We mused yesterday that if one of Jon Sumrall's defenses in 2026 is that Florida’s roster isn’t as good as some talent-composite metrics suggest, then who does that fall on? We pointed out that eight of the 13 players on offense who played at least 20 snaps on Saturday were either transfer-portal additions handpicked by Sumrall or players who beat out Sumrall’s portal additions.
But then we starting to think about another individual whose direct job is roster construction at Florida, and if Florida’s roster is the problem then isn’t he also to blame?
Florida’s roster construction also falls on GM Dave Caldwell
Last December, 12/1 to be specific, Florida announced it had hired Dave Caldwell as general manager for Florida Football. Caldwell had most notably been the longtime GM for the Jacksonville Jaguars, and at the time of his hiring, Florida AD Scott Stricklin said:
"David Caldwell is one of the most respected personnel evaluators and team-builders in football. His experience as an NFL general manager, his understanding of roster construction, management and retention. His ability to manage complex football operations make him an invaluable addition to our program.
As the college landscape continues to evolve, David's leadership and expertise will help ensure Florida Football is aligned, agile, and positioned for sustained success."
If we count going 37–86 in the regular season as the Jacksonville GM as being respected, then sure.
Sumrall has alluded to the fact that he wasn’t able to give the transfer portal last year his full attention because he was splitting time with Tulane. And Sumrall today was asked what he has learned over the last 11 months, and he referenced building a roster:
“And so I think maybe there's a lot of roster-building things I've learned that I think will help us moving forward that I already kind of knew. Some of it is helping create momentum internally to help us build it the right way, too. There are certain things we have to lean into to do a better job to create the resourcing. We need to be at the highest level in this conference.”
It seems like Sumrall has been willing to take the fall for this roster. The offensive lineman pickups in particular have not panned out as a whole, and Sumrall also made mention that he feels Florida only has two cornerbacks he trusts.
But if Caldwell’s job is roster construction, then why is it Sumrall’s fall to take? Florida may not have had the NIL funds to land one of the big-name offensive tackles from the portal, but are we to really believe the ones they got were the best they could do?
It’s all just a piece of the puzzle that fans are going to keep an even closer eye on this upcoming offseason, as Sumrall and Caldwell will need to prove that, given a normal cycle, they can properly fill the gaps on this roster.
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