Pyburn’s Hometown Ties In Florida-Georgia Rivalry

Florida junior edge rusher Jack Pyburn has made tremendous strides in the 2024 season.

Pyburn has played in every game with consecutive starts against UCF and Tennessee. He has accumulated 27 tackles, nine being solo, and 2.5 tackles for loss.

In Florida’s OT loss at Tennessee, Pyburn registered a team-high tying seven tackles (three solo).

Road Back To Field

In Pyburn’s first start of the 2023 season, he tore his ACL while attempting to make a tackle.

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Rather than wallow during his rehab, Pyburn rose to the challenge, determined to recover as quickly as possible.

“I honestly enjoyed it. I really did. I just viewed it as a challenge,” Pyburn said. “I think if you view hard things in life as a challenge rather than, you know, something in your way, it’s going to be a great thing for you.”

Typically, an ACL recovery takes anywhere from eight to 12 months. However, Pyburn defied the odds, taking only six months to recover.

Pyburn told the media Monday how grateful he is to back on the field:

Ties To Florida-Georgia Rivalry

Pyburn also shared his thoughts on how special the Florida-Georgia rivalry is as he returns to his roots in Jacksonville on Saturday:

Pyburn will compete against familiar faces in this rivalry matchup, one being a former Gator teammate, junior running back Trevor Etienne. Pyburn and Florida’s defense will focus on identifying Etienne on the field and containing him.

While Pyburn sees Etienne as a brother, he is still looking forward to competing at the highest level on Saturday:

Being that Pyburn and Georgia quarterback Carson Beck are both natives to Jacksonville, this matchup has hometown ties as well. Pyburn even remembers watching Beck’s high school state championship team.

He discussed the strategy against the Manning Award Finalist:

Pyburn believes the Gators (4-3, 2-2 SEC) have to come out with full force against the No. 2 Bulldogs (6-1, 4-1) from the second the whistle blows to establish the tone of the game.

“I think that is something that especially our defense has done much better in the past four weeks as we’ve been starting fast,” Pyburn said. “We’ve been getting three-and-outs on the first drives. We’ve been coming out and getting our offense the ball early as well as our offense going down, gaining touchdowns earlier in the game, setting the tone.”

Pyburn’s Physicality And Mentality

Ever since Pyburn was a kid, he has always played physical and aggressive. He recalls always having a love for contact from a young age, a passion he applies in his play today as an edge for the Gators:

Pyburn also spoke not only about the importance of making plays, but also about being a team player. The junior believes the best athletes are those who can recognize their role and contribution to their team first:

As far as mentality, Pyburn carries a “chip on [his shoulder],” believing it carries teams to performing at their fullest:

Coming Up

The Gators take on the Bulldogs at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville. Coverage will be provided by ABC and ESPN 981.-FM/850-AM WRUF.