GAINESVILLE — Florida transfer quarterback Aaron Philo became a package deal when incoming head coach Jon Sumrall hired Buster Faulkner away from Georgia Tech to become offensive coordinator.
The Gators had to wait a month for delivery. But upon Faulkner’s early December arrival, he placed Philo on the layaway plan after his two seasons as the Yellow Jackets’ backup.
“Buster had extreme confidence in him,” Sumrall told reporters Saturday. “As I did my homework, think the place he was at, they didn’t want him to leave. There’s a lot of people there that felt like he was ready to be the starter there, and I trust our offensive coordinator to make the call.”
Two-year starter DJ Lagway’s decision to transfer from Florida further cleared the path for Philo, who signed with the Gators Jan. 6, four days after the transfer portal opened.
Philo has quickly adapted to his new surroundings.
Philo attended Florida’s 76-67 loss to Auburn Saturday at the O’Connell Center, where cameras showed him and running back Jadan Baugh on the video scoreboard doing the Gator Chomp — to the delight of a sold-out crowd of 11,004.
Philo still have much to prove. He started just one game during two seasons behind Haynes King at Georgia Tech, where Philo threw two touchdowns and three interceptions after a record-setting career at Prince Avenue Christian in Athens, Georgia.
Georgia Tech transfer quarterback Aaron Philo will join new Florida offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner in Gainesville, where the two aim to revive the Gators’ attack. Philo is pictured warming up before an NCAA college football game on Aug. 29, 2025, in Boulder, Colorado. (David Zalubowski/The Associated Press)
For comparison, Sumrall recalled Darian Mensah’s breakout freshman seasons at Tulane. Mensah threw 22 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 65.9% of his passes and averaging 9.5 yards per attempt before he transferred to Duke prior to the Green Wave’s 2024 loss to Florida in the Gasparilla Bowl.
“He’d never taken a collegiate snap,” Sumrall said. “I get it. That’s American Conference, not the SEC, so a little bit different. But, if you got the right guy, sometimes I think experience can be oversold. There’s a lot of guys are experienced that aren’t very good.
“So, I believe in what he’s about, because Buster feels comfortable with him and has confidence in what he’s going to be.”
If Philo can produce like Mensah, who had 34 touchdowns in 2025 at Duke, the Gators will have made a massive upgrade at the most critical position in football. Lagway followed an injury-plagued offseason with a sophomore slump featuring a SEC-high 14 interceptions after an offseason filled with accolades, NIL deals and even Heisman hype.
He’ll play his junior season at Baylor.
When spring practice opens March 3, 6-foot-1 ¾, 220-pound Philo will begin a quarterback competition with redshirt freshman Tramell Jones Jr., himself a player with vast potential after a decorated high school player from Jacksonville Mandarin.
“Tramell, I’m excited about,” Sumrall said. “I like our quarterback room. Is there maybe a known, proven starter in that room? No. Is there guys that think can help us win football games here? Yeah. Now we got a lot of work to do to figure out what that looks like and who’s the starter.
“Long way from making that decision, but they’ll make it for us. The quarterback competition, they decide who starts on me, by how they practice and how they play.”
Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com