return for his senior season with Florida rather than enter the 2018 NFL draft. He suffered the shoulder injury during the team's spring game on Saturday.

The Florida native put together his best statistical season with the Gators in 2017. He racked up 47 total tackles and 4.5 sacks in 11 appearances.

He's struggled to reach the expectations that followed him to the program, though. The edge-rusher was a 5-star prospect and the No. 7 overall player in the 2015 recruiting class, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

While Jefferson hasn't played at that type of elite level so far in college, he's expected to take on an important role for the Gators during the upcoming season and could enjoy a breakout campaign.

The projected four-month timetable gives him enough leeway to recover in time for the team's season-opening clash with Charleston Southern on Sept. 1.

Former Florida Gators head football coach Jim McElwain accepted an offer for his Gainesville home that was $400,000 below what he paid for it because the offer came from a family with two children with disabilities.

On Friday, Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times reported the details of the real estate transaction, which originally drew jokes about how McElwain was taking another loss in Florida.

The 56-year-old Montana native, who parted ways with the Gators last October, hadn't officially listed the house for sale when an offer came in from Rick Staab. McElwain's family was going to decline the proposal, but then it learned more about how perfect the house would be for Staab's children, per Baker.

"Because the McElwains have a good heart," real estate agent Daurine Wehbe said about accepting the lower offer. "No one knows that. No one appreciates that."

Baker noted Staab, who had visited the home for a charity dinner, kept in occasional contact with McElwain and decided to make the offer after the coach's tenure with the Gators ended. He knew it was a place that would be perfect for his kids.

"This solves everything," Staab said.

McElwain has left Florida to become the wide receivers coach for the Michigan Wolverines under head coach Jim Harbaugh.