![Offensive Coordinator Buster Faulkner speaks during Florida Football Fall camp availability at Heavener Football Training Center in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_5000,h_2812/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ReutersImages/mmsport/213/01m21hmaxr56xc8jm4ad.jpg "Offensive Coordinator Buster Faulkner speaks during Florida Football Fall camp availability at Heavener Football Training Center in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]")
The 624 yards of offense in Florida’s 66-21 beatdown of Florida Atlantic played what’s likely to be a familiar tune over the rest of the season. Jadan Baugh had a big day, rushing for 160 yards with 3 scores on 14 touches, while Aaron Philo only had 5 incompletions on his 275-yard passing day.
“The idea is to be highly efficient; we want to be explosive; we want to be ahead of the chains,” Faulkner said in a news conference Tuesday.
Buster Faulkner thinks Florida can be even better on offense
Faulkner’s belief in efficiently earning first downs as quickly as possible is evident in how his offense earned five more first downs than FAU on Saturday. Baugh had 11 yards per carry, and every time the ball left Philo’s hands, it was likely to be a first down, as shown by his 13 yards per completion.
Despite the great numbers, Faulkner still was not satisfied.
“We weren’t where I wanted to be on first downs; we made up for it on second downs,” Faulkner said. “We try to stay out of third-and-long the best we can.”
Faulkner said Florida coach Jon Sumrall’s willingness to be aggressive helps the play-calling timing; this rings especially true when the Gators were 2 for 2 on fourth down. Philo’s third-and-long run as well as his touchdown run showcased the grit and commitment to what Faulkner had laid out for him.
“We always tell him, when the ball is in play, we got a chance,” said Faulkner.
That grit, that’s been shown sitting behind Haynes King at Georgia Tech and this past year competing for the starting quarterback job at Florida, is why Faulkner trusts him with these play calls.
“That’s why it’s so important to have competition,” Faulkner said. “When you’ve been competing for the last eight months to be the quarterback, that helps when you get in the season.”
Florida plays its next game in the Swamp Saturday at 5:30 p.m. against mid-major Campbell, with eyes on the Gators to play as efficiently as they did against FAU.
Campbell will go into the game averaging more than 38.8 points per game over the two games they’ve played. Florida’s defense, on the other hand, allowed 21 points and 324 yards of offense against FAU.
“They have really quality football players, and it’s a challenge,” Sumrall said.
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