Six Gators will participate in the Under Armour All-America game on Thursday, January 2nd, the most representatives among any team in college football. Florida originally had seven players in the game, but wide receiver Dallas Wilson dropped out. Signees Vernell Brown III, Naeshaun Montgomery, Jalen Wiggins, Ty Jackson, Bryon Louis, and 2026 commit Will Griffin went through a series of practices at ESPN Wide World of Sports with their respective teams.
Here are my notes from the practices.
WR Naeshaun Montgomery
Montgomery was the second lowest rated recruit among the six Gators in attendance, and likely one of the lowest rated recruits out of the entire camp, but you’d have no idea by watching Montgomery compete against some of the best competition in the country.
The 6’1, 165-pound receiver put on a show on day one of practice, hauling in a team high six catches and scoring team Icon’s lone touchdown of the day on a beautiful ball from QB Keelon Russell, who frequently targeted Montgomery throughout the practice.
Montgomery created a ton of separation underneath and displayed enough speed to win over top. Montgomery was wide open a majority of practice No.1 thanks to his detailed route running. He understands how to track the ball and has strong hands. Montgomery is a better athlete than I originally gave him credit for. He can jump, has enough vertical speed, and has some wiggle after the catch.
Montgomery had a quieter second day but still freed himself twice in the endzone for back-to-back touchdowns in a seven-on-seven setting.
WR Vernell Brown III
Vernell Brown III doesn’t waste any time getting open. There’s a lot to like in his game, but his speed off the line of scrimmage is my favorite trait. His lighting quick release was troubling defenders, who were trying to play catch up the rest of the way. Brown III had a quiet first day but made a ton of noise during the second practice. His best play came against one of On3’s top performers, 2026 DB J’Vari Flowers.
Brown III also displayed a silky-smooth one-handed catch on the sideline. Brown III has elite run after catch ability.
Edge Jalen Wiggins
Jalen Wiggins is listed at 6’4.5, 255 pounds on 247 Sports. He’s every bit of that, if not more. Wiggins is extremely long and powerful. He doesn’t have much finesse to his game, but he’s strong enough to run right through you, which he did on a number of occasions during practice. Wiggins did a good job setting the edge against the run game, which was difficult against a dual-threat QB in Keelon Russell. Team Icon lined up Wiggins on the interior at times, which speaks to his versatility.
You aren’t allowed to hit the quarterback or really even tackle, so there weren’t many splash plays on defense, but Wiggins’ best play was a mean bull rush from the interior, where he pushed the guard about five yards backwards. Wiggins also impressed the coaches in individual drills. Wiggins’ best trait is his strength.
LB Ty Jackson
Speed, speed, and more speed. Ty Jackson is explosive out of his stance, which was my biggest takeaway. He does seem a little undersized, which may impact his playing time in year one.
QB Will Griffin
Quarterback Will Griffin is Florida’s lone 2026 commit participating in the Under Armour game. Griffin had a very up and down series of practices. For the most part, he always made the right decision with the football. He was very good at progressing through his reads, staying patient and calm in the pocket. He certainly has the arm talent, completing throws from sideline to sideline. His accuracy was just inconsistent at times, which is understandable given he’s working with a set of receivers for the first time. Expect Wilson to be the backup quarterback tomorrow to Keelon Russell, although they will alternate drives most likely.
RB Bryon Louis
Admittedly, I didn’t spend a lot of time watching running back Bryon Louis as he was the only Gator on team Unstoppable. Every time I was watching, they were going through instructional, walk through stuff. So, there’s not much to report here other than he was running with the ‘first team’.
Be sure to watch all Six Gators on ESPN at 4:00 P.M.