GAINESVILLE, Fla. – National runner-up finishes by men’s swimming & diving and women’s outdoor track & field highlighted a season that saw Florida produce nine top-10 NCAA team finishes to secure sixth in the 2025-26 LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup standings.
With the finish, Florida extended its streak of top-10 national all-sports finishes to 42 consecutive years, remaining the only program in the country to achieve that distinction.
Florida’s Top-10 Finishes:
In 2025-26, nine Gators teams placed among the nation’s final top
No. 2 Men’s Swimming & Diving
No. 2 Women’s Outdoor Track & Field
No. 3 Gymnastics
No. 3 Men’s Indoor Track & Field
No. 5 Women’s Cross Country
No. T5 Men’s Golf
No. T5 Women’s Indoor Track & Field
No. T9 Softball
No. 10 Women’s Swimming & Diving
2025-26 LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup Standings
Rank
School
Points
1.
Texas
1322.00
2.
Stanford
1263.50
3.
UCLA
1199.25
4.
North Carolina
1166.75
5.
Virginia
1148.75
6.
FLORIDA
1104.50
7.
Southern California
1095.50
8.
Georgia
1081.25
9.
Michigan
1076.75
10.
Ohio State
1071.25
It was another impressive year for the Gators. With nine top-10 team finishes, including seven among the nation’s top five, our student-athletes, coaches and staff demonstrated the commitment, resilience and pursuit of excellence that define Florida Athletics. We’re grateful for their dedication and proud of the way they represented the Gator standard on the national stage throughout the year.
— Scott Stricklin
University of Florida Athletics Director
LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup
The LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup, presented annually by the nation’s athletics directors, recognizes the schools with the best overall sports performances in an academic year. The scoring system uses finishes in NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, women’s soccer and women’s volleyball championship action. Additionally, a program can receive points in up to 14 other sports toward its final score. Texas claimed its fourth Directors’ Cup this season.
2025-26 Individual NCAA Champions for the Gators
With six Gators accounting for eight NCAA individual championships in 2025-26, Florida extended its streak of producing at least five NCAA individual title winners to 18 consecutive completed seasons (since 2007-08). It is the 45th consecutive complete season with a Gator winning at least one individual national title.
Florida’s 2025-26 NCAA Individual National Champions
Sport
Name
Event
Gymnastics
Riley McCusker
Uneven Bars
Men’s Swimming
Ahmed Hafnaoui
500 Freestyle
Ahmed Jaouadi
1,650 Freestyle
Josh Liendo
50 Freestyle
100 Freestyle
100 Butterfly
Men’s Track & Field
Vance Nilsson
400 Hurdles
Women’s Track & Field
Alida van Daalen
Discus
Other Gators successes:
Florida led the Southeastern Conference with four team championships in 2025-26, highlighted by men’s basketball and a historic season from the women’s track and field program. The Gators captured SEC titles in cross country, indoor track and field and outdoor track and field to complete the program’s first SEC Triple Crown since 1996-97.
Those accomplishments helped Florida claim the 2025-26 USA Today Network SEC Overall All-Sports Trophy, marking the Gators’ 29th SEC Overall All-Sports title and first since the 2017-18 season.
Florida also extended its streak of winning at least one SEC championship to 48 consecutive seasons, the longest active streak in the conference.
Did You Know?
Florida’s 270 all-time conference team championships are the most in SEC history. The Gators have captured 46 league titles over the last 10 seasons.
Florida’s 29 SEC Overall All-Sports championships lead the conference by 19 titles. The Gators earned their first overall SEC All-Sports crown in 1987-88.
In addition, Florida lacrosse captured its second Big 12 championship in 2026. Since its inaugural season in 2010, the program has won 14 conference titles across four different leagues.
National recognition was earned by a pair of Gators:
Rueben Chinyelu NABC National Defensive Player of the Year
Josh Liendo CSCAA Co-Men’s Swimmer of the Year
Eight Gators earned conference individual honors:
Skye Blakely SEC Specialist Gymnast of the Year
Kelvin Cheruiyot SEC Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Year
Rueben Chinyelu SEC Men’s Basketball Defensive Player of the Year
Kaitlyn Davies Big 12 Lacrosse Midfielder of the Year
Clark Hamilton Big 12 Lacrosse Attacker of the Year
Aidan King SEC Baseball Pitcher of the Year
Josh Liendo SEC Men’s Swimmer of the Year
Alida van Daalen SEC Women’s Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year
Gators by the Numbers
9 top-10 national team finishes, including seven in the top five.
5 conference titles in 2025-26 for the Gators – men’s basketball, women’s cross country, women’s indoor and outdoor track & field and lacrosse.
93% Graduation Success Rate, as reported last fall in the 2025 NCAA Federal Graduation Rate data – above the national average of 90 percent.
3.43 grade point average by Gator student-athletes in the 2025-26 academic year, an all-time high. A total of 390 Gators earned 2025-26 SEC Academic Honor Roll recognition.
8 conference athlete of the year honors, marking the 49th consecutive season in which at least one Gator earned league athlete-of-the-year recognition..
83 Gators earned 195 All-America honors across 19 sports in 2025-26.
7 named to CSC Academic All-America teams, including Josh Liendo claiming men’s swimming & diving CSC Academic All-American of the Year award
6 coaches earned a combined 7 conference coach-of-the-year honors, marking the 31st consecutive season in which at least one Florida coach received league coach-of-the-year recognition.
1.1 million fans attended Gator home events in 2025–26, with four teams ranking among the nation’s top 10 in total or average attendance.