The college football recruiting hot stove is approaching the boiling point as June continues to roll along. Now with three weekends in the books filled with prep prospect visits as well as other relevant news, things are coming into focus for the 2023 class.
The Florida Gators have been humming along this month as head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] navigates through his first recruitment cycle in Gainesville, with many visitors coming away thoroughly impressed with what he and his staff are building in the Swamp. Among those was four-star defensive tackle [autotag]Kayden McDonald[/autotag] out of Suwanee (Georgia) North Gwinnett High School, who spent the past weekend in Gainesville and subsequently elevated the Orange and Blue into his top three schools, according to Swamp247.
“It’s Florida and I want to play in the SEC. (Head coach Billy) Napier, he ran the Sun Belt so he’s going to win some games. If I come here or not, they’re going to win. He’s going to get a Natty in possibly three to four years so he’s just trying to build this 2023 class. He’s already got the new facilities and academics, you’re going to get a great degree here and just come and work.”
McDonald already has a connection at the university in freshman defensive lineman [autotag]Chris McClellan[/autotag], who he refers to as a “big brother” after forging a bond during his prior spring visits. “‘We could do special things here. We could go win SEC championships, go beat Alabama, go be first-round draft picks,” McClellan told him.
The 6-foot-3-inch, 310-pound lineman’s official visit to Gainesville was the first of five, with the Michigan State Spartans getting a gander next weekend. The remaining three visits are expected to be used in the fall, though those dates are still undecided.
McDonald is currently ranked No. 293 overall and No. 41 nationally at his position according to the 247Sports composite, while the On3 consensus has him at Nos. 290 and 39, respectively. The Georgia Bulldogs hold his lone 247Sports crystal ball projection while On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has the Michigan Wolverines as the front-runners with a 36.2% chance of landing him and UGA in second at 30.7%.
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