GAINESVILLE — New Gators’ coach Jon Sumrall inherited a four-win team with a roster in need of a massive overhaul.

The transfer portal, which opened Friday, allows programs to accelerate the rebuilding process and replace departing players — more than 20 in Florida’s case.

After signing a 2026 recruiting class ranked 16th nationally while he still coached the Green Wave to CFP berth, Sumrall and his staff turned their attention to the 15-day transfer portal window Jan. 2-16.

Here’s a look at who the Gators have signed:

WR Eric Singleton, Auburn (committed Jan. 10)

Vitals: 5-10, 180 pounds

Resumé: Singleton was a 3-star prospect out of Alexander in Douglasville, Georgia, rated the nation’s No. 73 wide receiver in the 2023 class. He had 65 catches for 1,115 yards and 12 scores as a senior in 2022 before signing at Georgia Tech.

Role: Singleton produced immediately for the Yellow Jackets. He had 48 catches for 714 yards and six touchdowns as a true freshman, followed by 56 grabs for 754 yards and three scores as a sophomore before transferring to Auburn. Paired with elite sophomore receiver Cam Coleman and catching passes from Jackson Arnold, the SEC’s lowest-rated quarterback, Singleton produced 58 receptions for 534 yards and three touchdowns in 2025.

Outlook: The Gators have vast potential on the perimeter. Leading receiver Vernell Brown III and 6-foot-3, 213-pound Dallas Wilson return for their sophomore season, while redshirt sophomore TJ Abrams looks build on a his November contributions (nine catches, 105 yards). The Gators also welcome Davian Groce, rated the nation’s No. 4 “athlete” and No. 47 overall recruit, out of Frisco, Texas.

C Harrison Moore, Georgia Tech (Jan. 9)

Vitals: 6-5, 300 pounds

Resumé: Moore was a 3-star prospect rated the nation’s No. 83 interior offensive line prospect in the 2024 class.

Role: Moore did not allow a sack on 866 snaps during two seasons and 21 appearances, including 10 starts (nine in 2025).

Outlook: The Gators’ offensive line must replace 2024 All-America center Jake Slaughter, left tackle Austin Barber and right guard Damion George completed their eligibility. The trio, which combined for 102 starts at UF, was expected to anchor one of the nation’s top O-lines. UF will return three players with starting experience, left guard Knijeah Harris, who started 25 games the past two seasons, right tackle Caden Jones, who started 10 games in 2025, and five-game starter Bryce Lovett.

OL Emeka Ugorji, Stanford (Jan. 9)

Vitals: 6-5, 300 pounds

Resumé: Ugorji was a 3-star prospect out of South Oak Cliff in Dallas rated the nation’s No. 71 offensive line prospect in the 2025 class.

Role: Ugorji stepped in as a true freshman to appear in 10 games, including eight starts — seven of them at right guard. He led the ACC in offensive guard snaps with 523, while committing just two penalties.

Outlook: Ugorji is a promising young player who could step in and challenge for a starting role at a position in flux during a massive overhaul up front. Harris, who started 25 games the past two seasons, should handle the left side, but George’s departure leaves a hole at right guard. Ugorji also can play right tackle, where Jones was a solid performer and Lovett struggled.

RB London Montgomery, East Carolina (Jan. 8)

Vitals: 5-11, 197 pounds

Resumé: Montgomery was a 3-star prospect out of Scranton (Pennsylvania) Prep rated the nation’s No. 35 running back in the 2023 class by 247Sports who signed with Penn State out of high school. 

Role: Montgomery transferred after one season to East Carolina, where he rushed for 1,001 yards and nine touchdowns in two seasons, including a team-leading 742 yards and seven scores on 156 carries in 2005.

Outlook: Montgomery joins Cincinnati transfer Evan Pryor to provide returning 1,000-yard rusher Jadan Baugh experienced, proven backups, while Duke Clark and Byron Louis will push for bigger roles as redshirt freshmen in 2026.

S Cam Dooley, Kentucky (Jan. 8)

Vitals: 6-2, 208 pounds

Resumé: Dooley was a 4-star prospect rated as the nation’s No. 8 athlete and No. 195 overall recruiting in the 2024 class.

Role: Playing for Florida’s new safeties coach Chris Collins, Dooley recorded 30 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble as a sophomore in 2025.

Outlook: Dooley would play safety or move to the nickel position after Sharif Denson’s departure for Ole Miss and Aaron Gates entered in the portal. Lagonza Hayward saw some action there as a true freshman. At safety, the Gators lost three-year starter Jordan Castell but will return senior Bryce Thornton and sophomore Drake Stubbs of Jacksonville. UF signed 2025 Under Armour All-American Kaiden “KD” Hall of Milton, on the Florida Panhandle, and Dylan Purter of Alabama, who flipped his commitment from LSU.

S Elijah Owens, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (Jan. 7)

Vitals: 6-3, 210 pounds

Resumé: Owens was unrated out of Citronelle High on the northern border of Mobile, Alabama, where he recorded 84 tackles, four interceptions and three forced fumbles during the 2023-24 seasons.

Role: Owens spent 2025 at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, tallying 65 tackles, an interception and three passes defended last season..

Outlook: Owens will provide much-needed depth at safety, where Thornton is the only veteran, Owens will vie with Stubbs, Hall and Purter for snaps.

WR Micah Mays Jr., Wake Forest (Jan. 7)

Vitals: 6-2, 196 pounds

Resumé: Mays was a 4-star from The Benjamin School in North Palm Beach rated the nation’s No. 25 receiver and No. 177 overall prospect in the 2023 class.

Role: recorded Mays caught 34 passes for 520 yards and four sscores during 22 games the past two seasons with the Demon Deacons.

Outlook: Mays will push to carve out a role as the Gators’ receiving corps continues to improve with Singleton’s signing, the return of Brown, Wilson and TJ Abrams, and the addition of Groce.

QB Aaron Philo, Georgia Tech (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 6-2, 220 pounds

Resumé: Philo was a 3-star prospect out of Prince Avenue Christian School in Bogart, Georgia, rated the nation’s No. 47 quarterback in the 2024 class by 247Sports. Philo threw for a state record 13,922 passing yards to break Jacksonville Jaguars’ quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s mark. As a senior in 2023, Philo passed for a single-season state-record 56 touchdowns.

Role: Philo served as backup to Haynes King in 2024 and 2025, while appearing in eight games. During his only start for the Yellow Jackets, Philo was 21-of-28 for 373 yards, with a touchdown and interception Sept. 6 against Gardner Webb. Overall, Philo completed 59 of 102 throws (57.8%) for 938 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He rushed for 95 yards and a score on 16 carries.

Outlook: Philo arrives to help new Gators’ offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner to replace DJ Lagway. Lagway started 19 games in two seasons but transferred after a disappointing sophomore season featuring an SEC-leading 14 interceptions and 16 touchdowns. Redshirt freshman Tramell Jones Jr., a 19-year-old former 4-star prospect from Jacksonville who appeared in two games at UF in 2025. Also in the mix is true freshman Will Griffin, a 4-star prospect who set records at Tampa Jesuit.

DE Emmanuel Oyebadejo, Jacksonville State (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 6-7, 295 pounds

Resumé: Oyebadejo was an unrated prospect out of Loreto College Manchester, England, who in 2024 landed at Jacksonville State, an FCS school in Alabama.

Role: Oyebadejo recorded 41 tackles, including 6.5 for loss (4.5 sacks), in 2025. He also had six quarterback hurries, five pass breakups and two forced fumbles.

Outlook: The Gators re-signed edge rusher Kam James of Orlando for his senior season after he recorded 44 tackles, including 4.5 sacks, in 2025 and overshadowed fifth-year senior Tyreak Sapp (34 tackles, one sack). Veteran George Gumbs Jr. (31 tackles, 2.5 sacks) also was disappointing off the edge. Meanwhile, promising true freshman Jayden Woods (28 stops, 3.5 sacks) was a top target for Sumrall.

G TJ Shanahan Jr., Penn State (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 6-4, 330 pounds

Resumé: Shanahan, the cousin of former Gators’ guard Jon Halapio, was a 4-star prospect out of Austin (Texas) Westlake High rated the nation’s No. 21 interior offensive lineman in the 2023 class by 247Sports.

Role: Shanahan appeared in five games in 13 appearances after he transferred from Texas A&M, where he started five games and played 419 snaps during 10 appearances in 2024.

Outlook: Sumrall aimed to overhauls a Gators’ offensive line expected to be one of the nation’s best, but too often was inconsistent. Slaughter and Barber are the key losses, but Shanahan, Boyer, Moore and Ugorji offer plenty of options while Harris, Jones and Lovett return with a combined 40 starts. Keep an eye on 6-foot-5, 321-pound redshirt freshman Jahari Medlock, and 2024 USC transfer center Jason Zandamela, a redshirt sophomore.

OT Eagan Boyer, Penn State (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 6-8, 302 pounds

Resumé: Boyer was a 3-star prospect rated the nation’s No. 49 offensive tackle prospect in the 2024 class.

Role: Boyer appeared in 12 games during two seasons at Penn State, including eight in 2025. His only starter was  during the Nittany Lions’ 22-10 win against Clemson Dec. 27 in the Pinstripe Bowl.

Outlook: Boyer built himself from a 240-pound prospect to become a solid rotational player at Penn State. He’ll have to continue to develop to earn a key role on a unit that has been a focal point in the portal.

RB Evan Pryor, Cincinnati (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 5-9, 195 pounds

Resumé: Pryor was a 4-star prospect at Hough High School in Cornelius, N.C., who signed at Ohio State as the nation’s No. 7 running back in the 2021 class. He played two seasons and appeared in eight games during seasons in Columbus (2021-22).

Role: Pryor rushed for 522 yards, averaging 6.9 yards per carry, and scored three times for 2025 the Bearcats after totaling 418 yards and six scores on 56 carries in 2024.

Outlook: Jadan Baugh’s 266-yard day during UF’s 40-21 season-ending win against FSU made him the school’s first 1,000-yard rusher since 2015 and cemented the sophomore’s place the Gators’ key offensive weapon entering 2026. The departures of veterans Ja’Kobi Jackson, who played just four games because of injury, and Treyaun Webb, who did not play in 2025, put redshirt freshman Duke Clark and Byron Louis behind Baugh. Clark produced 58 yards on 14 carries, along with two catches for 14 yards in four appearances. Louis is a former Plantation American Heritage standout and a 4-star prospect in 2025 who did not appeared last season, but rushed 2,943 yards and 34 scores during his final two high school seasons.

K Patrick Durkin, Tulane (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 5-10, 175 pounds

Resumé: Durkin, native of Plainfield, Illinois, played at Joliet Catholic Academy where he was considered a developmental player at the college level needing to increase leg strength and explosiveness.

Role: Durkin put to rest any doubts in 2025. He was named the American Conference’s Special Teams Player of the Year after making 25-of-28 field goals attempt, with a long of 52 yards. As a redshirt freshman, Durkin tied second nationally in made field goals while also he ranked fifth with 66 touchbacks (on 77 kicks).

Outlook: Record-setter Trey Smack’s graduation and redshirt freshman Evan Noel’s departure leave the Gators in search of a kicker. Noel was rated the No. 1 kicker in the 2025 class by 247Sports.

P Alec Clark, Tulane (Jan. 6)

Vitals: 6-foot-1, 184 pounds

Resumé: Clark hails from Swan View, Australia, where he wasn’t rated among those in the 2023 class.

Role: Clark led the AAC with an average of 46.5 yards on 48 attempts, including 16 inside the 20-yard line. Clark followed new special teams coach Johathan Galante from Marshall and has two seasons of remaining eligibility. In 2024, Clark 42.4 yards on 55 punts.

Outlook: Redshirt freshman Hayden Craig, rated the No. 5 punter in the 2025 class, moved on despite Michigan transfer Tommy Doman leaving after he was a serviceable replacement for Jeremy Crawshaw, who averaged a school-record 46.4 yards per punt, including the single-season mark of 48.9 in 2023.

WR Bailey Stockton, Georgia Tech (Jan. 5)

Vitals: 5-11, 185 pounds

Resumé: Stockton was a 3-star prospect in the 2023 class who attened the Prince Avenue Christian School with Philo.

Role: Stockton 38 receptions for 439 yards and a touchdown in two seasons, including 21 catches for 233 yards during 11 appearances in 2025.

Outlook: Stockton and Mays will supplement of receiving corps built around Brown, Wilson and Singleton, Stockton’s former teammate at Georgia Tech. Groce will be a wild card as a first-year freshman.

DT DK Kalu, Baylor (Jan. 5)

Vitals: 6-4, 309 pounds

Resumé: Kala was a 3-star prospect out of Fort Bend Ridge Point in Missouri City, Texas, rated the nation’s No. 99 defensive tackle prospects in the 2023 class.

Role: Kalu recorded 11 tackles, including .5 for loss, and a quarterback hurry during nine games as a redshirt sophomore in 2025.

Outlook: The Gators lost Caleb Banks to the NFL and nose tackle Michai Boireau to the transfer portal. Baylor transfer Brendan Bett stepped in to produce (40 tackles, three sacks), while the emergence of true freshman Jeremiah McCloud (13 tackles) and Joseph Mbatchou (11) offer the Gators interior defenders to build around. UF also signed Kendall Guervil, a 4-star prospect out of Fort Myers, where he tallied 88 stops, including 12 for loss, in 2024.

TE Lacota Dippre, James Madison (Jan. 5)

Vitals: 6-3, 252 pounds

Resumé: Dippre was an unrated prospect out of Lakeland High in Jermyn, Pennsylvania, who spent 2023-24 at Charlotte, his final season on the defensive line.

Role: Dippre caught 17 passes for 192 yards and three touchdowns in 2025 during 13 appearances with a CFP qualifier.

Outlook: The departure of two-year starter Hayden Hansen leaves UF with only two experienced scholarship tight ends, senior Tony Livingston and redshirt sophomore Amir Jackson, who decided not to enter the portal. True freshman tight end Micah Jones, out of Madison, Miss., returns, but 3-star 2025 signee Cameron Kossman transferred. UF has yet to sign a tight end for the 2026 class. Kekua Aumua of Hawaii changed his commitment to Washington during the early signing period.

S DJ Coleman, Baylor (Jan. 4)

Vitals: 6-1, 210 pounds

Resumé: Coleman was a 3-star prospect out of Mesquite (Texas) Horn High School rated the nation’s No. 88 safety in the 2023 class.

Role: Coleman recorded 46 tackles, including 6.5 for loss, two interceptions, four pass breakups and two quarterbacks hurries during 12 games in 2025. He had 89 tackles and 13 pass breakups during 35 games in three seasons with the Bears.

Outlook: The Gators lost Castell but re-signed Thornton and return Stubbs, a Jacksonville native rated the nation’s No. 6 safety prospect in the 2025 class who managed just three tackles in eight appearances at Florida in 2025. Hall and Purter are a pair 4-star safeties in the 2026 class looking to get in the mix.

Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com