Don't Sleep on Florida Gators Tight Ends

Wide receivers get the limelight, but the Florida Gators have a deep, talented tight end room.

Florida Gators tight end Arlis Boardingham leads a deep room for the Gators in 2024. / Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK

Most of the focus is towards the wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks, but people shouldn’t forget about the Florida Gators tight ends either. That’s not to say they are the most impressive room on the team, but it is a deep and stable one. 

For starters, Florida returns redshirt-sophomores Arlis Boardingham and Hayden Hansen for the upcoming season. This is an important detail for the offense because it provides familiarity to the position and makes Billy Napier’s life a little bit easier having the same guys to communicate with. 

Boardingham had a positive 2023 as a redshirt-freshman where he played in all 12 games. Over the course of the year, he hauled in 26 passes for 289 yards and four touchdowns. And despite his impressive performances throughout, he was shockingly left off the All-SEC freshman team at season's end.

However, he was named to the John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List, an award given to the nation’s top tight end each year, for the start of this season.

Then, playing second fiddle to Boadingham, Hansen also supplied great relief when called upon. Just like his teammate, he played in all 12 games last season. In 2023, he had 12 receptions for 150 yards and two touchdowns.

Having just these two on the roster already makes this an impressive position group. However, in college football, to win games you need to stack as much talent as you can in each position. And this is something Napier has done with this tight end room. 

Over the summer, Napier brought in Caleb Rillos from the transfer portal and Amir Jackson from the 2024 high school recruiting class. 

The more experienced of the two, Rillos, brings with him extensive experience. Rillos played in 34 games over four years with Air Force before deciding to move to the Sunshine State. 

As for Jackson, he was rated as the 152nd overall prospect in the 2024 class and the number eight tight end in the nation, per 247Sports. His best year in the high school ranks came in his senior year where he reeled in 44 receptions for 727 yards and 12 touchdowns. 

So, while all the other positions might get the spotlight from the fans and media, don’t sleep on this tight end room as they have the talent and experience to be a real threat to any defense the Gators face this year.