Thomas Haugh adding weight, learning new position with Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — More than a year removed from becoming Florida’s first commitment in the 2023 class, Thomas Haugh is now officially a Gator. He’s been on campus since May as one of two early enrollees for summer workouts, along with roommate Alex Condon.

Haugh, pronounced “Howk”, grew up in Pennsylvania as a UF fan because of Tim Tebow. He pledged to his dream school late last June during his official visit to Gainesville, where he was sold on Todd Golden and his coaching style.

“He’s just a player’s coach,” Haugh said of Golden. “He gets on the court with us, gets us active and I kind saw that right when I got here. I got to work out with the team a little bit and just seeing how much the staff and him are involved, it kind of made me like, ‘This is a place I want to be at.’ Like, I know this is gonna be my coach.”

Before getting on the court with Golden and his staff, he got in the weight room with strength and conditioning coordinator Victor Lopez. He’s added double-digit pounds since enrolling at Florida weighing under 200.

“I was probably weighing like 198 when I got here and I just weighed in 210, so obviously I’ve put on 12 pounds. It’s been really good doing that,” Haugh said. “Coach Vic and the staff did a great job just making sure I knew like the basic lifts and then just building off of that. … It’s just paid off really well so far.”

So has the time Haugh’s spent around Will Richard. Golden recruiting the 6-foot-9 Haugh as a hybrid forward, but early on he’s been playing the 3 spot a lot.

Being matched up regularly against Richard in practice, Haugh has picked up some pointers from the returning starter.

“I came here as a 4, but in pick up I guard Will pretty much every day,” he said. “And just being able to guard him and see what he does, how much he runs around the court and knocks down some shots, as a leader, I just kind of look up to him and see what he’s doing and want to be like that.”

Haugh said three focal points that he’s been working on are his shooting, conditioning and adding more muscle to withstand the physicality of the SEC frontcourts.

He’s confident with his shot and range, while continuing to work with Lopez on bulking up and staying in shape.

“I was a 4 or 5, 4 mainly at my prep school. Here they have me up at the 3 and playing outside, being a wing pretty much. To be able to knock down shots consistently, that’s what I’m gonna keep working on. I can hit from a good spot right now. I can hit pretty deep,” Haugh said.

“I thought I did pretty well (in summer workouts). Just being able to knock down some shots in pick up, get above the rim and finish a little bit. And then also just in the weight room. Just gotta keep transitioning and keep trying to put on weight and eat.”

During an exclusive interview with Gators Online, Golden said he expects Haugh to push for minutes as a freshman and compared his position flexibility to Richard, who plays multiple spots for the Gators.

“Thomas Haugh, he’s a dude,” Golden said. “A guy that I think will be tough to keep off the court. Another one like Will in the sense that he can play multiple positions. He’s not boxed in to playing one spot, so that flexibility is going to give him more opportunity to play. He’s just a great athlete. He can really move, 6-foot-9, we can play him at the 3. He’s good, man. He’s a good young player.”