Florida head coach Jon Sumrall wanted a solid QB after DJ Lagway’s transfer portal decision. But his eyes are on fresh talents. The dominoes started to align when Georgia Tech’s offensive coordinator, Buster Faulkner, took the same job in Gainesville. And now, it looks like his QB is also following his footsteps.

According to CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz and Chris Hummer’s crystal ball predictions, the Gators are set to land Georgia Tech QB Aaron Philo. The QB had decided to enter the transfer portal a few days back, and Sumrall will now land him quickly since the transfer portal is now officially open for 15 days starting today.

Aaron joined Georgia Tech’s 2024 class and had a 4-star rating by Rivals. At the time, the Bogart, Georgia native was a 48th-ranked QB in the class and 708th-ranked recruit overall. Despite the modest grading, he led Prince Avenue Christian to a 54-4 record and earned four region and three state titles. Plus, his stats were also elite.

The 6’2″ and 220 lbs QB accumulated a total of 13,992 yards and even surpassed QBs like Gunner Stockton and DeShaun Watson. Factor in that he was a three-straight-season starter and passed 4,500 yards in that period. You just know that Aaron is coming with talent, which Jon Sumrall will quickly reap. Never mind that, the quarterback position is a key piece in Sumrall’s Florida puzzle.

“On offense, when I think of Florida football, I think aggressive, I think of explosive, I think about mixing tempos, using it to your advantage, and dictating the game to the opponent,” Sumrall said in his inaugural presser. “I think about stretching the field and threatening every blade of grass. It all starts with the quarterback and the pieces around him.”

At Georgia Tech, Philo featured as a backup for 2 seasons behind Haynes King and learned the craft. In the limited starts, the Yellow Jackers’ QB2 got, he managed to accumulate 938 passing yards for two touchdowns. Furthermore, he also added another 95 yards on the ground. The best part? The Georgia native comes with big game experience.

Aaron Philo joins Jon Sumrall’s camp with advantage

In 2024, Philo became the reason for the Yellow Jackets’ 30-29 win over NC State. He passed for 265 yards in the game and also rushed for another 57. Late in the fourth quarter, with Georgia Tech trailing 23-29, Philo engineered a dominant 75-yard touchdown drive. With just 22 seconds left on the clock, Aaron ran for 18 yards, scoring a touchdown and sealing the game for good.

Now that he has decided to enter the transfer portal, even Brent Key looked irked with the QB’s loss. “Everybody’s gotta make their own decisions, everybody’s gotta do what’s right for them. We talk very openly about those things,” the Georgia Tech head coach said. Apart from the NC State game, Philo also led his team to hand Miami the first loss of the 2024 season.

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The QB started the game and earned an impressive 92.5 QB rating as Georgia Tech won the game 28-23. Coming to Florida State, Aaron will also get a revamped WR room. Muizz Tounkara has entered the portal along with WR Aidan Mizell. Tank Hawkins and Neshaun Montgomery are other players doing the same. Factor in Eugene Wilson’s departure, and Sumrall will look for WR starters in the portal.

In terms of QB philosophy, expect Sumrall to move a bit away from his ground game to adapt to Florida’s needs. As a result, Philo will thrive and can even become a top QB in just a year. He has all the talent to be just that.