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Two Gators among PFF's 50 best players in college football 

On3 imageby: Keith Niebuhr07/05/25On3Keith
Jake-Slaughter-Florida-Gators
Florida center Jake Slaughter. (Isabella Marley/UAA Photo)

The Florida Gators continue to get lots of summer hype. Pro Football Focus has named the 50 best players in college football ahead of the 2025 season and two UF products are on the list—Jake Slaughter and Tyreak Sapp. According to site, this list was compiled by “Using PFF’s exclusive data and grading, we’ve identified the most dominant and valuable players in the country, based not on hype but on proven production and projection.”

Jake Slaughter is coming off a big season

Slaughter, a senior center from Ocala (Fla.) Trinity Catholic, started all 13 games at center last season and led the Gators offensive line in offensive snaps with 800. He was a consensus First-Team All-American in 2024.

Wrote PFF: Slaughter was the only Power Four center to earn 80.0-plus PFF grades as a pass blocker and a run blocker in 2024. Even more impressive is that he faced a murderer’s row of defensive tackles, including Walter Nolen, Alfred Collins, Shemar Turner, Deone Walker, Omarr Norman-Lott and Joshua Farmer — all of whom were selected in the first four rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft.

Slaughter’s 85.8 PFF overall grade since 2023 trails only Jackson Powers-Johnson among Power Four centers. He moves very well at 6-foot-4 and 308 pounds, allowing him to dominate in a zone-blocking scheme.

Sapp, an edge and also a senior, led the Gators with seven sacks and 13 tackles-for-loss in 2024. PFF said this about him:

Sapp enjoyed a major breakout in his fourth season with the Gators. His 90.4 PFF overall grade placed 10th among all edge defenders in college football and second among returning players. The former defensive tackle is at his best in the run game, where his 88.7 PFF run-defense grade ranked fourth among FBS edge defenders and his 13 tackles for loss or no gain tied for the fourth most in the Power Four.

Sapp is a more than capable pass rusher, earning an 82.2 PFF grade in that regard. He plays with a natural pad level at 6-foot-2, with the strength to stack and shed blockers well.

Like Slaughter, Sapp is receiving plenty of offseason praise. Recently, ESPN’s Cole Cubelic noted, “I don’t think people nationally nor regionally have any idea how good Tyreak Sapp can be.”

Who is No. 1 on PFF’s list of the best 50 players in college football? Ohio State sophomore receiver Jeremiah Smith took the top spot.

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