Florida Gators vs. Georgia Bulldogs Will Be 'Personal' for Brenton Cox Jr.

The Florida-Georgia rivalry touches home for fans, graduates, current and former players and coaches of both programs every year. In 2020, however, there's one person in particular that the annual matchup will affect the most, that being Florida edge rusher Brenton Cox Jr.

In fact, for Cox, the game will be personal.

“It definitely be personal. I just can’t wait to play [Georgia] in Jacksonville," Cox told media in early October. "Can’t wait to get the W.”

Of course, Cox signed with the Bulldogs coming out of Stockbridge, Ga., in the class of 2018. The former consensus five-star earned playing time and even a bowl game start for UGA before transferring to Florida just before the beginning of his sophomore season.

Reports surfaced that Cox had been dismissed from the program which led to his transfer, although UGA head coach Kirby Smart said that Cox withdrew on his own before transferring to UF.

"I actually was interested in Florida in high school," said Cox. "But you know, I chose to go to Georgia, and I kind of feel like I made the best decision to come here. Next question."

Cox was ineligible to play for the Gators in 2019, making his debut this year as a starter across Florida's front seven. Primarily playing on the edge, Cox has taken snaps at BUCK and strong-side end, as well as occasionally on the interior line, recording 22 tackles, 1.5 sacks, four tackles for loss, a batted pass (which was intercepted by Gervon Dexter), and a fumble recovery.

Pro Football Focus also credits Cox with a team-leading 22 quarterback pressures in four games. Cox has more than double the amount of quarterback pressures as Zachary Carter, who ranks second on the team with 10.

In the year off of the football field, Cox worked on perfecting pass rush counter moves for when his time came to get after the QB for Florida. Optimism was high at points during the 2019 season that Cox would gain immediate eligibility, however, that never came and he was forced to prepare for a redshirt sophomore season debut at UF.

"The hardest part was definitely not being able to play. Sitting on the sideline was definitely hard for me because I've never done that before," said Cox. "I had a lot of faith in Coach Mullen. But some things just don't work out the way we planned."

The Gators didn't end up needing Cox in 2019 as they led the SEC in sacks and owned the No. 7 defense in college football. This year has been different, though as the Gators currently rank No. 66 in the same category nationally and struggled immensely on that side of the ball in the first three games of the year.

Florida's defense played impeccably well against Missouri this past Saturday, with Cox tallying five tackles, a tackle for loss, and six pressures in the 41-17 victory. A similar performance from Cox and Co. will be necessary to snap a three-game losing streak to Georgia this coming Saturday.

With everything on the line for Florida in the SEC East and lining up across from his old team for the first time, it's fair to expect that Cox will play like his hair is on fire.