As the echoes of whistles fade and stadium lights dim on another intense and exciting college football season, Florida football has emerged with commendable recognition. USA TODAY Sports writer Paul Myerberg graded all 134 teams in college football based on their performance during the 2024 season and decided to give the Gators a B-plus.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Following the conclusion of the College Football Playoff National Championship game between Ohio State and Notre Dame on Monday, ESPN’s Mark Schlabach released ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 25, and the Florida Gators debuted at No. 18.

Another publication has the Florida Gators as a preseason top-15 team in its Way-To-Early Top 25 rankings. The latest comes from On3, which ranks UF inside its top 10. On Monday, On3’s Andy Staples and Ari Wasserman released their first way-too-early top 25 for the 2025 season and the Gators check in at No.

One of the biggest offseason needs for Florida football was the wide receiver position, and helping them fill that need was J. Michael Sturdivant, a notable wide receiver from UCLA who declared for the transfer portal on Dec. 10.

Former Wisconsin starting quarterback Graham Mertz officially declared for the 2025 NFL draft on Wednesday. Mertz spent two seasons at Florida (2023-24) after beginning his career with the Badgers (2019-22). He played in just five games for the Gators in 2024 before suffering a season-ending knee injury.

The College Football Playoff national title game ended with No. 8 seed Ohio State holding up the trophy after a 34-23 win over No. 7 Notre Dame on Monday night. After the game, the celebration kicked in for the Buckeyes and the rest of the college football world flipped the calendars to the 2025 season.

Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway receives another high freshman honor. The FWAA has named him a Freshman All-American. Lagway was also named to the ESPN Freshman All-American team as well as On3’s True Freshman All-American team.

As one of four returning starters, Florida football All-American center Jake Slaughter said the goal is for UF to become best OL in country in 2025

Former Louisville quarterback Harrison Bailey is in the process of signing with Florida, via the NCAA Transfer Portal, per On3’s Steve Wiltfong. Bailey will have one season of eligibility remaining after serving as Cardinals QB Tyler Shough ‘s backup this past season.

Florida quarterback DJ Lagway was named to the Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-America team.

Harrison Bailey, a former Tennessee quarterback entering his sixth and final season of eligibility, is transferring to Florida.

ESPN takes a look at every starting quarterback situation among Power Four schools, including Florida and DJ Lagway.