Florida Rallies Around Vernell Brown III as Injury Questions Grow
When Gators wide receiver Vernell Brown III limped off the field after an 11-yard run in the first half of Florida’s 52-28 win over Ole Missv, the expectation was that Brown might miss playing time. What no one realized is how long that would be, with Brown still out over a month since his injury.
Brown originally suffered a knee strain in the Sept. 26 victory over the Rebels, missing the second half due to the ailment. Florida coach Jon Sumrall has since held a high confidence in seeing Brown return to action, but the hopefulness has not resulted in the Gators’ leading receiver in 2025 coming back.
After Florida’s 27-24 win over Texas, the much-needed bye week for the Gators (5-3, 3-3 SEC) was believed to be a turning point for Brown in his recovery process.
Coming out of the bye week, Sumrall said that Brown looked normal and practiced through Florida’s run-through ahead of facing Georgia. The initial injury report still listed Brown as probable, but all signs pointed towards one of Florida’s dangerous weapons starting for the Gators. Just as Brown trended positively, the setback came.
Brown’s status was downgraded from probable to questionable Friday afternoon, with the star receiver ruled out inside an hour to kickoff between Florida and Georgia in Atlanta. The rapid change in Brown’s availability was questioned by many, requiring Sumrall to provide clarity.
Brown suffered the obstacle in the back-half of Wednesday’s practice leading up to the game, reaggravating his knee injury on a cut during the two-minute drill portion. Brown was pulled from the remainder of practice and felt fine after receiving treatment on his right leg, but was ultimately ruled out.
“Thursday is when he woke up and the swelling was more noticeable and the range of motion had decreased. So he was not available at practice today,” Sumrall said Monday. “I really don’t have a really strong feeling on timeline because, like I said, everything early in the week last week was trending really positively until the setback on Wednesday.”
Monday marked the first time that the first-year coach noted that Brown was dealing with swelling in his knee, putting Brown’s injury into perspective. While transparency around the situation was necessary, it came days too late. Many people on social media had voiced their frustration around Brown’s ability to play, considering the fact that Sumrall had categorized the injury as a “readiness” issue for weeks on end.
In a complete 180 turn, Brown was scrutinized for not trying hard enough to play. As the outside noise grew louder, Sumrall addressed the backlash Brown received and stood his ground in backing up the legacy Gator.
“That’s the frustrating thing. I’ve talked with him, and want him to understand that I know how much he’s given,” Sumrall said. “He was the first guy in the training room on Sunday for wellness check to get treatment. It’s not like he’s not doing everything in his power to get back.”
Despite the belief in Brown, questions were still asked on further explanation on if the criticism from the fans was fair. To that end, Sumrall dispelled any further rumors and gave an official statement waving off any doubt about him not wanting to play.
“He’s pissed off he can’t play, and he’s doing everything in his power to play. It’s a real injury that we thought we were on the other side of that he had a setback last week, and it sucks,” Sumrall said Monday. “I mean, it freaking sucks for him. It sucks for the team because he helps our team be better.”
Sumrall was not the only one to come to the defense of Brown Monday, with fellow players also sticking in the receiver’s corner.
Gators defensive lineman Emmanuel Oyebadejo has only been with the program for this season, but has already felt the effect of Brown’s presence on the team. The England-native Oyebadejo detailed how Brown has impacted his time with Florida.
“Yeah VB, he’s a great leader, he’s a great impact to the team and he’s definitely working to be back and things like that,” Oyebadejo said. “He works hard every day and I look up to him as a leader of this team as someone who I want to be around, I want to be like, and so I know he’s working hard every day to be back.”
Oyebadejo’s sentiment was echoed by fellow defensive lineman Brendan Bett, who has faced his share of social media criticism during his time as a Gator.
Last year during Florida’s 18-16 home loss to South Florida, Bett was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after spitting on USF offensive lineman Cole Skinner, putting the Bulls into range for the game-winning field goal. Bett was lambasted across social media for what he called a “terrible mistake” in an apology post on his Instagram page.
Bett can understand the heat Brown has faced in his delayed rehab, drawing on his own situation to support his teammate throughout the disapproval he has faced.
“Just knowing that you’re not alone, we got your back, and we try to tune out anything that’s not within us,” Bett said. “So, it can be hard at times, but when you have a great support system around you, it makes things a lot easier.”
The timetable back to the field for Brown is undetermined, according to Sumrall, but the group around him is sure to keep his spirits high despite the condemnation he faces. Expect Brown to be listed on Florida’s initial availability report Wednesday ahead of facing Oklahoma Saturday and for the sophomore to continue trying his hardest to suit up again.
“I feel for him in a sense because he’s doing everything he can. And all we can do as his teammates is just keep motivating, keep having his back. But even when we were down at halftime of the Georgia game, he came in and he was talking to the team,” Bett said. “So him just always having that leadership role and just always, even though he’s not on the field, he’s still showing great support just even doing what he can.”
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