Heading into the Super Bowl, Florida Football was guaranteed to have an alumni member to lift the Lombardi Trophy. Both the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles had two members each to battle it out for the ultimate prize in the NFL.
In a game that felt more like Super Bowls from the 90's, Philidelphia waxed Kansas City, and two former Gators won the ultimate prize for the first time in their NFL career.
Florida Football: We Are The Champions
The Gators' headliner for the Eagles is C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who recorded five tackles in their win over Washington in the NFC title game.
Through Philadelphia's three playoff games prior to the Super Bowl, he had 11 tackles but no interceptions. Gardner-Johnson had six interceptions in the regular season, ranking third in the NFL.
On Sunday in New Orleans he had one solo tackle and two assists, He also had an interception that was nullified due to an offside.
Gardner-Johnson played at Florida from 2016 to 2018, appearing in 37 games. He totaled nine interceptions—three returned for touchdowns—along with 161 tackles, including 15.5 for loss and four sacks. As a junior, he recorded 71 tackles and four interceptions and was named Defensive MVP of the Peach Bowl. As a freshman, he earned Outback Bowl MVP honors after recording two interceptions.
Fred Johnson is also on Philadelphia's roster. He started at tackle for the Eagles at the beginning of the season but suffered an injury. He returned in Week 18 but has mostly been sidelined during the playoffs.
Neither player was with Philadephia during the 2017 season when the won the Super Bowl over New England.
Oddsmakers expected a close game between the Eagles and the Chiefs, but the end result was anything but. Philadelphia put their foot down and never let up, and the game felt over by halftime.
The Chiefs did have former Gators Jawaan Taylor and DJ Humphries on their roster.