usatoday
Florida's return to the top of college basketball is no accident. The Gators are ranked No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll for the first time since the 2006-07 season, and the path they took to get there reflects the sport's shifting landscape.
Two decades ago, Florida won its first national championship by defeating UCLA, then convinced its top seven scorers to delay NBA careers and defend the title. That team, led by Joakim Noah, Al Horford, and Corey Brewer, beat an Ohio State squad powered by freshmen. In an era increasingly dominated by young stars, the Gators won by staying old.
Now, under fifth-year coach Todd Golden, Florida is back atop the sport—but this time, the program is not bucking trends; it is embodying them. After winning the 2025 national championship, the Gators overcame a slow start last season to win 27 games and earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament before falling to Iowa in the second round. Six of their top seven scorers return, including veteran forwards Thomas Haugh and Alex Condon, both of whom were projected first-round NBA draft picks. In the NIL era, delaying the NBA no longer means sacrificing a substantial payday, and both chose to return to Gainesville.
They are joined by Rueben Chinyelu, the reigning national defensive player of the year, and dynamic guard Boogie Fland. Golden also brought back Denzel Aberdeen, a key reserve on the 2025 title team who spent last season at Kentucky before returning for his final year of eligibility.
The roster is not just experienced—it is enormous. Condon stands 6-11, Chinyelu 6-10, and Haugh is the relative runt at 6-9. With an analytically driven coach at the helm, Florida personifies what elite teams in modern college basketball have become: old, big, developed, and expensive to pry away. This veteran core was carefully built over several seasons and kept together, in part, by an economy that allows legitimate NBA prospects to earn real money without leaving school.
Haugh, Condon, and Chinyelu are seniors who have each spent at least two seasons in the program. All three returned with unfinished business after Florida's unexpectedly early March Madness exit.
"Transparently, I'm not sure we get Tommy, Rueben and Condo back if we make a deep run last year," Golden said at SEC media days on Wednesday, Oct. 14. "I think those guys are ready to move on. That bad taste in their mouth provided an opportunity to get this group together for one last try, which is amazing, a great spin off the way last year ended. I think we're doing a good job kind of using that as a learning experience. I didn't coach well enough in the tournament game. I don't think our players competed to their best. We have an opportunity to try to get it right this year."
The Gators are towering and physical, with a dominant frontcourt stocked with talented players who can stretch the floor, create mismatches offensively, and protect the rim on the other end. Yet for all of Golden's reliance on advanced data, his team does not necessarily play the way people might expect. Florida is not conference mate Alabama, bombing away from 3-point range at a dizzying rate. In fact, only 25.5% of Florida's points last season came from beyond the arc, according to KenPom, ranking 320th among 365 Division I teams.
Of course, as last season's stunning loss to Iowa showed, there are no guarantees in March, no matter how experienced, talented, or cohesive a roster might be. Despite losing national player of the year Cameron Boozer, Duke has reloaded with standout transfers such as John Blackwell and a top-three recruiting class headlined by 7-2 phenom Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje. Illinois returns the majority of a team that reached the Final Four last season. Even without injured guard Solo Ball, UConn will be formidable, as it seemingly always is under Dan Hurley.
Then there is the SEC gauntlet. The conference is positioned to again rank among the nation's best, with a deep collection of Final Four contenders that includes Texas, Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama, and Vanderbilt.
There will be plenty of obstacles between Florida and another national championship. Plenty can, and inevitably will, change between now and April. But two weeks before the season begins, when championships can still be won on paper, nobody looks better equipped to win one than Florida.
"It's really, really hard to win at a high level," Golden said at SEC media days. "I think just because we get these guys back, it doesn't guarantee that we're going to make the Final Four. But we have a better chance. I think we understand that having this group together for one last run is a special opportunity, and we're doing everything we can to not let it slip or not take as full advantage of it as we should."
We may earn a commission when you buy through links on this page. Our editorial recommendations are made independently of that compensation.
Originally reported by usatoday.