Position Preview: Friendly competition at the four between Felder, Fudge

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — One of the highlights from Florida Gators’ preseason camp came on a play at the rim between Alex Fudge and CJ Felder. Fudge drove along the baseline and did a reverse dunk over Felder, putting him on a poster.

The entire UF men’s basketball team went nuts in the O’Dome.

“I thought it was impressive,” Felder admitted. “It probably didn’t get as much attention as it should have, but it was very impressive.”

Fudge said he did the same dunk on Felder the day before when they were playing one-on-one. It was all love between the two afterward, but Felder warned him.

“He told me he’s going to get me back,” Fudge said.

The friendly competition in practice is nothing new for the two forwards. They have been battling throughout the summer and preseason camp for the starting four position.

Felder returns to the Gators for his senior season after missing time last year with multiple injuries, including a hernia in his hip. His absence proved to be detrimental for Florida’s chances of making the NCAA Tournament.

After averaging 9.7 points and 5.9 rebounds as a sophomore with Boston College, Felder’s numbers dropped at UF last season (3.5 points and 2.3 rebounds) in his 30 appearances. He started only three games but shot a team-best .389 from 3-point range in limited attempts (14-for-36).

“I felt like right when I was starting to come on is when I kind of got hurt, especially that Texas A&M game,” Felder said. “So, it was very frustrating knowing I could have helped my brothers out a lot more. Seeing how the season went, there was a lot of areas that I could have helped them in. But I couldn’t because I was hurt.”

One of the 2021-22 team’s issues was defensive rebounding. The Gators averaged 33.5 rebounds per game, which ranked No. 12 in the league, and the SEC’s top teams consistently had success off the glass against them.

They should be an improved rebounding team with the return of Felder, who has a 7-foot-1 wingspan, and the addition of Fudge, an ultra-athletic player with a 7-foot wingspan.

“This league, it’s the best offensive rebounding league in America,” UF head coach Todd Golden told Gators Online and others. “So, if you think about it the other way, it’s going to be hard to be a very good defensive rebounding team all the time. But I think if we can close the gap on that, it will really help us.”

Alongside Felder at the four is the 6-foot-9 Fudge, who is entering his second collegiate season after transferring from LSU. He averaged 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in his freshman year with the Tigers.

Fudge was a top-100 overall recruit out of Jacksonville in the 2020 class.

“He’s a really talented, good player,” Golden said of Fudge. “His deal will be being more consistent on offense and shoot the ball. He’s the definition of an impactful player, especially defensively. He does some things in terms of getting deflections, blocks, steals that I haven’t seen as a coach.

“He gives you a lot of flexibility in how you want to guard things. He just impacts the game in a lot of winning ways and offensively he’s grown a lot just since the summer. If he can knock down the 3-ball consistently, he moves really well, he’s fluid, he handles the ball really well.”

RELATED: Gators forward Alex Fudge: ‘Coming here was a no-brainer’

Both Fudge and Felder have what it takes to compete and play at a high level in the SEC. Creating a strong duo with Colin Castleton in the frontcourt is what the Gators need to thrive on offense.

Although the two are competing for a starting position, Felder and Fudge have formed a strong bond off the court.

“We’ve built a great relationship,” Fudge said. “We’re the two 4s, and we know we’re competing for that spot. And so like, he’s giving me pointers, I’m giving him pointers. Like when we play 1-on-1, we learn from each other. We learn from each other a lot actually.

“And so, we’re really competitive. One day he’ll be like, ‘Yeah, I’m gonna get at you this day.’ He might get me that day and I’m like, ‘Yeah, you’re not doing it no more.’ And we’re just going back and forth. But it’s like all love, we’re close like that.”

As a senior, Felder views his relationship with Fudge as if he’s his younger sibling — albeit one who can dunk over him.

“I look at him like my little brother, so I try to do what I can to make him go as hard as he can,” Felder said. “Make sure he’s getting better, make sure he’s got someone to push him. That’s kind of what I view the relationship as, little brother-big brother kind of thing. It’s great to have him around. He’s a great person, and he’s going to be a great player.”

Stay tuned to Gators Online.