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Florida
Penn State OG TJ Stranahan commits to Florida Gators
Former Penn State interior offensive lineman TJ Shanahan committed to the Florida Gators on Tuesday, Jan. 6, reuniting him with offensive line coach Phil Trautwein in Gainesville.
Trautwein’s connection with Shanahan loomed large in his recruitment. The only visit Shanahan took was to Gainesville on Saturday, and Trautwein recruited him out of high school before he moved from Florida to Texas. The hometown angle also plays a factor here. His family lives outside of Tampa, and his cousin, Jon Halapio, played at Florida from 2009 to 2013 before being drafted in the sixth round.
247Sports does not have a transfer portal grade for Shanahan, but On3 ranks him at No. 341 overall and No. 25 among interior offensive linemen in the portal. He has two years of eligibility remaining with hopes of becoming a full-time starter at Florida.
TJ Shanahan’s college career
A consensus four-star recruit and the No. 1 interior offensive lineman in the 2023 recruiting class, Shanahan chose Texas A&M after visiting several SEC programs. He appeared in three games as a true freshman before redshirting. He became a regular in the Aggies’ offensive line rotation in 2024, playing in 10 total games. He spent time at center and left guard, starting four of five games at the latter position.
He entered the transfer portal following coaching changes at Texas A&M, ultimately landing at Penn State. He played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions, making five starts while jumping between both guard positions. Injuries kept him from playing a bigger role at the end of the regular season, but he played nearly 80 snaps at right guard in the Pinstripe Bowl.
Pro Football Focus gave him a 63.5 overall grade on offense, a 75.1 pass-blocking grade and a 59.2 run-blocking grade in 2025.
Florida’s interior offensive line room
Florida’s interior offensive line returns starting left guard Knijeah Harris and backup guards Roderick Kearney and Tavaris Dice Jr. Assuming Harris stays at left guard, Shanhan is a strong possibility at right guard for Florida next season. Kearney and Dice could provide depth at both positions, or the former could transition to center in hopes of replacing All-American starter Jake Slaughter.
Florida is losing several interior linemen to graduation and the transfer portal. Along with Slaughter, Damieon George Jr. and Kamryn Waites have exhausted their eligibility. Noel Portnjagin and Marcus Mascoll are in the portal. Redshirt freshman Jason Zandamela is staying and received high praise from Slaughter.
Florida is expected to land Georgia Tech lineman Harrison Moore, which would reload the stable with plenty of room for competition at all three positions.
Florida 2026 transfer portal additions
Shanahan is the 10th official transfer portal addition of the 2026 cycle for Florida.
On offense, Georgia Tech quarterback Aaron Philo, Cincinnati running back Evan Pryor, Georgia Tech wide receiver Bailey Stockton, Wake Forest receiver Micah Mays Jr., and James Madison tight end Lacota Dippre have committed. On defense, Florida has earned commitments from Baylor defensive lineman DK Kalu and Baylor safety DJ Coleman. The Gators are also adding a pair of special teamers from Tulane, kicker Patrick Durkin and punter Alec Clark.
Florida is also expected to land Georgia Tech interior offensive lineman Harrison Moore, who is on an official visit (Jan. 6).
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
Florida
Traffic stop goes viral after Florida deputy accuses driver missing right hand of holding phone
PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Video of a traffic stop in Palm Beach County is going viral over an awkward exchange between the driver and a deputy who accused her of holding a phone while driving.
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“You drove past me holding a phone with your right hand, manipulating that phone,” the deputy tells 36-year-old Kathleen “Katie” Thomas.
“Obviously not,” Thomas says while laughing and holding up her right arm, showing that she’s missing her right hand.
“So you wanna call this a day?” she asks.
“I don’t want to call this a day. You had a hand up, manipulating,” the deputy responds.
“You just said my right hand,” Thomas counters.
“Well, I thought I saw your right hand,” the deputy says.
“So you didn’t,” Thomas responds.
Thomas posted the bodycam footage on Instagram and TikTok where it gained millions of likes.
In the video, although she shows the deputy she doesn’t have a right hand, the deputy doubled down.
“I’m asking you now; did you or not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.
“I did not,” Thomas responds.
“You did not have your phone in your hand?” the deputy asks again.
“I did not,” Thomas responds.
“Hand to God, you didn’t have a phone in your hand?” the deputy asks.
“Hand to God,” Thomas says.
Court records show Thomas was given a $116 citation despite the presented evidence, but it was later dismissed at the request of the deputy involved.
Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
Florida
Blue Origin New Glenn rocket explodes on launch pad in Florida
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket exploded Thursday night on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
The explosion occurred at about 9 p.m. ET. Blue Origin said there were no injuries from the incident.
“We experienced an anomaly during today’s hotfire test,” Blue Origin said in a statement. “All personnel have been accounted for. We will provide updates as we learn more.”
Cape Canaveral Space Force Station also confirmed in a separate statement that “all personnel have been accounted for and there were no injuries/fatalities.”
Blue Origin was scheduled to fuel the rocket Thursday evening ahead of a planned test firing of the rocket’s engines.
Blue Origin, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, successfully launched its third New Glenn rocket last month.
This rocket was being prepared for the fourth New Glenn mission as soon as June 4 to launch 48 satellites for Amazon’s Leo internet service, which competes with Elon Musk’s Starlink.
The 48 satellites were not aboard the rocket during the test. It was not immediately clear how much damage the launch pad and ground equipment sustained, or how long it might take to repair it.
Space Launch Complex 36, where the explosion occurred, is the only launch pad equipped to launch New Glenn rockets.
The New Glenn rocket is key to Blue Origin’s and NASA’s moon base plans, and the explosion will likely be a setback. Next year, the New Glenn is supposed to launch another Blue Moon lander as part of the Artemis III mission in low Earth orbit.
In a social media post, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wrote, “Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets.”
The New Glenn rocket had just been cleared on May 22 to return to flight after being grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration after an anomaly with the second stage during an April 19 launch.
In a statement Thursday, the FAA said it was aware that the rocket had “experienced an anomaly during a static fire test on the pad in Cape Canaveral, Florida,” adding that the “test was not within the scope of FAA licensed activities.”
The FAA also noted that “there was no impact to air traffic” from the explosion.
Bezos wrote on X Thursday night, “It’s too early to know the root cause but we’re already working to find it. Very rough day, but we’ll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It’s worth it.”
Musk wrote: “Sorry to see this, I hope you recover quickly.”
Florida
Florida to pay Sumrall’s assistants a combined $11.2M in 2026
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Jon Sumrall’s assistants will make a combined $11.2 million in 2026, a significant investment for a program desperate to win more often.
Offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner tops the list after signing a three-year, $6.6 million contract to leave Georgia Tech and join Sumrall in Gainesville. Faulker will get $2.1 million in 2026 – the first $2 million coordinator in school history – and has a $100,000 raise set for each of the next two years.
Only six college offensive coordinators were paid $2 million or more in 2025, according to CBS Sports. Fifteen defensive coordinators topped $2 million.
Florida defensive coordinator Brad White signed a three-year, $5.85 million deal that starts at $1.85 million and also includes a $100,000 raise in 2027 and 2028.
The Gators released the contracts Thursday in response to a public records request.
Sumrall signed a six-year, $44.7 million contract last year that averages $7.45 million annually. The Gators will dole out more than $20 million to Sumrall, his staff of 15 assistants and a front office led by new general manager Dave Caldwell.
Four of the assistants are scheduled to earn at least $1 million during their deals.
Defensive line coach Gerald Chapman and offensive line coach Phil Trautwine will join Faulker and White in the seven-figure club. Chapman, the lone holdover from former Florida coach Billy Napier’s staff, will make $950,000 this year and $1 million in 2027. Trautwine, meanwhile, starts at $750,000 and jumps to $1 million. Both signed two-year deals.
Their salaries show Sumrall’s commitment to rebuilding the team along both lines of scrimmage in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference.
Napier’s 12-man coaching staff was paid a combined $7.5 million in 2025. The Gators posted three losing seasons in Napier’s four years.
The rest of Sumrall’s staff range between making $350,000 and $600,000 annually, all of them on two-year contracts.
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