With roster turnover becoming more prevalent throughout the college football landscape, the Florida Gators have maintained depth and quality at all ends.
That especially rings true in UF’s running back room, which features five backs who have either showcased excellence thus far or have the potential to be contributors to a team that pushes for a playoff appearance.
Despite losing veteran Montrell Johnson Jr., who rushed for over 2,100 yards and scored 21 touchdowns over a three-year span for the Gators, to the NFL, UF returns two rushers who racked up over 500 yards on the ground in 2024.
That experience props up a positional unit that college football expert Phil Steele ranks as his No. 14 running back group in the nation.
“The Gators are deep and talented in the backfield entering 2025,” Steele said. “[Jadan] Baugh and [Ja’Kobi] Jackson look like a solid duo, with [Treyaun] Webb, KD Daniels and Duke Clark in the mix.”
Headlining the unit is Jadan Baugh, a sophomore who burst onto the scene to pace the Gators in both rushing yards (673) and touchdowns (8) last season. The Atlanta native made four starts last season, the first of which came in UF’s 48-20 victory over Kentucky on Oct. 19.
The then-freshman was near-unstoppable that October evening, rushing for 106 yards and a program-record tying five rushing touchdowns. He now holds the single-game rushing touchdown record alongside Trey Burton and Tim Tebow.
Baugh’s breakout campaign earned him Freshman All-SEC honors in 2024 and saw him placed on both the Doak Walker and Paul Hornung Award Watch Lists for the 2025 season.
"I think the size, first of all, and then I think the change of direction, the loose hips, the ability to jump cut, and I think he's got speed and power,” head coach Billy Napier said. “He's got finishing speed."
Alongside Baugh, Ja’Kobi Jackson made an instant impact in his inaugural season for the Gators. The redshirt senior back recorded 509 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground, while adding 76 yards through the air.
The Coahoma Community College transfer also led the Gators on the ground during the 2025 Orange and Blue Spring Game, running for 198 yards and three touchdowns.
Jackson also has assumed a crucial leadership position, not only in the running back room, but in the offense as a whole as one of its most veteran players.
“Just by continuous work and just leading the young guys,” Jackson said about his leadership role. “For reps, I'm trying to be in the front. I'm trying to show them how to drill goals and everything.”
The two have formed a mentor and mentee relationship, with Baugh directly learning from and emulating Jackson’s game. Napier says it has not only strengthened their individual performances, but the team as a whole.
“Jadan got here last year and was able to observe a guy like Ja'Kobi in the way he worked, the way he practiced, his attitude, his energy,” Napier said. “Those two guys are some of our better teammates and players."
Behind the two-headed duo, redshirt sophomore Treyaun Webb brings two years of experience with the Gators to the table as a complimentary option and potential gadget piece.
The Jacksonville native served as a core special teamer and reserve running back over the past two seasons before suffering a season-ending fractured tibia midway through last season, earning a medical redshirt. He also recently had surgery earlier this August to repair a muscle rupture in his right hamstring, Swamp247’s Graham Hall reported.
While Webb’s injury is not expected to sideline him for long, it potentially opens the door for redshirt freshman KD Daniels and freshman Duke Clark to make their mark on the field.
Daniels, a consensus four-star recruit out of West Point, Mississippi, appeared in four games for the Gators in 2024, scoring his first collegiate touchdown in Florida’s Gasparilla Bowl victory over Tulane on Dec. 20. He finished the season with 11 carries for 77 yards.
Meanwhile, Clark, another four-star recruit, chose the Gators over a number of top programs, including Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State. The Tampa native racked up 1,735 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns as well as 1,300 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns in his high school career, showcasing potential duel-threat ability out of the backfield.
With the season nearing its beginning on Aug. 30 as the Gators host Long Island, there is plenty of confidence from within the team regarding the ground game for the Gators.
“I love the intangibles of the group,” Napier said. “There's a lot of height, length and speed and guys that have experience.”
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X @maxbernstein23.
Max is the Summer 2025 sports editor. He is a third-year journalism sports & media major and in his fifth semester at The Alligator. He is a big South Florida sports fan and would die for Matthew Tkachuk.
