Two Former Gators Win Super Bowl with Philadelphia Eagles

The two Florida Gators teammates reunited with the Eagles this season and both celebrated their first career Super Bowl championships

Former Gators were in on the celebrations in New Orleans | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Former Florida Gators safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and offensive tackle Fred Johnson are Super Bowl champions following the Philadelphia Eagles beating of the Kansas City Chiefs, 40-22.

In the winning effort, Gardner-Johnson made three total tackles, one solo. On the other side of the ball, Johnson played seven snaps on an offensive line that helped quarterback Jalen Hurts win Super Bowl MVP.

This is Gardner-Johnson's second stint with the Eagles. The New Orleans Saints, the team that drafted him, traded him to the Eagles for a few late-round picks ahead of the 2022 season. He went to the Detroit Lions the following year but returned to Philly on a three-year deal ahead of the 2024 season.

En route to the Super Bowl victory, he played in all but one game, including the postseason, for the Eagles. He matched his career high in interceptions (6), which was good for third in the NFL.

Johnson arrived to Philadelphia after being signed on to the practice squad in late 2022 after being waived by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He slowly earned more playing time as his time with the Eagles went on. He played in all 17 games, starting six of them. While he didn't start in a playoff game, he played in each one.

The two were teammates at Florida for three seasons from 2016 to 2018, playing under the Jim McElwain and Dan Mullen regimes. They won the Outback Bowl and the Peach Bowl together. Now, they've won the Super Bowl together.

Gardner-Johnson was drafted by the Saints in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Johnson went undrafted. The two had to different starting points and paths to Sunday night. But both wound up being part of the same game and winning the same ring.