Things have been quiet on the college football recruiting front of late but that does not mean that Billy Napier and Co. are sleeping at the wheel. In fact, it is quite to the contrary — the Florida football staff has continued to work tirelessly behind the scenes to woo the top prep prospects to Gainesville.
Among the many the Gators are pursuing is four-star interior offensive lineman [autotag]Kaden Strayhorn[/autotag] who is originally from Novi, Michigan, but plays for the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. Inittially offered a scholarship back in 2023, the 6-foot-3-inch, 285-pound trench warrior is looking to return to the Swamp once the contact period restrictions are lifted.
“I’m going to be visiting Florida (March 23), Alabama (March 26), Georgia (March 28), Ohio State and Miami this spring,” Strayhorn told Swamp247’s Blake Alderman at IMG’s Pro Day last Thursday.
The last time the 2025 recruit visited campus was for the win over the Tennessee Volunteers last fall.
The coveted blue-chipper also plans on setting his official visit schedule once his first round of trips is in the books and is eyeing a Hogtown stop. Some of the programs also mentioned were the USC Trojans, Michigan Wolverines and Texas Longhorns, plus possible returns to see Miami and Georgia.
“After I get through this round of (spring) visits, I’ll be going to start scheduling those and drop the dates in the summer,” Strayhorn told Alderman.
As for what stands out about the Florida Gators from the other schools, it is the vibe that the campus nurtures that stood out to Strayhorn the most.
“The culture that they have up there,” he noted. “When I went to the Tennessee game, the fan base was crazy. It was one of the best games I’ve been to. Also, my ex-teammate Knijeah Harris goes there, and he gives great reviews about the program. They also have programs like GatorMade.”
Strayhorn is rated at four stars and ranked No. 380 overall and No. 20 at his position nationally according to the 247Sports composite while the On3 industry ranking rates him at three stars and has him at Nos. 448 and 28, respectively.
On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has the Michigan State Spartans with an 84.8% lead in the race for his talents, followed by Michigan (4.0%), Alabama (2.3%) and Florida (1.9%).
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