Less than three days after he made his season debut, Florida sophomore edge rusher LJ McCray must undergo a surgical procedure on his right foot that will keep him out for an undetermined amount of time, according to Swamp247. McCray exited in the second half of Florida’s 18-15 loss to No. 18 South Florida and did not re-enter the game.
It represents another blow for the young McCray, who also missed the latter half of training camp while dealing with an unrelated lower-body injury. He did not suit up in Florida’s season-opening win against Long Island.
McCray signed with Florida in 2024 as the top defensive line prospect in his class. The former five-star out of Daytona Beach (Fla.) Mainland High School appeared in 10 games as a freshman at Florida and finished the year with 13 total tackles, one for a loss, and 0.5 sacks.
McCray’s injury will stretch Florida’s pass-rushing depth even further. The Gators have a pair of solid starters in Tyreak Sapp, who already registered two tackles for loss and one sack on the year, and former Northern Illinois transfer George Gumbs Jr.
The depth chart looks especially thin behind Sapp and Gumbs, though, especially given what the Gators lost in the offseason. Jack Pyburn (LSU) and T.J. Searcy (Texas A&M) both exited the program as four-star prospects in the 247Sports Transfer Rankings and took their talents to SEC rivals.
True freshman Jayden Woods came on strong for Florida in fall camp and was already listed aside McCray as Gumbs’ backup on Florida’s depth chart. He should get plenty of playing time now as the reeling Gators get into the meet of their schedule.
Florida does not have an easy opportunity to get things on the heels of its loss to USF. The Gators prepare for a Week 3 road trip to No. 3 LSU to open SEC play and have another Week 4 away game against in-state rival No. 5 Miami.
Eight of Florida’s 10 remaining opponents were ranked in the most recent AP Top 25 poll, including five in the top 10.
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