George Gumbs Jr.
| No. 34 – University of Florida | |
|---|---|
| Position | Defensive End |
| Class | Senior |
| Personal information | |
| Born | October 25, 2002 Chicago, Illinois |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Weight | 250 lb (113 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Simeon Career Academy |
| College |
|
| Stats at ESPN | |
George Gumbs Jr. (born October 25th, 2002) is an American Football defensive lineman for the Florida Gators.[1]
High School Career
Gumbs started his football career as a wide receiver. Playing for Simeon Career Academy in Chicago, Illinois, Gumbs was a 3-star prospect coming out of high school and was not highly recruited.[2] He held offers from Western Michigan and Bowling Green before COVID-19 significantly impacted recruiting. He decided to walk on at Northern Illinois.[2]
| College recruiting information (2021) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Hometown | School | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
| George Gumbs Jr. WR |
Chicago, Illinois | Simeon | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 250 lb (110 kg) | Dec 2, 2020 | |
| Recruit ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: (73) | ||||||
College Career
Northern Illinois
During his first year at Northern Illinois, he played in only four games to maintain redshirt eligibility.[3] In his second year, he played in 8 games after transitioning to the tight end position and earned a scholarship. During spring practices going into his redshirt sophomore season, Gumbs transitioned to playing defensive end.[3]
After changing position, Gumbs had a breakout season in 2023. He registered 6.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks.[4][5] He entered the transfer portal following the season and briefly committed to Cincinnati before committing to Florida on January 4th, 2024.[6]
Florida Gators
2024 Season
After arriving at Florida, Gumbs added 20 pounds of muscle.[7] During the 2024 season, he recorded five sacks and eight tackles-for-loss while playing all 13 games. Gumbs heavily contributed to an in-season turnaround that the Gators experienced on defense, leading the team's edge rushers in snaps played.[8] In the 2024 Gasparilla Bowl against Tulane, Gumbs registered three solo tackles.[1]
When the Gators beat FSU 31-11, Gumbs planted a flag with the Gator logo on the away field at Doak Campbell Stadium.[5] This triggered a scuffle between the two teams, which Florida head coach Billy Napier later apologized for.[9] The incident was similar to flag plantings earlier in the day in The Game and North Carolina vs. NC State.[10] Gumbs was less apologetic, saying that he "was just seeing all the things they did to our field the previous year before I was there" and that he "would do it again".[11]
2025 Season
Gumbs started the first three games of the season for the Gators before sustaining an undisclosed injury..[12]
References
- ^ a b "George Gumbs Jr". floridagators.com. 12 April 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ a b "Stability equals success: George Gumbs Jr. eager for second season at UF". gatorcountry.com. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ a b "George Gumbs". niuhuskies.com. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "Florida Football's Gumbs Jr.: From Walk-On To Defensive Leader". wruf.com. 24 March 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ a b "George Gumbs Jr. reflects on debut season at UF, planting flag at FSU: 'I would do it again'". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "George Gumbs Jr. Timeline Events". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "'No stars' Ja'Kobi Jackson, George Gumbs Jr. making improbable impact for Gators". orlandosentinel.com. 3 August 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "Cam Jackson details Florida's defensive turnaround, future of program". gatorcountry.com. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "Billy Napier: Florida's flag-planting on FSU logo 'embarrassing'". espn.com. December 2024. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "'Unsportsmanlike' flag planting causes chaos over college football rivalry weekend". cnn.com. December 2024. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "George Gumbs Jr. on midfield flag plant at FSU: 'I would do it again'". on3.com. 12 March 2025. Retrieved August 27, 2025.
- ^ "George Gumbs Jr. injury update: Report reveals expected status of Florida DE for Miami game". on3.com. 20 September 2025. Retrieved September 24, 2025.