Damieon George Jr.’s motivation goes beyond the gridiron.
George, a redshirt senior, didn’t start his journey at Florida. His collegiate career began at Alabama, where, as a four-star recruit, he saw action in just two games throughout the 2022 season, following three starts in 2021.
“Leaving Alabama, I was 20 years old and just lost. I didn't know how to adapt to the college lifestyle, and that was the first time I was away from my mom and everything,” George said Oct. 15. “Everything’s on me. I got to figure it out, dig myself out of this hole, or just sink into it.”
George lost his father, Damieon George Sr. in 2016. His sister also passed away earlier this year. Although he’s a Houston, Texas, native, he decided to leave Alabama and transfer to Florida.
Since then, George has thrived with the Gators, starting in each game across the last two seasons for Florida at right guard, following a positional switch. He saw snaps at right tackle in his first year with UF and left tackle in the season finale against Florida State.
After various reports of George possibly entering the NCAA transfer portal following his junior season, he shut down the rumors by returning to UF for his sixth collegiate year.
George has bolstered the Gators’ offensive line this year, aiding the team to post 897 rushing yards heading into Week 10. Upon moving inside to guard, UF ranked No. 9 in the SEC in rushing yards in 2024.
Transferring from Alabama to Florida meant more to George than switching SEC programs. George underwent a life-changing event, causing a change in perspective. He welcomed his son, Saint, halfway through his collegiate career.
“It definitely made me grow up a lot, because I have a 3-year-old son and this whole lesson I had to teach him,” George said. “I just knew I had to get right for myself and put myself in better positions.”
Being among the oldest players on the Gators’ roster, George has taken it upon himself to lead by example for the underclassmen.
“Being a dad has impacted me a lot because I can see, whenever our young players are in their feelings or having a bad practice my instinct is to see what I can do,” George said. “Something about being a dad now, it just triggers me.”
George has been selected as a team captain twice spanning the last two seasons, most recently on Oct. 11 against Texas A&M. Being from Houston and growing up just shy of two hours from Kyle Field, the offensive lineman had a large cheering section in the Week 7 matchup, with upward of 20 of his friends and family supporting him.
Redshirt sophomore interior offensive lineman Roderick Kearny credits George with teaching him the ins and outs of Gators football. Kearney has logged 113 snaps heading into Texas A&M, all at right guard. He averaged a PFF pass block grade of 82.1 over the course of the first three games, including a team-high grade of 81.7 against LSU.
"He works hard, puts his head down, puts his hand on the ground, and gets off the ball and works,” Kearney said Sept. 3. “I just like to look up to that guy.”
Contact Riley Orovitz at rorovitz@alligator.org. Follow her on X @rileyorovitz
Riley is a sophomore sports journalism student and is the swim & dive beat reporter for Fall 2025 in her first semester with The Alligator. In her free time, she may be watching past Miami Dolphins or Florida Panthers highlights or hanging out with her friends.
