Brenton Cox has his eyes and goals set on a Florida Gators record

This fall will be 20 years since Alex Brown last suited up in Orange and Blue, and yet, Brenton Cox can’t stop thinking about him.

Cox finished the 2021 season on a tear. He went into November with just 1.5 sacks to his name. He finished the season with a team-high 8.5 sacks. In total, he tallied seven sacks and 11 tackles for a loss in the Gators’ last five games.

It led the team in both categories but didn’t come close to Brown’s 13 sacks during his sophomore season in 1999.

“Last year was tough for me because of my foot, so I just felt that I have more in the tank, more to prove,” Cox said.

Cox flirted with the NFL Draft following the season. He submitted paperwork and was told he had a third-round grade if he came out this year. That certainly played a role in him deciding to return, but it wasn’t the driving factor.

“Going to try to beat the sack record this year,” Cox said, “13.”

Cox played through pain in 2021

The 2021 season started off rocky for Cox. A foot injury required surgery and he was never truly healthy during his redshirt junior year.

“Don’t get it mistaken. Brenton is the truth. I’ll tell you that, Brenton is the truth,” Zach Carter said after Cox’s four-sack game against FSU. “He obviously, he’s been battling some things all year and it’s tough to do, but he goes out there every week and fights with his brothers. But Cox is the truth.”

Cox played through it all season without complaining. His foot and ankle were heavily taped in every game, but he continued suiting up and going out there.

“I tried to play like it (wasn’t bothering me) but that wasn’t the case,” he said.

Now, he’s fully healthy. A five-star prospect in the 2018 class, he never dreamed he’d still be in college in 2022. So, since he is, Cox is setting his sights on breaking a record.

A lofty goal

It isn’t just Brown’s 13 sacks that Cox has in his crosshairs. That mark would be nice, but he’s aiming even higher.

“I’m going for a sack every half, so if I do that, I’m going to pass those numbers,” he said. “But right now, I’m just trying to beat the sack record so just going out there and playing hard every play.”

A sack a half would give Cox an astounding 24 in the regular season, assuming he’s healthy for all 12 regular season games. That would tie Terrell Suggs’ NCAA record at Arizona State in 2002.

This season Cox will be under the tutelage of Gator Great Mike Peterson. Peterson posted 249 tackles at Florida before a 14-year NFL career in which he amassed 1,220 tackles.

In short, Peterson knows football. He knows what good players look like and he’s shown in his young coaching career that he can get the best out of his players.

“He has all the skills. This guy’s strong, he’s powerful. He can run, he can rush the passer,” Peterson said of Cox. “Right now my thing is to kind of polish his game to help him learn the game.”

Cox is soaking it up like a sponge. He was the first player to go to Peterson’s office to break down film and chop it up with the new coach.

Cox determined to play hard and finish

A knock on Cox in 2021 was he would take plays off. That’s something he admitted to Tuesday after the Gators’ seventh practice. He said the foot injury played a part, but wouldn’t allow that to be an excuse.

“It’s all want-to, it’s all need-to. You’re going to fight through a lot of stuff. I’m not the only one out there fighting, so I shouldn’t be the only one out there not running to the ball,” he said. “It’s all good. It’s a learning experience. So I’ll do it better this year.”

“(Coach Peterson’s) been preaching to me that if you’re not at the TV box by the time the play is over then it’s a loaf, you’re not running to the ball. That’s helped me turn the other way and get going when I’m done with my rush.”

Cox was at Florida’s Pro Day on Monday. He’s 6-4, 250 pounds, and hard to miss with his dreadlocks wrapped in a high in a rubberband and shades on. He watched as his teammates went through drills in front of NFL scouts.

If 2022 goes his way, it will be him on the turf going through drills next spring. And if he can reach his goal of a sack a half, or simply break Brown’s record, he’ll have every NFL team’s attention.