Tramell Jones Jr. and the Florida Gators upset No. 7 Texas 27-24.

The Gators’ backfield was key to the 27-24 victory in Austin this past Saturday, but not with their typical starter at quarterback. Aaron Philo traveled with the team and was a true game-time decision due to a shoulder injury. Following team warmups, Philo was ruled out, and next in line was sophomore Tramell Jones Jr.

Jones is a Jacksonville native and committed to the Gators on Nov. 17, 2024, three days after decommitting from Florida State. The 25th-ranked quarterback in the 2025 class was also an Elite 11 finalist.

The sophomore looked poised and managed the game effectively in his first career start, considering some crazy circumstances. Think about it from his perspective…

You’re the backup quarterback, and you don’t know the health status of the starter until the game is about to start. You’re playing in Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, which is one of the more hostile environments in all of college football. Most importantly, this is your first-ever career start as a college football player.

Jones, under immense pressure to keep the Gators’ season afloat, played like a polished starter in his first college game. He was 22 of 35 for 155 yards and two touchdowns through the air. The Florida coaching staff also got him involved in the ground game, with 10 rushes for 41 yards. This resulted in a solid 7.16 BiteScore against the Texas Longhorns.

The best that we saw of Tramell Jones Jr. was when it mattered the most. With less than two minutes to go in the game, the Gators faced a critical third-and-long. A first down here would seal the game.

Jones fakes the handoff and jukes a Texas defender out of his socks, prancing his way to a first down. This kid can play.

This level of play from a quarterback with this little experience has to warrant credit for the coaching staff. You saw what they were able to do with Aaron Philo, who only started one game in two years at Georgia Tech. He was having a great season until he was sidelined by the shoulder injury. Buster Faulkner, who spent three seasons as offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech, was given the keys to the offense this past offseason. This was expected, considering Jon Sumrall’s background is entirely on the defensive side of the ball. Nonetheless, they are producing on offense no matter who the signal-caller is.

Follow @tsanss54 on Twitter/X for more SEC content.