Florida sophomore WR preparing for potential breakout season in 2024

Head coach Billy Napier made clear who will serve as a focal point to the Florida football offense in 2024. After Eugene Wilson III posted 8 catches for 128 yards, including a 60-yard TD catch, in UF’s spring game, Napier said he intended to get his “money’s worth” from Wilson entering the 2024 season.

Napier re-iterated that point before the start of Florida Gators fall camp on Tuesday, when asked about getting the ball in the hands of playmakers.

“We’re always going to be intentional about who we get the ball to,” Napier said. “Tre Wilson being at the top of that list for sure.”

Last season, Wilson earned All-SEC freshman honors, with 61 catches for 538 yards and a team-high 6 TDs. With UF leading receiver Ricky Pearsall gone to the NFL, Wilson will become the primary target for quarterback Graham Mertz.

Wilson also showed the ability to carry the ball on jet sweeps as a true freshman, with six carries for 55 yards, including a long of 18 yards.

“I most definitely don’t disagree with him,” Wilson said about Napier wanting to get him more touches in 2024. “But at the same time, it’s a team game and being able to give our team the best chances to win and drop down and get in the box as many times in the game as you can to give our team the best chance to win.”

Wilson said he’s even open to getting more involved in the return game on special teams this season after returning one punt and one kickoff last season.

“I feel like, especially in our past, we’ve had a lot of returners that, you know, had the game in their hands just off of returns, punt returns, kick returns,” Wilson said. “So just being able to have that aspect to change the game, I feel like something I really look forward to.”

How Florida football WR Eugene Wilson III is preparing for more usage in 2024

The 5-foot-10, 183-pound Wilson said he’s ready for the challenge of more touches in 2024. He’s put on about 10 pounds of muscle on the offseason training with new UF strength and conditioning coach Tyler Miles, which should help him handle the contact he will receive in the physical SEC.

“From the winter to the spring, I put on about 10 pounds and really just tried maintaining it over the summertime with the heat and all the sweat and all that,” Wilson said. “I was trying to lose no weight, but at the same time, I’m not trying to be too heavy; trying to keep a little twitch going. But the strength staff, they do a really good job helping us maintain and getting stronger every day.”

Recovery is another important aspect to surviving the grind of fall camp and a 12-game season. Wilson said he picked up tips from watching the Netflix documentary “Receiver” to better take care of his body.

That includes more trips to the cold tank to alleviate muscle soreness and prevent muscle pulls.

“I would say a lot of it is probably not fun,” Wilson said. “But at the end of the day you have to take care of your body because it’s a moneymaker.”

Wilson’s combination of speed (he was clocked as high as 22 miles per hour over the summer) and shiftiness make him a tough cover for opposing SEC defensive backs.

“He is one of the best receivers in the SEC and I’m glad that, one, he’s on my team and two, I get to go against him every day,” Florida senior cornerback Jason Marshall Jr. said. “Iron sharpens iron. He goes out there, he practices hard. He challenges me. I challenge him. It’s only going to make us better.”