Gators' RB Jadan Baugh Named SEC Freshman of the Week

Following a five-touchdown performance against Kentucky, Florida Gators freshman running back Jadan Baugh was named the SEC's Freshman of the Week for Week 8.

Oct 19, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators running back Jadan Baugh (13) gestures after scoring a touchdown against the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images / Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Following a five-touchdown performance in the Florida Gators' 48-20 win over Kentucky, true freshman running back Jadan Baugh was named the SEC's Freshman of the Week for Week 8, the conference announced Monday.

FIVE rushing touchdowns.🖐️@1vibesjay has been named SEC Freshman of the Week!#GoGators | #jOURney pic.twitter.com/gsgRastRIF

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) October 21, 2024

Baugh, who ran for 106 yards in his first-career start in place of an injured Montrell Johnson Jr., tied the UF record for rushing touchdowns in a game, which was previously held by Tim Tebow (2007) and Trey Burton (2010).

"Pretty good company there I would say," said UF head coach Billy Napier.

Baugh is also the first UF true freshman to rush for at least three touchdowns in a game since Burton's five in 2010, which also came against Kentucky. He scored all of Florida's offensive touchdowns against the Wildcats, and it was the most points scored by the Gators against an FBS opponent in Napier's tenure.

"Gives me confidence, but also gives my team, too, as in we know we could have been did this as an offense and a defense," Baugh. "Like the defense played great today. That gave us the opportunity on offense to do what we did today."

Baugh is also the first UF true freshman to have a multi-score game on the ground since Malik Davis in 2017, and it's the most touchdowns by a Gator in his first-career start.

Jadan Baugh ties the UF record for most rushing TD in a single game!! @1vibesjay

📺 SEC Network pic.twitter.com/ifTlzrERaH

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) October 20, 2024

Baugh's performance wasn't just historic because of the touchdown total. He also made history by starting alongside fellow freshman DJ Lagway, which made the duo the first true freshman quarterback-running back pair in program history to start in the same game. Lagway finished his second-career start with 259 yards passing on 7 of 14 passing.

"First of all, both were elite players coming out of high school that we worked extremely hard to prove this was the right fit for them. We had a vision for what they could accomplish here, person, student, and player, and a ton of people contributed to that," Napier said of the duo. "Both come from great families. Both have humility. Their work ethic is second to none, and they've been able to observe veteran players that do it exactly the way you would want a guy to do it."

Johnson Jr., who had previously been the starter in front of Baugh, is not expected to miss an extensive amount of time with his injury, which he suffered against Tennessee. However, Florida won't have a public update until Oct. 30, when the next availability report is released.

The Gators get a much-needed second bye week this week before turning its attention to four-straight ranked matchups, the first of which coming against heated rival Georgia. Kickoff from Jacksonville (Fla.) against the Bulldogs on Nov. 2 at 3:30 p.m.