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The early signing period for the 2021 recruiting class began on Wednesday, and the early returns aren’t great for coach Dan Mullen and the Gators, who captured an SEC East title for the first time since 2016 this season.
Florida managed to secure the signature of its highest-rated recruit, Miami Palmetto corner Jason Marshall Jr., the nation’s No. 27 player according to the 247Sports composite. It also locked up its top quarterback commit, four-star Georgia prospect Carlos Del Rio-Wilson.
But the Gators missed on a number of players that could have taken this class from good to great, and with early signing day behind us, Florida is just barely hanging onto its spot in the top 10 of the recruiting rankings. Its class ranks just fifth in the SEC.
The Gators class ranking earlier in the period was skewed by its high number of commits, despite its relatively low average player rating. As other programs with higher average player ratings filled out their classes, Florida’s rank continued to drop.
In its analysis of the winners and losers from the early signing period, Sports Illustrated deemed UF one of several losers. Here’s what they had to say about the Gators’ class, which hopes to improve its standing before National Signing Day in February.
Florida: The Gators were technically able to keep IDL Tyreak Sapp away from Alabama and get him to sign, but they lost out on a few big fish to SEC rivals. LB Xavian Sorey chose Georgia over UF, DE Tunmise Adeleye opted for Texas A&M and IDL Maason Smith spurned the chance to play in Gainesville for LSU. Sorey and SI99 safety Terrion Arnold have been linked as a package deal, so with the former picking the Bulldogs, the Gators’ chances of landing Arnold in February also took a hit today. Perception of better Wednesdays in Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, Athens, Oxford and maybe even Auburn don’t make it much better.
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