Billy Napier and his staff have been working tirelessly on the recruiting front in an effort to restore glory to the Orange and Blue following the program’s second-straight season with a losing record — the first time that has happened since 1978-79. The Gator Nation is impatiently growing restless for results and the second-year skipper is doing all he can to accelerate the process of improvement.
While the primary focus has been on the blue-chip prospects available in the current and upcoming recruiting cycles, the Gators are also looking for diamonds in the rough to help cement the roster. Among those players is three-star athlete [autotag]Justin Denson[/autotag] out of Providence (Rhode Island) La Salle Academy, who recently received a scholarship offer leading to an unofficial visit earlier this month.
“They showed a lot of love,” Denson told Swamp247 following the visit. “I liked their facility, the coaching staff, the academic center and their education. Just all the classes you can take and what the degree means from there. Their practice was really cool to watch and the way they practice. You can tell they have a top-notch program over there.”
He also told Swamp247 that the Gators are the leaders in his recruitment after his first stop in the Swamp.
Assistant head coach and secondaries coach Corey Raymond has led the effort in drawing the high school junior to Gainesville as Florida projects Denson as a defensive back at the collegiate level. Co-offensive line coach Darnell Stapleton is also involved, attending the talented athlete’s high school practice on Monday to check up on his skills.
No official visit date with Billy Napier and the Gators has been set yet.
Denson is unrated and unranked in the 247Sports composite while the On3 industry ranking has him at No. 649 overall and No. 67 at his position nationally. The Michigan State Spartans currently hold the top spot in On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine with a 36.3% chance of landing him, while the Penn State Nittany Lions (26.5 %), Oklahoma Sooners (13.8 %) and Rhode Island Rams (4.1 %) follow behind, respectively.
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