Tag: Aaron Gates

These 4 Florida football players changed position for 2024

These four guys are making a switch this season in hopes of boosting themselves and their team.

The upcoming college football season will be bringing many changes for the Florida Gators both on the field and off. Following their third-straight losing season, there are plenty of adjustments that need to be made.

Among those are four members of the team’s 2024 roster who will be taking on new roles in the new year. In fact, it is not uncommon for a member of the Florida football roster to shift spots ahead of an upcoming season.

Below is a look at four student-athletes who have made a switch on the field in hopes of boosting their stock among their gridiron peers, as well as improving the program as a whole.

Florida drops outside top 10 in ESPN’s 2023 recruiting class rankings

After the departure of Jaden Rashada, the Florida Gators have dropped outside the top ten in ESPN’s 2023 recruiting class rankings.

The Florida Gators have dropped outside of the top 10 in ESPN’s ranking of 2023 recruiting classes. The Orange and Blue’s incoming class rank went from No. 9 to No. 11, largely due to [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag]’s departure from Florida’s class.

The Gators had been hovering around the top 10 of the recruiting rankings since July when a surge of commitments created a buzz around the Florida program and first-year head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]. This was a stark contrast from the end of June when Napier penned an open letter to the Gator Nation, pleading for patience and trust in the process.

Napier was a fantastic recruiter at Louisiana, having the No. 1 recruiting class in the Sun Belt in all four seasons at the helm. But he didn’t do this alone. The addition of top-tier assistants such as assistant head coach and defense/cornerbacks coach [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag], co-defensive coordinator/defensive line coach [autotag]Sean Spencer[/autotag], and many more, have had a massive impact on the recruiting trail. Raymond is considered one of the best, if not the best, defensive backs developers in the nation.

The Gators were able to sign most of their 2023 commits during the early signing period in December. After the Rashada situation, Florida’s quarterback situation started to look murky, with [autotag]Jack Miller[/autotag] the lone scholarship quarterback from 2022 to remain on the roster. The arrival of [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] from Wisconsin creates some competition for the starting role.

Here is what ESPN’s Craig Haubert had to say about including the Gators in his latest 2023 class ranking:

Billy Napier has taken advantage of in-state talent with several Sunshine State pickups, assembling a strong secondary from that pool. The Gators have added several ESPN 300 DBs, including CBs [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag], [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag] and CB [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag], who has good feet and brings a tough, scrappy demeanor. [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag], who stayed on even after committing to the previous staff, projects to defensive back and can be a versatile player with his quickness and ball skills. [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag], listed as an athlete, projects to WR and is a player who tests very well, which will translate to his play on the field. Adding more potential firepower to their passing attack is [autotag]Aidan Mizell[/autotag], a lengthy target with big-play speed. [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] is a nice addition to the trenches, as he has been a multiyear starter at IMG Academy and should come in ready to compete for playing time. The Gators also flipped ESPN 300 OG [autotag]Roderick Kearney[/autotag], a powerful and flexible big man who could work his way into the two-deep quickly, from Florida State. It is hard to win the SEC without being strong along the defensive front, and Collins leads a talented group of defensive linemen. Napier showed what he can do with a full cycle to work assembling one of the top classes in the country, but a late split with ESPN 300 QB Jaden Rashada still leaves a need under center.

The official national signing day is scheduled for Feb. 1, with most of the 2023 class deciding to enroll early and participate in spring practices.

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Billy Napier describes trio of defensive backs as a ‘very versatile group’

Gators fans could see some improvements in the secondary next season thanks to Napier’s positional overhaul.

The Florida secondary will be undergoing an overhaul for the 2023 season. Defensive backs [autotag]Trey Dean III[/autotag], [autotag]Rashad Torrence II[/autotag], [autotag]Donovan McMillon[/autotag] and [autotag]Corey Collier Jr[/autotag]. have all left the program either due to graduation, declaring for the NFL draft or entering the transfer portal.

[autotag]Kamari Wilson[/autotag] and [autotag]Miguel Mitchell[/autotag] are the only returning safeties from the 2022 season. Because of the roster turnover, highly-touted recruits like [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag], [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag] will undoubtedly get playing time over the course of the season. But those aren’t the names that Napier singled out.

Head coach Billy Napier believes that [autotag]Jordan Castell[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Thornton[/autotag], and [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag] are the early contenders to provide the position depth in 2023. In addition to being the team’s defensive coordinator, [autotag]Patrick Toney[/autotag] is also tasked with being the safeties coach, working with cornerbacks coach [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag] to craft the defensive backfield.

Napier praised Castell’s ability to cover receivers in man-to-man or zone coverage, Thornton’s football IQ, and Gates’ competitive nature, noting that he was the lone holdover from the previous staff to become a Florida Gator in 2023. Gates is coming off a torn ACL suffered in his final season of prep football, but the staff maintained their belief in him and brought him in.

Overall, the secondary looks to be at the dawn of a new era. For a long time, Florida fans were unsure about the talent level in the secondary. It seems like this group will be the ones to begin the process of restoring Florida to its “DBU” status, something that hasn’t been able to be said in a long time.

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Where Florida’s 2023 recruiting class finished in final On3 rankings

Half of Florida’s 2023 recruiting class wound up in the On3 top 300 after the final update was released on Tuesday.

The Florida Gators already signed the bulk of its 2023 recruiting class, and the haul is looking even better than expected after On3 provided its last update to its independent rankings, the On300.

Ten of Florida’s signees cracked the top 300 and five players made it into the top 100.

Again, this is On3’s independent rankings, which is used to reach the more commonly cited On3 consensus or 247Sports composite rankings. Those are aggregate scores that use different formulas depending on the site and are used more often because they help eliminate any one service’s individual bias.

Several of Florida’s signees participated in All-Star games and boosted their stock with good performances against some of the top players in the class. The two most notable were cornerback [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag] and defensive lineman [autotag]Kelby Collins[/autotag], who each moved up over 50 spots to break into the top 50.

Here’s a look at where each Florida signee from the class of 2023 finished in the On300 rankings.

Florida makes top-10 appearance in ESPN’s 2023 recruiting class rankings

Florida cracked ESPN’s top 10 programs in its recent recruiting rankings.

The Florida Gators are among ESPN’s list of the Top 75 college football teams, based on their 2023 recruiting efforts. The Orange and Blue’s incoming class ranked just inside the top 10, coming in at No. 9.

The Gators had been hovering around the top 10 of the recruiting rankings since July when a surge of commitments created a buzz around the Florida program and first-year head coach Billy Napier. This was a stark contrast from the end of June when Napier penned an open letter to the Gator Nation, pleading for patience and trust in the process.

Napier was a fantastic recruiter at Louisiana, having the No. 1 recruiting class in the Sun Belt in all four seasons at the helm. But he didn’t do this alone. The addition of top-tier assistants such as assistant head coach and defense/cornerbacks coach [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag], co-defensive coordinator/defensive line coach [autotag]Sean Spencer[/autotag], and many more, have had a massive impact on the recruiting trail. Raymond is considered one of the best, if not the best, defensive backs developers in the nation.

Here is what ESPN’s Craig Haubert had to say about including the Gators in his list of the top 75 college teams:

Billy Napier has taken advantage of in-state talent with several Sunshine State pickups, assembling a strong secondary from that pool. The Gators have added several ESPN 300 DBs, including CBs [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag], [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag] and CB [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag], who has good feet and brings a tough, scrappy demeanor. [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag], who stayed on even after committing to the previous staff, projects to defensive back and can be a versatile player with his quickness and ball skills. [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag], listed as an athlete, projects to WR and is a player who tests very well, which will translate to his play on the field. Adding more potential firepower to their passing attack is [autotag]Aidan Mizell[/autotag], a lengthy target with big-play speed. Rashada hails from California but became a big in-state flip from Miami. With a smooth release and good arm strength, the newest Gator is one of the top QBs in the class. [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] is a nice addition to the trenches, as he has been a multiyear starter at IMG Academy and should come in ready to compete for playing time. They also flipped ESPN 300 OG [autotag]Roderick Kearney[/autotag], a powerful and flexible big man who could work his way into the two-deep quickly, from Florida State. It is hard to win the SEC without being strong along the defensive front, and Collins leads a talented group of defensive linemen.

Notably, [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag]’s name is mentioned in Haubert’s write-up. Rashada, who signed his national letter of intent to play at the University of Florida back in December, has yet to enroll as a student despite expressing his intention to do so. The Rashada story is still developing and it is unclear if he will be on the roster come fall camp.

The official national signing day is scheduled for Feb. 1, with a portion of the 2023 class deciding to enroll early and participate in spring practices.

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Florida’s 2023 recruiting class is loaded with early enrolees

With early signing day in the books, we now have a better idea of which members of Florida’s recruiting class of 2023 will early enroll.

Florida head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] went over a lot in his post-early signing day press conference, but one of the major points discussed was just how many of the 20 signees will enroll early. According to Napier, the bulk of the class should arrive in the spring.

Of Florida’s 20 signees, Napier expects 18 to be in Gainesville for spring practices. Rather than listing each name that plans to early enroll, it’s easier to list those who won’t: wide receiver [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag] and defensive lineman [autotag]Gavin Hill[/autotag].

Adding 18 players to the roster a few months early could be huge for Billy Napier and Co. The Gators are replacing a ton of talent after many draft departures, dismissals and transfers. Getting the new Napier-recruited talent on campus early means more time to teach them the playbook, system, etc. More practice time means a better shot at finding early snaps, too.

“The other thing that’s going to help is you’re going to have 20 players that start in January,” said Napier during his early signing day presser, “and I think that translates to more reps and more teaching and more opportunity to get orientated to the university and just life in general in college. But I do think that there will be a number of this group (that compete for early playing time). They’re going to have to earn it.”

It can’t be overstated how important it was for Florida to bring in a group of recruits that were willing to enroll early, and Napier did an exceptional job making sure everything went according to plan.

In case you’re looking for a full list of early enrollees, here’s a list of the players that should be coming to Gainesville in the spring:

  • 5-star quarterback [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag]
  • 4-star running back [autotag]Treyaun Webb[/autotag]
  • 4-star receiver [autotag]Aidan Mizell[/autotag]
  • 4-star receiver [autotag]Andy Jean[/autotag]
  • 4-star offensive lineman [autotag]Roderick Kearney[/autotag]
  • 3-star offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag]
  • 3-star offensive tackle [autotag]Bryce Lovett[/autotag]
  • 4-star defensive lineman [autotag]Kelby Collins[/autotag]
  • 4-star defensive lineman [autotag]Kamran James[/autotag]
  • 4-star defensive lineman [autotag]TJ Searcy[/autotag]
  • 4-star defensive linemen [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag]
  • 4-star linebacker [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag]
  • 4-star cornerback [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag]
  • 4-star cornerback [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag]
  • 4-star safety [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag]
  • 4-star safety [autotag]Jordan Castell[/autotag]
  • 4-star safety [autotag]Bryce Thornton[/autotag]
  • 4-star athlete [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag]

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Florida makes ESPN’s 2023 recruiting class rankings top 10

The Florida Gators are in the top 10 of ESPN’s national 2023 recruiting rankings. They are the fifth-highest SEC program.

The Florida Gators 2023 recruiting class comes in at No. 9 in ESPN’s 2023 recruiting rankings after early signing day wrapped up on Wednesday.

The Gators had been hovering around the top ten of the recruiting rankings since July when a surge of commitments created a buzz around the Florida program and first-year head coach Billy Napier. This is a stark contrast from the end of June when Napier penned an open letter to the Gator Nation essentially pleading for patience and trust in the process.

Napier was a fantastic recruiter at Louisiana, having the No. 1 recruiting class in the Sun Belt in all four seasons at the helm. But he didn’t do this alone. The addition of top-tier assistants such as assistant head coach and defense/cornerbacks coach [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag], co-defensive coordinator, defensive line coach [autotag]Sean Spencer[/autotag], and many more, have had a massive impact on the recruiting trail. Raymond is considered one of the best, if not the best, defensive backs developers in the nation.

Here is what ESPN’s Craig Haubert had to say about the Gators’ No. 9 ranking:

Billy Napier has taken advantage of in-state talent with several Sunshine State pickups, assembling a strong secondary from that pool. The Gators have added several ESPN 300 DBs, including CBs [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag], [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag] and CB [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag], who has good feet and brings a tough, scrappy demeanor. [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag], who stayed on even after committing to the previous staff, projects to defensive back and can be a versatile player with his quickness and ball skills. [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag], listed as an athlete, projects to WR and is a player who tests very well, which will translate to his play on the field. Adding more potential firepower to their passing attack is [autotag]Aidan Mizell[/autotag], a lengthy target with big-play speed. Rashada hails from California but became a big in-state flip from Miami. With a smooth release and good arm strength, the newest Gator is one of the top QBs in the class. [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] is a nice addition to the trenches, as he has been a multiyear starter at IMG Academy and should come in ready to compete for playing time. They also flipped ESPN 300 OG [autotag]Roderick Kearney[/autotag], a powerful and flexible big man who could work his way into the two-deep quickly, from Florida State. It is hard to win the SEC without being strong along the defensive front, and Collins leads a talented group of defensive linemen.

The players Haubert named are considered to be the elite of this Florida class.

The smaller class was strategic for Napier, as he needs scholarships available to be active in the transfer portal. Prioritizing quality over quantity was a point of emphasis Napier made in his opening press conference and subsequent open letter to the fan base.

The official national signing day is scheduled for Feb. 1, 2023, with a portion of the 2023 class deciding to enroll early and participate in spring practices.

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Here’s what Billy Napier said after early national signing day

Here’s what Billy Napier had to say about each player that signed with Florida during the early signing period.

Florida got 20 commits to sign during the 2023 early signing period, and [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] had a lot to say about the class following all the action.

Napier spoke to the press Wednesday afternoon/evening after an hour-long delay that allowed quarterback [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag]’s name to be added to the list of signees. Florida’s head coach spoke in-depth about each player in the class and Gators Wire has compiled a list of everything that he said.

Coach Napier also tackled general questions about recruiting in-state, the role NIL plays, adding more players through the transfer portal and which member of the class of 2023 will early enroll.

The TL;DR is that Napier’s team feels very confident about each player that was added to the program on Wednesday, and there was a strong emphasis on what kind of home each player came from. Napier firmly believes that being raised by a quality family helps create quality student-athletes.

Here’s a full transcript of everything Napier said on Wednesday.

Tracking Florida’s 2023 early signing period activity

Florida is set to sign most of its 2023 recruiting class on the first day of the early signing period and Gators Wire is keeping track of it all.

The calendar might still read 2022, but the reality is that many of the top recruits in the class of 2023 are signing early and Dec. 21 marks the start of the early signing period. Florida is expected to bring in a strong class in Billy Napier’s first full cycle as head coach, but nothing is ever set in stone until the pen hits the paper.

The February signing date could bring in more names, but the core of the class is signing early and Gators Wire is keeping track of every move the team makes. There usually are some surprises, and Florida is in the hunt for several uncommitted targets set to make their decisions through Friday when the period comes to a close.

Each of Florida’s commitments below is listed in order of expected ceremony start time. As players sign their national letters of intent, the list will update to reflect Florida’s most recent additions.

These 3 recruits making official visits with Florida this weekend

With the end of the non-contact period now over, the Gators are back to the recruiting grind this weekend.

Florida football’s recruiting efforts are back in high gear — not that [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and Co. were not grinding away the entire time — now that the NCAA’s quiet period has elapsed, which makes for an exciting start to a busy month of December.

There are plenty of items on the docket as the team’s brass looks to improve upon 2022’s results while continuing to push the program forward into what is hopefully an era of great success. Part of that effort starts with the 2023 recruiting class — the first full class of preps hand-picked by Napier himself — this weekend when a trio of blue-chip 2023 prospects make their way to Gainesville for their official visits.

Take a look below at the three big names who will be on campus for the first weekend of December