CBS Sports calls Florida one of strongest preseason No. 1s in years

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CBS Sports calls Florida one of strongest preseason No. 1s in years

CBS Sports calls Florida one of strongest preseason No. 1s in years

David Rosenberg, Gators Wire · Gators Wire

Sat, October 31, 2026 at 12:30 PM UTC ·

2 min read

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Florida basketball has collected plenty of No. 1 rankings this preseason, but CBS Sports' Matt Norlander went a step further in his annual Top 100 And 1 .

Norlander ranked the Gators No. 1 nationally entering the 2026-27 season and called Florida "one of the strongest preseason No. 1s" of the past 15 years. The Gators sit ahead of Duke, Illinois and Arizona in the ranking as Todd Golden's team prepares to begin another championship pursuit.

The biggest reason for that confidence is a frontcourt that barely changed from last season.

Thomas Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu and Alex Condon all return after each averaging at least 10 points, six rebounds and one block per game. According to CBS Sports, Florida's trio is just the third in the past 35 years to hit all three benchmarks in the same season.

Norlander called Haugh, Chinyelu and Condon the "best frontcourt in college basketball" entering the season — a title that has become a near-consensus opinion days away from the season.

Their impact was especially noticeable on the glass. Florida finished last season with a plus-14.7 rebounding margin, the best mark by any Division I team since Michigan State in 2000-01.

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PHOTOS: Top highlights from Florida's preseason win against Stetson

Stetson Collin Kuhl (9) pokes Florida Urban Klavzar (7) in the eye during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]

(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) rebounds against Stetson during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Thomas Haugh (10) shoots past Stetson Magnus Entenmann (43) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Stetson Collin Kuhl (9) and Florida Alex Condon (21) try to rebound during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Stetson Collin Kuhl (9) drives on Florida Alex Condon (21) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Thomas Haugh (10) steals the ball from Stetson Roman Miller (23) during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Lloyd (4) drives against Stetson during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) tries to block Stetson Magnus Entenmann (43) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Lloyd (4) steals the ball from Stetson Daniel Macgregor (4) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Urban Klavzar (7) drives against Stetson Daniel Macgregor (4) and Stetson Alex Doyle (13) during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Isaiah Brown (20) shoots past Stetson Makhi Myles (0) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) shoots past Stetson Magnus Entenmann (43) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Thomas Haugh (10) shoots past Stetson Roman Miller (23) during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Arturas Butajevas (25) and Stetson Alex Doyle (13) struggle for the ball during the first half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) drives against Stetson Collin Kuhl (9) during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) gets pressure from Stetson Jean-Ernest Boyomo Keedi (1) during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Alex Condon (21) shoots against Stetson during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

Florida Urban Klavzar (7) gets pressure from Stetson Daniel Macgregor (4) during the second half of an NCAA exhibition basketball game at Steven C. O'Connell Center Exactek arena in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Florida won 68-85. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]
(Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co)

All three also enter the season with significant individual expectations. Haugh earned first-team CBS Sports preseason All-America honors, while Chinyelu made the third team after winning National Defensive Player of the Year. Condon was a preseason All-American entering last season.

Florida's continuity extends well beyond its frontcourt.

Boogie Fland, Urban Klavzar and Isaiah Brown are also back, and the Gators return 81.8% of their scoring from last season. Norlander noted that is the most of any high-major team and the fourth-highest percentage returned by a team coming off a No. 1 seed since 2002-03.

Denzel Aberdeen should add another familiar piece after spending last season at Kentucky. He was part of Florida's 2025 national championship team and was granted a temporary injunction for a fifth year of eligibility.

There is still one obvious area Florida needs to improve. Norlander identified reliable 3-point shooting as the Gators' biggest question after they ranked 321st nationally from beyond the arc last season.

Florida is the preseason No. 1 team for just the second time in program history. The other came in 2006-07, when the Gators successfully defended their national championship.

No preseason No. 1 has won the national title since North Carolina in 2008-09. CBS Sports believes Florida has as good a chance as anyone to end that drought.

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.

This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: CBS Sports calls Florida one of strongest preseason No. 1s in years

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