SI Article: LJ McCray's Strong Offseason Setting Up for Future Success

LJ McCray is expected to be a consistent face in the Florida Gators' two-deep rotation.


Florida Gators edge LJ McCray (11) looks on during spring football practice at Heavener Football Complex at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun] / Matt Pendleton / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

By: Terrance Biggs -- August 5, 2025

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Now a sophomore, Florida Gators edge rusher LJ McCray looks forward to a new year filled with a larger role.

Sitting behind senior George Gumbs Jr., McCray is the expected immediate backup at the Jack position and can learn at a different rate now after experiencing the speed of the game ahead. One of his biggest supporters is Gumbs Jr., who praised McCray during a media availability last week.

“Aww man, LJ, shoot, he had a crazy offseason, like, seeing him from the weight room standpoint, like, shoot, he was putting up numbers I never thought he'd do like this early," Gumbs Jr. said. "Like, he caught up to me in power clean, and I'm like, ‘Okay, you're getting pretty strong.’

“And then, you know, just then his body's making a transformation as well. And then, like, just having him under me, like teaching him my routine, what I do, so that's been helping him as well, like, how to recover, how to watch film, and things, yeah.”


LJ McCray's Strong Offseason Setting Up for Future Success