Florida EDGE Justus Boone suffered a torn ACL during Thursday's scrimmage and will miss the 2023 season, coach Billy Napier confirmed on Friday. Boone will have surgery to repair the injury in the next few weeks, 247 Sports reports.
Boone played in 13 games and started twice in 2022. He notched 24 tackles, one sack and one quarterback hurry. The 6-foot-4, 263-pounder was one of the frontrunners to earn a starting spot along the Gators' defensive line. A native of Sumter, South Carolina, Boone was a four-star prospect and the No. 201 overall player in the Class of 2021.
The injury is a big blow to a Gators defense that needs to get to the quarterback on a more consistent basis in Napier's second season in Gainesville. They finished last season ninth in the SEC in tackles for loss per game with 5.39 and 10th in sacks with 1.77.
Napier said on Friday that sophomore Jack Pyburn, a 6-foot-3, 253-pounder from Jacksonville, Florida, will likely see an increased role in the defense following the injury to Boone. Pyburn recorded three tackles in eight games last year.
"He's one of the more impressive young men that we have," Napier said on Friday. "He's got that Gator in him."
True freshman Kelby Collins, a 6-foot-4, 272-pound former four-star prospect, could also play a bigger factor in this year's Gator defense. Collins, an early enrollee from Gardendale, Alabama, was ranked No. 53 overall in the Class of 2023.
Napier hopes that his players will use Boone's absence to come together as a group.
"This could really galvanize our team," Napier said. "This is a guy players really care about... We're going to rally around Boone."
Florida opens its 2023 season on Aug. 31 against defending Pac-12 champion Utah in a Thursday night contest. The Gators topped the Utes in a 29-26 thriller in Gainesville to open the 2022 season.
