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Jadan Baugh Inching Towards Gators' History

Originally posted on Florida Gators on SI
By Kyle Lander  |  Last updated Oct 23, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Florida Gators' offense has involved some really talented running backs in recent memory. Trevor Etienne, Montrell Johnson Jr., Dameon Pierce, Malik Davis, LaMical Perine and Jordan Scarlett are the main guys to headline the running back position. 

Yet, a certain stat has alluded them throughout their time with the Gators. None has rushed for 1,000 yards in a single season. Moreover, the last time a Gator running back reached that milestone was in 2015, when Kelvin Taylor accomplished it. 

That 10-year streak of no 1,000-yard rushers could be coming to an end, though, with Gators star back Jadan Baugh closely chasing this feat with five games to go. Should he reach the mark, he would be the 10th different Gator to do so.

Baugh pushed for 1,000 rushing yards as a freshman a year ago, but was unable to finish the job off due to sharing the backfield with Johnson Jr. and Ja’Kobi Jackson. He still finished with a team-high 673 yards on 133 carries, while Johnson Jr. and Jackson logged 593 yards and 509 yards, respectively. 

Now, receiving the lion’s share of carries and seven games into the 2025 campaign, Baugh is sitting at 611 rushing yards, needing just 389 yards over the final five games, averaging out at 78 yards per game. 

"When Jadan Baugh is on the field, we're a hard team to stop. He's a heck of a player," sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway said after Saturday's win over Mississippi State. "Kudos to all the work he's put in and just his preparation throughout the week."

Despite having three games of less than 78 yards, he also has three games above 100 yards and four above 90 yards. 

Moreover, he has seen his workload increase over the past three weeks, in large part due to injuries to Jackson and third-string Duke Clark. Baugh received 27 carries against Texas, 23 against Mississippi State and 18 against Texas A&M. 

In those games, he rushed for 107 yards, 65 yards and a career-high 150 yards with two total touchdowns.

There could be a slight change in the offensive identity under interim head coach Billy Gonzales, who stated he would “like to be able to spread it out a little bit and get some of those playmakers involved” in his first press conference as the interim on Monday. 

However, it is hard to imagine him shying away from handing his star running back the ball. 

The real problem for Baugh is going to be the defenses that he comes up against. Florida’s final five games of the season are against Georgia, at Kentucky, at Ole Miss, Tennessee and Florida State. 

It starts with Georgia in two weeks in Jacksonville. The Bulldogs are 11th in the country in rushing defense, allowing 91.1 rushing yards per game and just three yards per carry.

After that is Ole Miss at No. 98 (166.7 opponent rushing yards per game), Kentucky at No. 55 (136.8 opponent rushing yards per game), Tennessee at No. 54 (133.7 opponent rushing yards per game), and finally Florida State with the No. 34 rushing defense (118.6 opponent rushing yards per game). 

Nonetheless, if Gonzales continues to feed Baugh the ball, then there is a strong chance that the sophomore can end the dry streak for Gator running backs.

This article first appeared on Florida Gators on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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