Tag: flip

Florida flips 4-star linebacker from South Carolina

The Gators needed a linebacker in the class of 2023, so they kept after four-star Jaden Robinson and flipped him from South Carolina.

The Gators picked up another four-star recruit Wednesday night, flipping linebacker [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag] from South Carolina.

Robinson committed to the Gamecocks on the Fourth of July, but Florida was just getting into the race at that point and continued to pursue the Columbia High (Lake City, Florida) recruit. Eventually, Billy Napier’s staff convinced him to flip. Inside linebackers coach Jay Bateman has been the lead recruiter for Florida, and outside linebacker coach Mike Peterson is also in the mix, according to 247Sports. Peterson has ties to Robinson from his time recruiting him for South Carolina.

Florida lacked an inside linebacker in the class, and Robinson fills that hole. In previous visits, coaches have laid out where he would play, and the Gators like him on the inside. He took a pair of visits to the Swamp in late July and that could have made the difference for Robinson.

Florida class of 2023 now sits at 17 total commitments, 15 four-stars and two three-stars. Robinson is around the middle of the pack, but he’s still ranked No. 379 overall on the 247Sports composite and No. 32 at his position.

UF remains at No. 13 on 247Sports’ team rankings.

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Former Florida offensive lineman commit flips to Miami

Well, this one was predictable. Tommy Kinsler, the offensive lineman who backed off his commitment to Florida after visiting Miami, has announced his plans to attend UM.

When three-star offensive lineman [autotag]Tommy Kinsler[/autotag] backed off his commitment to the University of Florida in early July, many expected him to quickly flip to the University of Miami.

It took 26 days, but Kinsler finally made the announcement and joined the Hurricanes’ ever-improving 2023 recruiting class on Thursday.

The Kinsler flip is frankly a bad look for the program under [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]. He was long considered a lock to end up at UF and committed after his official visit in June. It took just one trip to Coral Gables five days later for Kinsler to realize he made a mistake, and he’s not the first recruit this cycle to choose UM over UF, which is supposed to be an SEC powerhouse. The Gators recently lost five-star offensive tackle [autotag]Francis Mauigoa[/autotag], four-star linebacker [autotag]Malik Bryant[/autotag] and four-star quarterback [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag] to the Hurricanes as well.

The early returns for Napier’s staff against Mario Cristobal’s are anything but good, but the Gators bounced back a bit with two signings over the last two days (four-star cornerback Ja’Keem Jackson and four-star wide receiver Aidan Mizell). Still, losing Kinsler leaves the Gators with very little incoming talent on the offensive line.

Four-star interior offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] and three-star tackle [autotag]Bryce Lovett[/autotag] are still there, but Napier was hoping to add more at the position group based on the players he targeted.

The 247Sports composite lists Kinsler No. 920 overall in the class of 2023 and No. 66 among interior offensive linemen. Despite those rankings, Napier’s group clearly saw an upside to Kinsler that others didn’t. Hopefully, that doesn’t come back to bite the Gators.

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BREAKING: 4-star EDGE just flipped from UCF to Florida

Sorry, Knight Nation. Isaiah Nixon is no longer headed to the Bounce House and will be playing in the Swamp next year.

The Florida Gators have a new name at the top of its 2023 recruiting class. Four-star edge rusher [autotag]Isaiah Nixon[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Orange and Blue on social media Tuesday afternoon, just one day after he de-committed from UCF.

The Knights earned his pledge in April and hosted him on an official visit at the beginning of June, but Nixon’s trip to Gainesville went better than expected and he left town feeling like a Gator. After wiping his Instagram account clean of any affiliation with UCF, a single post remained on his profile with pictures from his UF visit and a caption that ended with “this ain’t no knight.”

Nixon wound up editing the caption to focus solely on the Gators, but the message was clear: Billy Napier had bested Gus Malzahn. Now that the news is official, the Lakewood (St. Petersburg) recruit can brag that he’s the top recruit in Florida’s young class of 2023. He’s ranked No. 169 overall and at No. 23 among edge rushers on the On3 consensus.

At 6-foot-4-inches tall and 225 pounds, Nixon has the size to succeed in the Southeastern Conference. The plan is to have him play outside linebacker and rush the quarterback on third down, according to Gators Online.

Nixon’s commitment was No. 7 in Napier’s first real recruiting class at Florida. Tommy Kinsler also recently committed, which brings the Gators up to No. 5 in the SEC and No. 39 overall in the class.

How close is Florida to flipping this 4-star UCF commit?

It’s looking like UCF’s top-ranked commit might be flipping to the Orange and Blue.

The UCF Knights are a growing power in the state of Florida and will command more respect once they join the Big 12 in July 2023, but they are still very much little brother to the Florida Gators. That was made clear to the program on Sunday as Billy Napier and Co. broke through to UCF’s top commit, four-star edge rusher [autotag]Isaiah Nixon[/autotag].

“In the swamp feel like I’m a gator, riding with the gators,” Nixon wrote in an Instagram post after wiping his profile clear of any affiliation with the Knights. “This ain’t no knight,” he added in the original post before editing it to remove the phrase.

It’s safe to say that Nixon’s official visit was a success, and it’s not too hard to decipher what the future might hold for the Lakewood (St. Petersburg) recruit. The clear takeaway is that it’s a matter of when he’ll flip rather than if he will. 247Sports and On3’s lead Gators experts have already submitted commitment predictions, and now it’s on UCF to stop what seems inevitable.

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Nixon is ranked No. 169 overall on the On3 consensus and is No. 22 among edge rushers in the class of 2023. If he flips, he’ll be Florida’s top-ranked commit and join two fellow four-star recruits, athlete [autotag]Aaron Gates[/autotag] and offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag].

With UCF already hosting Nixon on an official visit, it’ll be hard to convince him not to flip. One of Napier’s goals this cycle has been to reestablish UF in the state of Florida’s recruiting space, and this is the kind of move that makes an impact. Still, nothing is certain until signing day comes around.

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Wisconsin recruiting: Times to know for early signing period

Many members of the Wisconsin Badgers’ class of 2021 will announce or broadcast their signings at a set time later today.

Today marks the start of early signing period in college football, a time where players who have committed to a school are able to sign their letter of intent and officially join the program.

There have already been eight Wisconsin Badger commits that have signed their letters, the most notable ones being five-star offensive tackle Nolan Rucci, four-star defensive end T.J. Bollers, four-star offensive tackle Riley Mahlman and four-star tight end Jack Pugh.

The signings will be announced throughout the day and you can follow live updates on who signs their letter at our live signing day tracker.

There are some commits, though, that announced a time later today when they will broadcast putting the pen to paper.

Here are times to know for the early signing period:

  • WR Markus Allen will broadcast his signing at 6:00 p.m.

  • DE Ayo Adebogun will be signing his letter at 1:30 p.m.
  • DE T.J. Bollers will sign at noon

 

Fab Four: Selecting Wisconsin football’s Mount Rushmore of all-time recruits

Wisconsin football recruiting tracker: Live updates on early signing period

The Wisconsin football Class of 2021 is taking shape. Follow here as Badger recruits officially commit on early signing day.

Today marks the beginning of the early signing period and the Wisconsin Badgers’ class of 2021 is beginning to officially take shape.

For the next three days, members of the Badgers’ incoming recruiting class will be signing their official letters of intent, making their previous commitments to the school official.

Among the players that we’re monitoring are five-star offensive tackle Nolan Rucci, four-star offensive tackles J.P. Benzschawel and Riley Mahlman, four-star safeties Hunter Wohler and Braelon Allen, four-star tight end Jack Pugh, four-star defensive end T.J. Bollers and four-star quarterback Deacon Hill.

The class as a whole is currently ranked by 247Sports as the No. 16 class in the country and No. 3 in the Big Ten–the highest ranking a Wisconsin recruiting class has ever received.

Follow along as we monitor the players in the class and update this page as they sign their letters of intent and officially become Wisconsin Badgers.

Fab Four: Selecting Wisconsin football’s Mount Rushmore of all-time recruits

Texas Recruiting Target: Byron Murphy II decommits from Baylor

DeSoto defensive tackle Byron Murphy II recently decommitted from Baylor, can the Texas Longhorns staff flip the in-state product?

As the early signing day approaches next month, the recruiting trail is heating up. The Texas Longhorns are currently ranked the No. 17 team in the 2021 247Sports composite rankings currently. Continue reading “Texas Recruiting Target: Byron Murphy II decommits from Baylor”

2021 Florida CB commit Clinton Burton Jr. flips to Boston College

Burton flipped to the Boston College Eagles, breaking the news shortly after 10 p.m. ET with a video on his Twitter account.

One of the highest-rated members of the Florida Gators’ upcoming recruiting class, Baltimore, Maryland four-star cornerback Clinton Burton, Jr., announced he will be taking his talents elsewhere on July 17.

Burton flipped to the Boston College Eagles, breaking the news shortly after 10 p.m. ET with a two-minute and twenty-second video on his Twitter account.

Originally committing to position coach Torrian Gray and the Gators on September 2, 2019, Burton was the second-highest rated pledge for the program in the 2021 cycle, according to the 247Sports Composite, trailing only Fort Lauderdale four-star defensive end Tyreak Sapp.

He becomes the top commit for Boston College and the school’s lone current four-star in the class.

Last reaching the eight-win mark in 2009, the Eagles parted ways with head coach Steve Addazio, who spent six years as an assistant under Urban Meyer at Florida from 2005-10, in December after seven seasons.

To succeed him, the program hired Ohio State Buckeyes co-defensive coordinator/secondary coach Jeff Hafley. Regarded as one of college football’s best recruiters, the hiring of the 41-year-old New Jersey native seems to be paying immediate dividends for Boston College.

With Burton out of the picture, the Gators’ 2021 class now stands at 19 members and ranks No. 10 in America and fourth-best in the Southeastern Conference.

Florida has secured the verbal commitment of two other cornerbacks in the cycle, IMG Academy four-star Kamar Wilcoxson and Tampa three-star Jordan Young.

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Texas flips three star linebacker originally committed to Utah

After signing all 16 players on NSD yesterday, Texas landed another one. This time it was three-star LB Jaylan Ford out of Frisco, TX.

After signing all 16 players on National Signing Day yesterday, Texas landed another recruit on Thursday. This time it was three-star linebacker Jaylan Ford out of Frisco, TX. Ford was originally a Utah commit and said he would join the Utes on Oct. 8. He switched to Texas this morning, announcing his decision via Twitter.

According to 247Sports, Ford is 6 feet 2.5 inches and weighs 205 pounds. Coming out of Lone Star High School, he was the district 5-5A-1 defensive MVP in his junior season. Officially listed as an outsider linebacker, Ford joins Highland Park’s Prince Dorbah as the only other OLB in the 2020 class.

This is the third recruit that Texas and Utah have gone back and forth with this season. Four-star defensive end Van Fillinger and three-star all-purpose back Ty Jordan were both once Texas commits that ended up signing with the Utes.

Texas now sits at No. 9 on the 247Sports team rankings after finishing yesterday at No. 10. Ford is the fourth four-star the Longhorns have signed in 2020, getting their 17th player of the cycle.

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