“We’re only as strong as our weakest link”: Tyreak Sapp details his leadership role
Redshirt junior Tyreak Sapp has taken great pride in establishing himself as a leader in the Billy Napier era. The St. Thomas Aquinas product was a standup linebacker in high school but has bounced around from edge to defensive tackle throughout his Gators’ career, showing a willingness to play whatever position Florida’s staff needs him to.
In 11 starts last season, Sapp combined for 24 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks across 296 snaps. Sapp’s defensive grade of 74.4 ranked as Florida’s 4th highest amongst eligible defenders. He also graded as the Gators’ second-best tackler behind edge TJ Searcy, missing just one tackle for a missed tackle percentage of 3.8%.
The 6’2.5, 272-pound defensive lineman is at the edge position (F) with a group that consists of Justus Boone, Kamryn James, and LJ McCray. This offseason was about leadership for the Fort Lauderdale, Florida native.
“I feel like I gained a lot of knowledge, but I feel like I’ve just been trying to push myself to bring other people with me,” Sapp said to the media on Tuesday. “I understand we’re only as strong as our weakest link, so I need everybody to be with me. I know I’m going to train. I know when the ship leaves the dock, I’m on the ship. I just want everybody else to be on the ship. That’s my main thing.”
Sapp has worked with four different directors leading Florida’s strength and conditioning staff since he stepped foot in Gainesville back in 2021. The biggest difference from last season to fall camp is the strength and conditioning staff under Tyler Miles.
“It’s the strength and conditioning staff,” Sapp said on the biggest offseason change. “Coach T Miles and the way he’s pushed us through this summer, through this offseason and the role he took. He understood the assignment and he went about it. One thing he made sure to tell us was that he’s going to hold us to the standard whether we like it or not. We all just had to pull together, especially the leaders, the older guys, the vets on the team. Bringing the young guys with us and letting them know like, if we do it right this time we can get whatever we want out of it.”
While summer camp wasn’t easy for the Gators, Sapp made sure to lead by example throughout Florida’s offseason workouts.
“I feel like the leaders being able to lead and the young guys being able to listen. That’s what it took,” Sapp said. “The summer was hard and you had to really push yourself. If you didn’t prepare the right way, then you wouldn’t be able to perform right. I think just us being able to lead the right way and get through adversity. He pushed us. He made it hurt. He didn’t make it easy. Some days I woke up at 5:30 in the morning and almost dreading coming here but I understood the assignment. Me understanding what I can sacrifice now for what I want later.”
Florida is projected to finish 12th in the SEC in 2024, according to USA Today. Sapp, like many other Gators, hear and see what’s being said about this year’s squad. Sapp doesn’t take the doubters lightly and uses it as motivation.
“That’s personal. That’s personal man,” Sapp said on where Florida’s projected to finish in the conference. “I feel like everybody that had something to say, everybody that dawned upon our failure and that had a doubt in their mind about us, we ain’t going to say nothing about it, but they are going to have to live with that real soon. You are going to have to live with it. May God have mercy on a lot of teams’ souls, because I won’t. I promise you I won’t.”
Sapp and the Gators kickoff the 2024 season against the Miami Hurricanes on August 31st.
