Tag: Jaden Robinson

Florida add Houston transfer linebacker Mannie Nunnery

The Gators added yet another transfer linebacker from the portal on Monday. Welcome to the Swamp, Mannie Nunnery.

Florida added former Houston linebacker [autotag]Mannie Nunnery[/autotag] on Monday, according to a post he made on Twitter. The school later confirmed the news, making Nunnery the third linebacker to join the Gators via the transfer portal this offseason.

Nunnery joined the Cougars as a member of the 2019 recruiting class and played in 31 games over four years with the team, including a redshirt season. After seeing action in just two games as a freshman, Nunnery started getting snaps in 2020. He took 25 snaps in the slot as a sophomore but ended up spending most of his time lined up in the box. By 2021, he emerged as a key special teams player and started receiving even more opportunities on defense.

He finally broke out in 2022, playing in nine games for the Cougars and finishing the year with a 73.2 defensive grade, according to Pro Football Focus.

Nunnery joins a linebacker room that desperately needs some depth. Aside from fellow transfers [autotag]Teradja Mitchell[/autotag] (Ohio State) and [autotag]Deuce Spurlock[/autotag] (Michigan), Florida has only junior [autotag]Derek Wingo[/autotag], sophomores [autotag]Shemar James[/autotag] and Scooby Williams and true freshman [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag]. The Gators expect Nunnery to play WILL linebacker for them.

Out of high school, the 247Sports composite ranked Nunnery at No. 94 among outside linebackers in the class of 2019. He was No. 1,326 overall and No. 174 out of the state of Texas.

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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’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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Third Gator headed to Nebraska via transfer portal

The Florida to Nebraska pipeline is at full strength. A third Gator is headed to the midwest to play under Matt Rhule.

A third Gator is headed to the Midwest to join the Nebraska Cornhuskers via the transfer portal. Linebacker [autotag]Chief Borders[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Huskers on Tuesday and will reunite with defensive back [autotag]Corey Collier Jr.[/autotag] and long snapper [autotag]Marco Ortiz[/autotag].

Borders made his decision after taking a visit to Lincoln. He entered the portal on Dec. 7, so it took less than three weeks for him to find a new home. Borders has three years of eligibility left and should help revitalize the Huskers’ defense under new head coach Matt Rhule.

In two seasons with Florida, Borders recorded just three tackles despite playing in 16 games. He played in 12 games for Florida during the 2022 season but mostly in a special teams role.

Borders was a four-star recruit coming out of high school, according to 247Sports. He was ranked the No. 328 overall player on the 247Sports composite for the class of 2021 and was No. 37 among linebackers. Although he played high school ball in Georgia, Borders’ hometown is Chicago, Illinois, so he’s got some familiarity with life in the Midwest.

Florida’s lost a good amount of depth at both inside and outside linebacker (JACK), but the Gators brought in former Ohio State linebacker [autotag]Teradja Mitchell[/autotag] through the transfer portal and officially signed incoming freshman [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag] on Wednesday.

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This Ohio State linebacker is transferring to Florida

Florida is losing a linebacker to the NFL but it’s also gaining one via the transfer portal as well.

After five seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes, linebacker [autotag]Teradja Mitchell[/autotag] is headed to Gainesville to join Billy Napier’s Florida Gators, according to Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel.

The 2022 season would have been his final year at the collegiate level, but Mitchell played in just four games over the regular season meaning he can redshirt and retain a year of eligibility. Mitchell has vowed to play through the postseason with his team, but a waiver granted by the NCAA renders those snaps meaningless when it comes to redshirting.

A former five-star recruit, Mitchell served as a reserve linebacker until breaking out in 2021. He was named one of six Buckeyes co-captains that season and started eight games. Unfortunately, a new defensive coordinator meant that Mitchell’s role would decrease, which lead to a transfer. He played just one defensive snap all season while serving mostly as a special teamer. He leaves Columbus with 64 total tackles, including 8.5 tackles for a loss.

There should be plenty of opportunity for Mitchell to play in Gainesville. Florida has just four linebackers lined up to be on scholarship next year: junior [autotag]Derek Wingo[/autotag], redshirt sophomore [autotag]Scooby Williams[/autotag], sophomore [autotag]Shemar James[/autotag] and true freshman [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag].

Wingo has stepped up as a team leader and James is viewed as one of the freshmen with the highest upside this season, but there should be plenty of room for Mitchell to find snaps along with Williams while Robinson learns the ropes.

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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.

This 4-star DB commit has locked in his official visit date with Florida

December is a big recruiting month for the entire college football world, and Florida is loading up on official visitors.

Florida only allowed recruits to make official visits on Oct. 15 for the LSU game during the regular season, but the Gators are planning a big weekend in the Swamp now that the year is coming to an end. Several of Florida’s commits that have yet to make their official visits to the university will do so over the next few weeks, and four-star Wharton (Tampa, Florida) defensive back [autotag]Dijon Johnson[/autotag] is the latest to set his plans.

According to 247Sports, Johnson plans to stop by UF for a multi-day visit the weekend of Dec. 9, the same day four other Gators commits have scheduled their official visits. He’ll join fellow four-star defensive backs [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag] and [autotag]Sharif Denson[/autotag], four-star linebacker [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag] and three-star wide receiver [autotag]Tyree Patterson[/autotag]. That quintet will enjoy all the riches that come with a Florida official visit and help recruit four-star UCF defensive line commit [autotag]John Walker[/autotag] and four-star undecided running back [autotag]Mark Fletcher[/autotag].

Johnson might be a key player in Florida’s recruitment of Fletcher. Both were once committed to Ohio State, but Johnson backed off that pledge and flipped to Florida. Now decommitted from OSU, Fletcher is deciding between UF and Miami. Meeting up with a player who made a similar decision could help Fletcher feel more comfortable with his decision.

The Gators are in need of some youth in the secondary and the feeling is that Johnson will get early playing time in the Swamp. Safeties coach and defensive coordinator Patrick Toney was a key player in landing Johnson, so there’s good reason to think that he’ll have a considerable role in the defensive scheme.

Johnson is ranked No. 98 overall on the 247Sports composite and is No. 7 among safeties in the class of 2023.

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Tracking which recruits visit the Swamp for Florida’s Week 3 matchup with USF

The guest list is a bit shorter for Florida’s Week 3 matchup against USF, but recruiting never stops in the Swamp.

The Florida Gators have hosted dozens of recruits over the first two weeks of the season, but UF’s Week 3 matchup with the USF Bulls features a smaller group of visitors.

Four-star UCF commit [autotag]John Walker[/autotag], who is visiting the Swamp for the third-straight weekend, headlines the group of expected visitors. Fellow four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Jordan Hall[/autotag] could join him, but only time will tell if he shows up.

The rest of the group is made up of underclassmen. With 20 recruits verbally committed to Billy Napier’s class of 2023, Florida can start focusing on the next crop of talent more closely. With well over a year until that signing period rolls around, the Gators are targeting some elite talent.

Four commits are expected in town: interior offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag], defensive back [autotag]Ja’Keem Jackson[/autotag], linebacker [autotag]Jaden Robinson[/autotag] and defensive lineman Kamran James.

Gators Wire will continue to update this list as visitors confirm the arrivals throughout the day.

Update: Walker and Jackson are no longer expected to visit due to a lack of transportation.

Florida commits in action during Week 2 of high school football

Take a look at how Florida’s top recruits fared this past week on the high school gridiron.

Week one of college football was plenty exciting, but there was still high school football action as well, and Florida’s commits put up some highlights.

Two players were on a bye, four-star receiver [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag] and four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag]. The latter has had an interesting high school journey that took another turn over the weekend.

A good chunk of the class was in attendance for Florida’s upset win over the Utah Utes on Saturday as well. Seeing the Swamp over capacity and experiencing Billy Napier’s first game day as the head coach of the Gators sat well with them.

Here’s a look at what Florida’s recruiting class of 2023 did over the weekend.

Four-star DL Kelby Collins commits to Florida

Kelby Collins committed to Florida, becoming the Gators’ SEC-leading 16th four-star recruit in the class of 2023.

Florida shored up its defensive line of the future on Saturday by picking up the commitment of a lineman ranked by some recruiting outlets as a top-5 DL in the class of 2023.

Kelby Collins, a four-star player out of Gardendale (Ala.) High School, announced he will be a Gator next season. Rivals lists him as the fourth-best DL and No. 40 player overall in the class, while ESPN has him as the fifth-best defensive lineman and No. 63 player overall. 247Sports is lower on Collins, giving him a ranking of No. 173 in the class of 2023.

The 6-foot-5, 280-pound lineman recorded 75 tackles, 20 tackles for loss and 12 sacks as a junior in only eight games played, per MaxPreps.

He chose Florida over Alabama and Georgia, the other schools in his top-three, according to Saturday Down South. 247Sports reported that he had 29 total offers.

This is Florida football’s second commit of the week. On Wednesday, four-star linebacker Jaden Robinson committed to the Gators. Robinson, who had 24 offers, is ranked by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 32 linebacker in the class of 2023.

Florida’s recruiting class is ranked the 12th-best in the nation. Though there has yet to be a five-star player committed to the program, the Gators have made up for it in depth, with 16 four-star players promised to the team. That is more than any other program in the SEC.