Florida WR Vernell Brown III indicates plans for 2026 season
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Florida WR Vernell Brown III has indicated that he’ll be back with the Gators for the 2026 season.
Brown’s social media followers noticed Monday night that he captioned an Instagram post with “back for it all next year.”
Injuries limited Brown to playing in just 10 games as a true freshman, but he was still the team’s most productive pass-catcher. Brown led Florida in receptions (40) and receiving yards (512). The former 5-star recruit, though, is still waiting to catch his first touchdown in a Gator uniform.
On Monday, Brown appeared on SEC This Morning to accept the show’s Catch of the Year award for his sensational Week 1 grab.
The award is named in honor of Gator great Chris Doering, who brought up Brown being a triple Gator legacy.
“I mean, it means everything,” Brown said of carrying on the family name at Florida. “Obviously, you say that family lineage and you know, just being from Gainesville and being able to wear that orange and blue growing up always wanting to wear that orange and blue. I mean, it’s an honor and I’m just extremely proud to wear those colors.”
Brown’s post indicates he plans to stick around and play for new UF head coach Jon Sumrall. The SEC Network hosts asked Brown about his early impressions of Sumrall.
“Yes, sir. Had a few conversations with him,” Brown said. “Definitely a great guy. You can feel his genuine energy and he has that that vibe to him that makes him a coach that you want to play for.”
“I mean, it was it was electric, kind of that strength coach energy that you would see in the head strength coach, you know that super hype energy, grab your attention,” Brown added. “That was him in, you know. From the moment he stepped in to the moment he stepped out, we were all locked in.”
Sumrall is reportedly bringing on Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech as the new Gator offensive coordinator. Though the hire hasn’t formally been announced by Florida, the hosts asked Brown what excites him about the new offense.
“Just the opportunity to make plays,” Brown said. “As a receiver and as an offensive guy, that’s all you can ask for out of a coordinator is to be put in a position. So, you know, just excited for that and to see what his offense looks like with the playmakers.”
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
