Florida Gators Week One Injury Report: OL Ethan White Out

A projected starter will miss Florida's season-opener.

Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen announced a slew of injuries ahead of the team's season opener against Ole Miss on September 26th.

Projected starting offensive lineman Ethan White had surgery on his knee, according to Mullen. White has been ruled out of Saturday's contest, however, Mullen said that he should be back "shortly". 

White confirmed the injury himself on Twitter.

Along with White, freshman defensive lineman Lamar Goods is out with a foot strain. Freshman returner/defensive back Fenley Graham will be out with a broken arm, which was suffered during the team's first scrimmage, and freshman defensive back Ethan Pouncey will miss the entire season after undergoing hip surgery, which he announced on Instagram over the weekend. Athlete Nick Sutton and Joshua Tse will also be out.

Up until this point, the team has not had any opt-outs amid the coronavirus pandemic, however, Mullen made note that it's "only Monday."

Losing White certainly stings for Florida's offensive line, a unit that has made strides during fall camp according to the coaching staff and players. White was seen competing at the center position as the Gators look to replace two-year starter Nick Buchanan, who graduated this offseason. He also has experience at guard, making him a versatile player for offensive line coach John Hevesy's unit.

Mullen told the media that he expected White to start at either center or guard.

White, Florida's lowest-rated recruit a year ago by consensus rankings, earned playing time as a freshman including a start against Vanderbilt and 38 offensive snaps against Virginia in the 2019 Orange Bowl.

Two likely candidates to play on the interior are seniors Brett Heggie and Stewart Reese, however, it has yet to be seen who will step up in the third spot with White on the sidelines. Richard Gouraige has experience inside and out, who could fill in at left guard with Heggie at center and Reese at right guard, paired with Stone Forsythe and Jean Delance at both tackle spots.