Transfer Punter Tommy Doman 'Instrumental' to Florida's Future

GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Searching for a punter in the transfer portal usually isn't a top priority for a team, but with star Jeremy Crawshaw off to the NFL, the Florida Gators immediately went portal hunting for his replacement.

Landing on veteran Tommy Doman, a two-year starter and member of Michigan's 2023-24 national championship team, UF special teams coordinator Joe Houston is not underestimating the importance of adding the veteran to the roster.

“We were lucky to get Tommy," special teams coordinator Joe Houston said. "Tommy’s gonna be an instrumental part of our future this fall.”

Replacing the program's all-time leader in average yards per punt (46.7) in Crawshaw, Doman is no slouch with an average of 43.5 yards per punt and 33 punts down inside the 20-yard line over his two years as Michigan's starter.

Doman also has experience as a kickoff specialist and a holder, giving Florida a versatile piece in its special teams' room.

"First is the experience, being a two-year starter at Michigan, playing in tough conditions, also having a guy from a program that’s won a national championship," Houston said. "So he’s been on that journey before but the warm weather in Florida was an easy sell. So we’re very, very fortunate to have him.”

Despite the veteran presence, Doman is still working on getting acclimated to the program and finding familiarity with the returning veterans in kicker Trey Smack and long snapper Rocco Underwood. Smack, in particular, praised Doman's maturity as a new addition and emphasized how he and Underwood can help familiarize him to the program.

"It's definitely a little different, but the maturity is still there," Smack said of Doman. "Between him and Jeremy, they're both mature players, and Tommy's fitting right in right away. The first week here, we went out to dinner and just chopped it up. He's an awesome guy. He's also a great competitor. Helps me out every day."

With Doman also becoming the apparent starting holder, his familiarity with Smack will be crucial to Florida's special teams efforts in 2025. Smack stated that he's spent the offseason getting to know Doman both on and off the field while also building consistency on field goal reps.

"Definitely the style's a little different but obviously he's got to put it down in the same spot every time. It just looks different," Smack said. "I'm not there yet, but I've been getting there lately. These past few months, I wasn't there yet, but I think right now, we're really building that connection. He's a really great holder. I know Rocco puts it on the money every time."

While he himself may not be the longterm answer to replacing Crawshaw with only one year of eligibility left, Doman will also be in charge of mentoring the longterm answer in 2025 signee Hayden Craig, who will enroll sometime this summer, despite being a newcomer himself.

Florida signed three specialists in punter Craig, kicker Evan Noel and long snapper Mack Mulhern to back up its three-senior specialist group.

"So, Hayden will be in a developmental stage along with Evan and Mack, so having a shadow program where they could basically just mimic what the seniors can do will be awesome for their development as well," Houston said. "They can watch someone do it as a high level and kind of shadow them this year.”

Overall, adding a punter through the transfer portal will never go down as an jaw-dropping roster move for any program, but after losing a star in Crawshaw, the Gators appear to have made what could be one of the most underrated portal additions in the country with Doman joining the team.

"I don't really have any worries about this upcoming season because I know with two vets like Rocco and I, we're going to help Tommy out, and he's also a veteran that's played in the national championship," Smack explained. "So, I'm not really worried about him either."

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