Live Blog: Florida Gators Orange & Blue Game

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Welcome to our coverage of the Florida Gators’ annual Orange & Blue game, which is Thursday night inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

For Florida coach Billy Napier, this is spring game No. 2.

And this one has a particular amount of intrigue given that Anthony Richardson, last year’s starting quarterback, has left for the NFL.

Who will win the job —  Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz? Maybe Jack Miller? Will someone else open eyes in this scrimmage?

Elsewhere, the Orange & Blue game not only will be a good chance to get a look at Florida’s newcomers via high school and transfer, but it’s also a signature recruiting event. In fact, many top prospects are expected to be on hand (FULL LIST HERE).

Below, the Gators Online staff will provide updates throughout the day and night, both team and recruiting related. You’ll want to hit refresh often.

ORANGE & BLUE GAME UPDATES ….

7:27 p.m. — Not participating tonight: DB Devin Moore, LB Derek Wingo, LB Treadja Mitchell, TE Keon Zipperer, TE Jonathan Odom, OL Kingsley Eguakun and EDGE Antwaun Powell. — Nick

7:24 p.m. — Five-star EDGE Colin Simmons, the top-ranked prospect at his position, has made it to Gainesville. UF is looking to knock it out of the park in hopes of locking in an official visit. — Corey

6:59 p.m. — Four-star EDGE/DL Kendall Jackson is back in Gainesville. I’m still heavily favoring the Gators for him. IOL Jake Guarnera is back on campus as well. I like where Michigan stands ahead of his decision. — Corey

6:56 p.m. — Four-star 2025 Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin safety Hylton Stubbs has arrived in Gainesville. — Corey

6:54 p.m. — Two visitors have been offered by the Gators: – 2026 Tampa (Fla.) Jesuit QB Will Griffin and 2025 Cincinnati (Ohio) Winton Woods four-star EDGE Justin Hill. — Corey

6:12 p.m. — Gators linebacker commit Adarius Hayes and priority 2025 running back target Taevion Swint are accounted for. — Corey

5:48 p.m. — Former Florida State commit Jordan Pride, a four-star safety, is back on campus. I submitted an On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine pick for the Gators last night. Gators signee Gavin Hill is here at the Swamp as well. — Corey

5:45 p.m. — The No. 1-ranked running back and former Gators commit, Jerrick Gibson, is officially back on campus today. He was in town during Easter weekend as well. Texas is considered the front runner right now, while the likes of Georgia, Tennessee, Miami and Alabama are in the mix as well. Florida still has some catching up to do. — Corey

5:23 p.m. — 2025 On300 running back Anthony Rogers of Pike Road (Ala.) High is at the Swamp. Just spoke with him. Florida offered last fall and is part of an offer sheet featuring Alabama, Georgia, Auburn, Tennessee, Oregon and Texas among others.

5:20 p.m. — Gators OL signee Caden Jones is here at the Swamp for tonight’s game. — Corey

5:09 p.m. — As expected, Gators running back commit Kahnen Daniels is back in Gainesville tonight. His official visit is expected to take place in June. — Corey

5:07 p.m. — 2025 IMG Academy linebacker Gavin Nix is officially on campus for the game. Florida and Florida State are the hot schools in his recruitment early on. — Corey

4:13 p.m. — 2025 in-state offensive tackle Drew Fuentes is on campus this evening. The Tampa native checks in at 6-foot-7, 278 pounds. No offer from Florida as of now; however, schools such as Michigan Penn State, Colorado and Indiana have offered. — Corey

3:46 p.m. — Gators running back commit Chauncey Bowens is already in Gainesville ahead of tonight’s game. He has been spending time with 2025 quarterback commit Austin Simmons. — Corey

3:25 p.m. — Just spoke with the mother of 2025 No. 1-ranked safety DJ Pickett. He was initially scheduled to visit tonight, but that trip is no longer happening due to his baseball schedule. However, the Gators are one of three programs sticking out the most right now. HERE are the details from yesterday. — Corey

2:35 p.m. — Earlier this morning, I exchanged messages with Michigan State commit Jamari Howard.

The top-50 prospect and highly-regarded cornerback is not ruling out being in attendance for tonight’s game. He does not know of his plans just yet, but returning to Gainesville in an option. Florida and Florida State are the biggest threats to Michigan State right now.

Also, some of you guys asked me about the Mainland duo of DB Zay Mincey and DL/EDGE LJ McCray. I’m told they will not be in Gainesville tonight. One of their teammates mentioned how Mincey just visited the other week, while McCray is currently out of town on visits.

I recently submitted an RPM pick for the Gators to land Mincey. As for McCray, it’s close at the top, but I like FSU’s chances just a bit more right now. — Corey

2:15 p.m. — Florida quarterback commits DJ Lagway (2024) of Texas and Austin Simmons (2025 for now) of Florida are here.

2:13 p.m.: Look for true freshman OL Knijeah Harris tonight. The young interior offensive lineman has been impressive in the spring and he’s getting a lot of run with the first-team offensive line since guard Micah Mazzccua went down with an injury.

2:12 p.m.: Tight End Dante Zanders is projected to be one of the starters but has an AC joint injury in his right shoulder. Florida knows what it has in him and we wouldn’t be surprised to see him sit out the game Thursday to get a better look at the younger players such as Arlis Boardingham, Hayden Hansen and Tony Livingston. — Nick

2:11 p.m.: Expect both Graham Mertz and Jack Miller to have opportunities to play with the first team offense. The quarterback race likely won’t be decided tonight but the spring game will be a big part of the evaluation and could help one of the two passers take a lead into the summer — Nick