College Football

CFB Analyst Predicts Gators Will Win 2026 National Championship

The Florida Gators‘ improvements throughout the second half of the 2024 season were a sign that the program is heading in the right direction. While the program’s advancement has been encouraging, one college football analyst holds higher expectations for the Gators than most.

According to CBS Sports college football analyst Emory Hunt, the Florida Gators should be considered the favorite to win the 2026 College Football National Championship. 

Hunt references soon-to-be sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway, and his impressive performances against ranked teams (Ole Miss, LSU) as reasons to believe that the young quarterback can lead the Gators past the nation’s top opponents next season

During Florida’s 24-17 win over No.9 Ole Miss, Lagway threw for 180 yards and two touchdowns. While leading Florida to a victory over No.22 LSU, Lagway threw for 226 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.

Overall, Lagway threw for 1,915 yards,12 touchdowns and nine interceptions through eight starts as a true freshman.

After getting off to a rough start – 4-5 through nine games – a shift in both effort and attitude throughout the program became evident. With the help of a new quarterback and some newfound motivation, the Gators won their last four games, concluding the season with a 33-8 blowout over Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl.

Despite the program’s success throughout the 2000s, the Gators have not made the College Football Playoff since the committee’s inception in 2014.

Florida’s last national championship win (and appearance) came in 2009, when they beat Oklahoma 24-14 in the 2009 BCS National Championship Game. Just two years prior, Florida won their first national championship of the decade, taking down Ohio State 41-14 in the 2007 BCS National Championship Game.

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