GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida football team reports for spring camp during the first week of March and the first practice will be held on Tuesday, March 3, Gators Online has learned.

The Gators will play the 2026 Orange & Blue Game inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, April 11.

That will be the third of three scrimmages for the Gators. The team will hold a total of 15 practices during the first spring under new head coach Jon Sumrall.

Florida will practice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays in camp, except for a Friday session on March 27. UF has a week off for spring break, March 14-21.

Jon Sumrall on what to expect from his team

“We’re going to play with an edge, a blue-collar mindset, and a chip on our shoulder. We will be tough. We will have grit. We will not be outworked. We will play with passion and physicality. We will build our scheme in all three phases around our players and their strengths. On offense, when I think of Florida football, I think of aggressive, I think of explosive, I think about mixing tempos, using it to your advantage, and dictating the game to the opponent. I think about stretching the field and threatening every blade of grass. It all starts with the quarterback and the pieces around him. We’ll get elite skill players here. We’ve got some already; we’ve got to keep them. Our O-line has to play with a demeanor that’s nasty and that is a force to be reckoned with, and that’ll happen. I may be a defensive guy, but I want to be more of a defensive guy like somebody Coach Spurrier knows like Bob Stoops. I want the scoreboard to light up.

“The way we’ve played maybe where I’ve been has looked a little different than how I want to play moving forward because your job everywhere you are is to figure out how you win for the place you’re at. Here, I think we can score a lot of points, and that’s what I want to do. Defensively we will swarm, and we will attack. We will play with great pursuit of the football and relentless effort. We’ll always be on the hunt because that’s what Gators do. We’re going to make our opponents uncomfortable. I want to be the most feared defense in the country. On special teams we’re going to play special. We’re going to be detailed. We’re going to be sound. We’re going to win the hidden yardage. We’re going to create an advantage in the kicking game. I’ve got a background in special teams. I’ve been a special teams coordinator. That will have my fingerprints on it.”

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