Billy Napier Offers Return Timeline for Florida LB Shemar James

Photo: Shemar James; Credit: Alex Shepherd

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Erring on the side of caution, sophomore linebacker Shemar James will remain sidelined for "probably a week to 10 days" in his recovery from a lower-body injury suffered in Florida's fall training camp practice last Wednesday, head coach Billy Napier said on Monday.

"We'll probably err on the conservative side, but he's already made significant progress there," Napier said of James.

All Gators first reported on Thursday that James suffered a knee injury of an unknown extent during Wednesday's practice. Napier labeled James' status as "day-to-day, to be determined" at that time.

A projected first-teamer entering his second collegiate campaign, Florida expects big things from James in the second level of its defense in 2023 following his breakout as a freshman.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound James produced 47 total tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble in 13 games in 2022, en route to Freshman All-SEC honors and a College Football News Freshman All-American honorable mention.

In James' absence, junior Derek Wingo and redshirt senior and Ohio State transfer Teradja Mitchell project to fill Florida's first-team roles at inside linebacker.

Redshirt junior Mannie Nunnery, redshirt sophomore Scooby Williams, redshirt freshman Deuce Spurlock II and freshman Jaden Robinson provide depth behind Wingo and Mitchell and could factor into a rotation at the position.

Stay tuned to All Gators for continuous coverage of Florida Gators football, basketball and recruiting. Follow along on social media at @AllGatorsOnFN on Twitter and All Gators on FanNation-Sports Illustrated on Facebook.

Get your Gators football, basketball, baseball and other sporting events tickets from SI Tickets here.