Florida wide receiver Justin Shorter out for Saturday's game against Texas A&M

Florida wide receiver Justin Shorter is out for Saturday’s game against Texas A&M, per Zach Abolverdi of Gators Online.

“Out for today’s game,” reported Abolverdi. “Gators will need others to step up at wide receiver.”

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Shorter, the team’s leading receiver in 2022, has been dealing with a hamstring injury and practiced minimally leading up to the game against the Aggies.

“Minimal. Minimal, yeah,” Napier said Wednesday, asked how much work Shorter’s been able to put in. “Hamstring, questionable at this point. We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow. He’s done some things but been modified. It’ll probably be a game-time decision.”

Evidently, the Gators weren’t satisfied with how Shorter looked ahead of the SEC showdown, as the wide receiver will not be suiting up for Florida on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Florida will be looking to stay above .500, facing a Texas A&M team that has had its own share of struggles and injuries throughout the course of the season.

Still, for a Gators passing game that currently ranks 85th nationally at just 223.8 yards per game, not having Shorter isn’t ideal. At the moment, Shorter leads the team in receiving yardage, having logged 21 catches for 471 yards and two touchdowns.

He had emerged as the team’s most dangerous deep threat over the last month, and a reliable weapon for quarterback Anthony Richardson.

Justin Shorter’s absence could create opportunity for other Florida wide receivers

Continuing, Florida doesn’t have a ton left to play for this season outside of bowl eligibility and the Gators may begin looking to build for the future over the next month.

The team dismissed leading pass-rusher Brenton Cox following the Georgia game, and snaps had already begun to shift in the direction of younger players across the board of late.

So Justin Shorter’s missed time could be creating opportunities for some younger players at receiver.

Freshman Marcus Burke has begun to get some game time of late, catching just his second pass of the season in the Georgia game on Saturday. He’s a player most fans have been dying to see get more reps. Fellow freshman Daejon Reynolds could also see an uptick in usage.

Florida and Texas A&M will meet Saturday for a noon ET kickoff with a broadcast on ESPN.