Given Florida’s struggles over the last decade, you would be forgiven for not grouping it in with the top pro-producing programs. But the Gators have still had several former players find a lot of success at the next level, and many of those players just so happen to be on the two teams facing off in Super Bowl LVI in two weeks.
After a wild championship weekend, the Cincinnati Bengals will take on the Los Angeles Rams on the latter’s home field, and there will be five Gators players on the active roster for that game, tied for the most of any school with LSU.
Most players in Super Bowl 56 (active rosters):
5- Florida
5- LSU
4- Clemson
4- Ohio St
4- Oklahoma
4- UGA
4- Washington
3- Alabama
3- Maryland
3- Purdue
3- Texas A&M
3- Utah
2- Cinci, Colorado, Delaware, FAU, FSU, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan St, NC St, ND, PSU, Pitt, Stanford, TCU— Pick Six Previews (@PickSixPreviews) January 31, 2022
On the Bengals, that includes kicker Evan McPherson, a rookie fifth-round pick, who has now hit game-winning kicks in the last two rounds of the playoffs. Joining McPherson on Cincinnati’s roster is former UF offensive lineman Fred Johnson, who has been on the team since 2020, and Vernon Hargreaves III a former first-round pick who has played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Houston Texans.
On the other side, the Rams have a pair of former Gators at the skill positions. Van Jefferson finished second on the team in receiving yards after Cooper Kupp, while Brandon Powell, who has bounced around the league since joining it in 2018, is the starting returner and has a punt return touchdown this season.
Florida’s football program may be in the midst of a tough time, but it continues to produce NFL players consistently, and a good number of them will be playing for the highest honor in football on Feb. 13.
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