Florida opens against Florida Gulf Coast in Jacksonville.
MORE: SN preseason All-Americans
Gak, a three-star prospect rated the No. 25 center in the nation, signed with Florida last spring but was declared ineligible this summer because of questions about how many games he played at Bradenton (Fla.) Victory Rock Prep after arriving from his native Australia.
The NCAA initially ruled that Gak could enroll at Florida and practice with the team but wouldn’t be eligible to play until his sophomore year, when he would have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Florida’s compliance office filed a waiver to appeal the ruling, which led to Thursday’s reversal.
“We’ll take it slow with him,” Gators coach Mike White said, “but we really like his ceiling as a player. Great kid, too.” Gak averaged 13.9 points and 9.3 rebounds at Victory Rock before signing last fall with Oklahoma State. He was released from his letter-of-intent after Cowboys coach Travis Ford was fired at the end of the 2015-16 season.
