Florida football hosted a slew of high school prospects this past weekend as the summer recruiting season continues to heat up. Among those who made the trip to Gainesville was four-star linebacker [autotag]TJ Searcy[/autotag] out of Thomaston (Georgia) Upson-Lee, who stopped by on Sunday to see what the Swamp has to offer.
The 6-foot-5-inch, 250-pound prospect from across the state line came away from his official visit well impressed with what head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and his staff have going for the Orange and Blue, offering the following to Swamp247’s Jacob Rudner.
“Coach Napier sat with us and coach Mike (Peterson) sat with us too,” Searcy said. “They made me feel like I could come here and make an impact.
“They’re definitely one of my top schools right now.”
He also told Hector Rodriguez at 1st and Ten Florida, “The visit was a 10 out of 10 for sure,” adding, “I just had a great time, and my family definitely enjoyed their time as well.”
Additionally, Searcy got a good idea of where he would play on the field under the current system, which places him at the edge position much like current Gator [autotag]Brenton Cox Jr[/autotag]. He elaborated on that point with Swamp247.
“One thing they definitely did real good this time was explain to me how they would use me in the scheme,” he said. “They want me to go out there and get sacks. I wouldn’t be here to drop (back in coverage).
“They were telling me that me and B Cox are the same,” Searcy noted. “It would be me playing just like he is.”
His stop with Florida follows an official visit to see the Clemson Tigers, while the Tennessee Volunteers and South Carolina Gamecocks await him on the successive respective weekends to give him similar treatment. The Peach State star also expects to return to Gainesville for an unofficial visit in July.
Searcy currently sits at No. 188 overall and No. 31 nationally at his position according to 247Sports, while Rivals ranks him at Nos. 233 and 19, and On3 at Nos. 49 and 6, respectively. He currently holds one crystal ball projection from 247Sports with the Florida State Seminoles but South Carolina leads in On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine with a 34.1% chance of landing him; Florida is in third at 20.6%.
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