Florida Gators Announce Captains for LSU Game

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- The Florida Gators on Friday revealed its three captains for its Week 3 matchup at No. 3 LSU.

Sophomore running back Jadan Baugh, senior edge rusher Tyreak Sapp and senior kicker Trey Smack will represent Florida during Saturday's coin toss.

Game 3️⃣ Captains 🫡 pic.twitter.com/CG6LFkmDn1
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) September 12, 2025

This is the third different group of captains for Florida after corner Devin Moore, offensive lineman Austin Barber and corner Dijon Johnson held the role last week and running back Ja'Kobi Jackson, edge rusher George Gumbs Jr. and long snapper Rocco Underwood held the role two weeks ago.

Earlier this season, head coach Billy Napier explained why Florida prefers different captains each week.

"I think we have lots of guys that are capable," he said. "You know, we allow the players to vote at the end of the year. That's our thought process is to observe the group within competition, within the adversity of the season, the ups and downs, and then over time, their body of work as a leader. We got, probably had more votes last year, you know, it was spread out. So I think that's a good thing."

Baugh has quickly picked up where he left off from last season already rushing for 197 yards through the first two weeks of the season, making him the No. 3 rusher in the SEC. While the talent has always been there, evidenced by his 600-yard, seven-touchdown freshman season, Baugh saw himself emerging as a leader after his Week 1 effort.

“My biggest improvement is being a leader, I tell everybody that," he said. "That helps me more on the field, being a leader, being vocal and being able to get the guys' trust to see whatever I’m seeing.”

Sophomore Jadan Baugh rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown in the win over Long Island. | Kyle Lander / Florida Gators on SI

Meanwhile, Smack is in the middle of a bounce-back stretch after missing three field goals in the season opener. In the loss to USF, the senior drilled three field goals to keep Florida in the game. After his struggles in the season opener, Napier emphasized the need to keep giving Smack opportunities.

"The guy's an elite competitor and he is phenomenal at his job," Napier said. "It’s important to him, so he's going to work extremely hard and he'll be ready. That's what makes him great is he can think he's got the mental makeup and the toughness. Great shooters, when they miss early, they don't stop shooting. They keep shooting. So we'll keep letting Trey shoot.”

Florida Gators place kicker Trey Smack made three field goals in the loss to USF. | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Rounding out the group is Sapp, arguably the loudest leader on Florida's roster this season. After last week's loss to USF, Sapp led a team meeting in the locker room, emphasizing accountability and overall effort.

“The message was really just, ‘the journey doesn’t end now. What happened on Saturday doesn’t reflect who we are, because who we are isn’t what we have done once. It’s what we do consistently,' he said Wednesday. "I just wanted to get that message out to them and let them know that that wasn’t enough, that wasn’t it, that wasn’t the standard and that wasn’t our best."

Both Sapp and Napier have seen the team elevate to Sapp's level of effort and intensity.

“Look, when you face adversity there’s a couple different choices you can make. You can shrink back, you can find a soft place and lay down, or you can elevate and you can take it to a different level, you can stand up, and I think we’ve got a group that’s ready to stand up," Napier said Wednesday. "I’ve seen them elevate, and [Tyreak] Sapp is obviously the leader of the pack.”

Kickoff on Saturday between Florida and LSU in Death Valley is at 7:30 p.m. with television coverage on ABC.

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