![Florida running back Jadan Baugh (13) practices during Florida Football Fall camp availability at Heavener Football Training Center in Gainesville, FL on Wednesday, August 5, 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/213/01kzy44zytct7xrmcejv.jpg "Florida running back Jadan Baugh (13) practices during Florida Football Fall camp availability at Heavener Football Training Center in Gainesville, FL on Wednesday, August 5, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]")
We here at Hail Florida Hail come to you with breaking news:
Jadan Baugh is good at football.
Well, to Florida fans, that’s not breaking news, but Baugh has been grouped with some of the other top-rated running backs in the country throughout the offseason. Even in the preseason All-SEC poll, he was placed on the second team.
A new preseason list from ESPN has Baugh as a first-team All-American, and one of the not-so-secret plans Florida has for Baugh this season might unlock All-American status by the end of the season.
ESPN believes Jadan Baugh is one of the nation’s two best backs
On ESPN’s list, Baugh joins Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy on the first-team offense. It’s notable because they have him ahead of Missouri running back Ahmad Hardy and Miami’s Mark Fletcher Jr.
As is the case with any preseason poll, it’s all semantics. But one of the intriguing roles the Gators have planned for Baugh in 2026 that could help uphold this lofty status is the potential to use him out of the wildcat. Baugh did take a couple of snaps against FSU out of the wildcat, but all offseason he has been seen working more and more on taking snaps. He was first publicly seen back in March taking direct snaps, and throughout the spring he was seen working on wildcat concepts.
In July, when asked where Florida planned to use him, Baugh stated, “Outside, inside, running back, quarterback, anywhere. I’m ready.”
Versatility could be Baugh’s pathway to postseason All-America honors
Baugh finished last year with 220 rushing attempts, the 15th most of any player last year. His 1,170 rushing yards were the 17th most in the country.
Sumrall has hinted that those numbers are probably going to go up, so it wouldn’t be shocking to see Baugh go north of 250 carries in 2026, especially if Florida is scheming up alternative ways for him to get the ball. The reality, too, is that for Baugh to be in contention for All-American status by the end of the season, he is going to need those extra carries.
Either way, for all the talk about Florida’s starting QB and the cache of wide receivers along the outside, the focal point of this offense is Baugh.
And with a monster season, he can cement his legacy as an all-time great Gator.
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