Florida's Brenton Cox Jr. Dismissed from Team for Undisclosed Reason, per HC Napier

Florida head coach Billy Napier announced junior linebacker Brenton Cox Jr. is no longer on the team.

Napier didn't provide a reason for Cox's dismissal and pointed to "an accumulation of things rather than one specific action," per the Tampa Bay Times' Matt Baker.

"I think that being a football player at the University of Florida is a privilege. There are certainly expectations that come with that," he told reporters. "Obviously, he has done a lot of good things for the University of Florida and we wish him nothing but the best but sometimes you have to make decisions in the best interest of the team."

Cox began his career at Georgia and transferred to Florida following the 2018 season. After sitting out a year, he debuted for the Gators in 2020 as a redshirt sophomore.

The 6'3", 252-pound defender had 24 tackles, two sacks and six tackles for loss in eight games. His production ticked upward in 2021 as he recorded 41 tackles, 8.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss while forcing one fumble and breaking up four passes.

Cox continued to be a mainstay for Florida this season. His eight tackles for loss are the most on the team, and he was tied for second in sacks (two).

Cox's performance was undoubtedly putting him on the radar for NFL teams ahead of the 2023 draft. He was the No. 60 overall player on Bleacher Report's most recent big board.

Ahead of a 42-20 loss to Georgia in Week 9, Napier listed Antwaun Powell-Ryland Jr. in the depth chart as the backup to Cox at the JACK position. Based on that, Powell-Ryland will take over as the starter for Saturday's contest against Texas A&M.