GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida sophomore nickelback John Huggins has been absent from the team's practices so far in fall camp, dealing with what coach Dan Mullen described last week as a family situation.

According to documents provided to Swamp247 by the University of Florida Police Department via an open records request, Huggins was twice referred to UF's Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution department for separate incidents that occurred last fall. One reportedly involved Huggins putting his hands around a tutor's neck.

A UF spokesman told Swamp247 on Monday the team has known about both incidents for a while. Mullen also clarified when asked on Tuesday that Huggins' current absence is not related to those incidents.

"These are all incident reports that we were aware of last football season," spokesman Steve McClain said.

Added Mullen:

"No (it's not related). No, that's all been handled."

Huggins played in Florida's first five games in 2018 prior to the first incident he was referred to UF's Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution department for, when he allegedly put his hands around a tutor's neck. He did not play in the following five games for the Gators.

On Oct 1., UFPD officers responded to a call about one of the tutors at the Otis Hawkins Center on campus being strangled by Huggins during a tutoring session. The police report indicates that the complainant did not wish to press charges against Huggins following the alleged incident.

The complainant willingly met with UFPD officers and told them that she met with Huggins at 10:30 a.m. that day for a tutoring session. About 10 minutes into the session, Huggins received a text message from another tutor in the same building informing him that he had left his jacket.

Huggins told the complainant that he was going to get his jacket and would be back. His phone was near the complainant, so the complainant, also one of Huggins' tutors, put her hand on the phone, telling him he could get it when he returned. She told UFPD that Huggins frequently leaves his hour-long tutoring sessions within 15 minutes of them starting, and keeping his phone was her way of making sure he would return.

According to the incident report, at that point Huggins placed both of his hands on the complainant's neck to choke her. The complainant told UFPD officers she could breathe and talk while Huggins' hands were around her neck and that she didn't recall him saying anything while he was grabbing her. After Huggins put his hands on her neck, the complainant told him he could have his phone and go.

After retrieving his jacket, Huggins reportedly returned to the tutoring session but left about five minutes after, stating his session was over. The complainant told UFPD that Huggins acted like nothing had happened when he returned. After Huggins left, the complainant reported the incident to her supervisor, who contacted UFPD. The complainant also informed her supervisor that she did not wish to tutor Huggins one-on-one again because she was afraid of what he could do.

When speaking to UFPD officers, the complainant said that she had red marks on her neck after the incident but that they were gone by the time UFPD arrived. The UFPD officer who filed the incident report noted that he did not see any red marks on her neck. She told UFPD that although she was afraid of Huggins and did not want to tutor him one-on-one, she would be willing to tutor him in a group setting.

The complainant also relayed another incident involving Huggins in a group tutoring session a few days prior to the alleged choking incident. While at the session, one of the other football players present offered to braid the complainant's hair. The complainant allowed him to do so, but while the unnamed football player was braiding her hair, Huggins approached and said, "Do you know what you're supposed to do with this?" before grabbing and pulling on her hair. Uninjured, the complainant immediately walked away.

UFPD reported that the complainant said she has never been in a personal relationship with Huggins. She filled out a sworn statement for UPFD and signed a complaint withdrawal affidavit following the incident. UFPD referred her to a victim advocate but noted she did not want to speak with one right away.

The incident is one of at least five involving alleged violence against women that have been reported at Florida since Mullen arrived.

Cornerback Justin Watkins was dismissed from the team last summer after he was arrested for assaulting and choking his girlfriend. Quarterback Jalon Jones transferred after two women filed sworn complaint affidavits alleging he sexually assaulted them in his dorm room. Neither woman pressed formal charges. Cornerback Brian Edwards also was arrested for misdemeanor battery for allegedly grabbing his girlfriend by the neck, but the charges were later dismissed for insufficient evidence. Edwards also transferred. Off-the-field staffer Otis Yelverton was also arrested for threatening to blow up his ex-girlfriend's car. His charges were also dropped, but Yelverton is no longer with the program.

Mullen was adamant the program has been diligent about educating everyone in the program about how to treat women properly.

"We do a lot. How many of them were actually charged?" Mullen asked. "Part of it is also, there's a lot out there with women. Now we do a lot of education with our team on that stuff. Obviously I'm a big anti-violence-against-women person. I'm also a person that I really want to have all the information as I make decisions on what happens in different situations.

"That's one of the toughest deals, because it's a jump to conclusion on every detail that happens sometimes."

The alleged incident with the tutor was not Huggins' only reported incident.

He was referred to UF's Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution department again on Jan. 16, a month after officers responded to a narcotics violation call at UF's Keys Complex, where many student-athletes reside.

On Dec. 16, UFPD responded to a call from a graduate hall director about a burnt marijuana smell in the building. Officers located and found about a gram of marijuana inside the dorm room of Huggins, UF tight end Kyle Pitts and running back Iverson Clement.

Huggins and Pitts denied any knowledge of the marijuana on scene, while Clement did the same after being contacted by UFPD. Clement was not present when the marijuana was retrieved.

All three were referred to the UF Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution department.

Huggins and Pitts both appeared in Florida's bowl game against Michigan on Dec. 29.

For Florida, Huggins' absence has contributed to a shortage of depth at the nickelback position in fall camp. Sophomore Trey Dean moved to the position as the starter this spring following the departure of nickelback Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to the NFL Draft.

Huggins is expected to be his primary backup in 2019. Fellow reserve nickelback Christopher McWilliams recently suffered a torn Achilles in non-contact work during fall camp and miss the season. With Huggins and McWilliams currently out, it's unclear who Dean's immediate backup is.

Mullen indicated that linebacker Amari Burney and Huggins are both capable of backing up Dean, and cornerback Marco Wilson can also slide there in a pinch.

Asked a couple times Tuesday, Mullen said that he knew an exact timetable for a return for Huggins but was unwilling to reveal it. Has he been pleased with Huggins' behavior in the program since the incidents last fall?

"Some things yes, some things no," he said.

Huggins recorded three tackles, a tackle for a loss and one interception as a true freshman in 2018.