Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Edge Rushers

All Gators is reviewing, and previewing, each position on Florida's roster during the 2024 offseason. Next, we'll look at the JACK and F edge-rushing positions.

Photo: Florida edge rusher Kelby Collins; Credit: Zach Goodall

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- The winds of attrition breezed through The Swamp again this winter, with Florida making 30 total scholarship roster additions and 21 subtractions via the NCAA transfer portal, along with several departing players heading toward the NFL Draft or their post-football careers.

All Gators is breaking down each position on Florida's roster as the team approaches spring training camp, reviewing the performances of each group in 2023 and previewing their makeup for the 2024 season.

Following our analyses of the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end, offensive line and interior defensive line groups, the Gators' edge-rushing positions are next on our list. 

If required, All Gators will revisit positions affected by the spring transfer portal window later this offseason. We will offer final depth chart projections during Florida's fall training camp in August. 

2023 Season in Review: Florida's Edge Rushers 

Perhaps no singular position on Florida's roster has experienced as much turnover as the JACK edge rusher under head coach Billy Napier. One of two edge alignments in the Gators' defensive scheme, opposite the "F" defensive end, the one-man weak-side JACK spot has lost three starting contributors over the past year and a half.

First, Brenton Cox Jr. was dismissed from the team in the middle of the 2022 campaign, before entering the NFL. His replacement, Antwaun Powell-Ryland Jr., transferred to Virginia Tech last offseason after filling in nicely for Cox to end the 2022 season. The duo combined for five sacks and 14 tackles for loss that year. 

After their departures, F end Princely Umanmielen flipped sides to the JACK position ahead of the 2023 season. 

Having reshaped his body over the 2022-23 offseasons from earlier in his career, the 6-foot-5, 255-pound Umanmielen looked the part of a fearsome SEC edge rusher and had prior production to back it up, eight sacks and 13 tackles for loss over three seasons.

Accordingly, Umanmielen experienced a breakout campaign at his new spot. 

He set single-season career highs and led the team with seven sacks, 11.5 tackles for loss, 28 defensive "stops" (tackles preventing meaningful yardage) and 45 quarterback pressures in 2023, per Pro Football Focus. 

His quarterback pressure count nearly doubled that of Florida's next-most disruptive pass rusher, 24 by interior lineman Caleb Banks. Umanmielen’s pressure rate was a spectacular 18.5%.

Umanmielen was largely expected to enter the NFL Draft as a result of his productive season. Florida lost his services this offseason, indeed, but rather than to the pros, Umanmielen transferred to SEC-rival Ole Miss, who the Gators will play in 2024.

Tyreak Sapp occupied Umanmielen's former starting role at F defensive end in 2023, but rotated frequently, with freshmen Kelby Collins and TJ Searcy moving in and out of the lineup at both positions. They tallied 296, 274 and 258 defensive snaps on the year, respectively.

Despite his backup status, Collins was Florida's second-most disruptive pass-rushing edge last season with 20 quarterback pressures, and while he generated just 1.5 sacks, he applied pressure on 12% of his pass-rushing snaps. He also recorded 15 stops.

The arrow is pointing up for Collins entering his sophomore year, as pressures often foreshadow sacks to come.

Searcy also proved dependable as a run defender, accumulating 3.5 tackles for loss, 13 stops and 26 total tackles, good for sixth-most, eighth-most and 10th-most on the team in those respective categories.

Sapp, who was mainly expected to handle interior responsibilities before Justus Boone's 2023 preseason ACL tear, offered occasional pass-rushing productivity but was primarily effective as a run-stopper. He tallied 26 tackles including 4.5 for loss and 16 defensive stops, all career bests.

Redshirt freshman Jack Pyburn started in place of Sapp against Arkansas while the latter nursed an injury. He posted four tackles for the second week in a row after establishing the number as a single-game career-high against Georgia, but suffered a torn ACL before Week 10's conclusion, ending his season. He finished 2023 with 17 tackles including one for loss. 

Freshman Kamran James also registered a considerable number of snaps on the defensive line, 77, in addition to 99 on special teams. He finished the year with four tackles. 

Out and In

Scholarship players only

• Out: Princely Umanmielen (transferred to Ole Miss)
• In: Brien Taylor Jr. (junior college transfer), George Gumbs Jr. (transfer from Northern Illinois), LJ McCray (freshman), Ja'Markis Weston (position change) 
  

Looking Forward

Given his experience in the role, we anticipate Sapp remaining the starter at F defensive end, although Boone's return from injury should make him a candidate for playing time at the spot. Boone recorded 24 tackles and a sack as a redshirt freshman in 2022. 

Although his utilization was marginal, James could also break into the rotation at F after appearing in each game defensively in 2024. Junior college edge transfer Brien Taylor Jr., a 6-foot-5, 281 pound edge, could factor in on the strong-side, too.

The JACK position does not boast as much playing experience to bank on entering 2024, but the potential offered by multiple young contributors is sky-high.

Collins, in particular, stands to benefit from Umanmielen's departure with a chance to start at JACK entering his second season of college ball. Although he was Florida's 15th-most deployed defensive player in 2023, he ranked No. 3 in pressures and No. 7 in stops across the entire unit. 

Listed at 6-foot-4, 272 pounds last season, Collins is perceived to be an ideal fit at strong-side end. But his ample athleticism and explosion to pair with great strength and physicality allows him to rush from multiple stances and different alignments, and with Sapp and others manning the F position, that leaves the JACK spot for Collins to take.

However, given his run-defending prowess, it could be Searcy who starts at the position with early-down responsibilities, with Collins subbing in on later downs and in apparent pass-rushing situations. Searcy's run-stopping skill-set could serve him well at both JACK and F. 

Northern Illinois transfer edge George Gumbs Jr. also offers upside on the weak-side. 

A former tight end, Gumbs moved to defensive end in 2023 and compiled 32 tackles with 6.5 for loss, 3.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and 17 quarterback pressures, leading to portal interest from Power 5 squads like Florida. He will require further development at the position, though. 

So long as Pyburn continues on a positive recovery track — he has been observed participating in rehabilitative workouts without a brace on his knee — he could reemerge at JACK as well. 

Freshman defenisve lineman LJ McCray was mentioned in our preview of Florida's interior defensive line, and is listed on UF's spring roster with the inside group, but Napier described the consensus five-star prospect as an F edge rusher during his Early Signing Period press conference. 

"He's going to play over the edge for us. Mike Peterson has been recruiting him," Napier said about McCray. "We kind of see him in that F mode. He certainly has got a lot of position flex." 

Early 2024 Gators EDGE Depth Chart Projection

JACK Starter: Kelby Collins (So.) 

JACK Backups: TJ Searcy (So.), George Gumbs Jr. (r-Jr.), Jack Pyburn (Jr.)

F Starter: Tyreak Sapp (r-Jr.) 

F Backups: Justus Boone (r-Jr.), Brien Taylor Jr. (Jr.), Kamran James (So.), LJ McCray (Fr.)

Reserves: Ja'Markis Weston (r-Sr.), Quincy Ivory (Jr.), Bryce Capers* (r-So.), Layne Swafford* (r-Fr.)

* indicates walk-on status 

Florida 2024 Positional Outlooks

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Quarterback

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Running Back

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Wide Receiver

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Tight End

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Offensive Line

Gators 2024 Positional Outlook: Interior Defensive Line

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