Tag: joenel aguero

5-star safety Joenel Aguero signs with Georgia

Joenel Aguero is a Dawg.

Georgia has received the national letter of intent from 5-star safety Joenel Aguero.

Aguero, a 5-star defensive back from Lynn, Massachusetts, ranks as the nation’s No. 32 overall player and No. 2 ranked safety in the class of 2023.

In July, Aguero chose the Georgia Bulldogs over Florida, Ohio State and Miami live on CBS Sports HQ.

At 6-feet and 190 pounds, Aguero has the potential to be Georgia’s next great safety.

Via 247Sports:

Personnel chameleon who should give a defense countless snaps thanks to ability to stay on the field in myriad scenarios. Athletic and skilled enough to match up, especially with backs and tight ends, and strong and physical enough to stick his nose in the muck and set the tone.

Projects as a potential impact high-major back-seven defender with high-floor immediate competency, but also verified athleticism that should only continue to increase. Could eventually become an early-round NFL Draft target thanks to physical specs and versatility.

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2023 Recruiting Profile: Will 4-star S Jordan Castell commit to UF after moving decision date?

The Gators are looking to add four-star safety Jordan Castell to the class of 2023 on Saturday, July 30. He previously named Florida, Alabama and Tennessee to his top 3.

Florida missed out on consensus top-5 safety [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] on July 23 to Georgia but the Gators still have a chance to nab another four-star safety in West Orange’s [autotag]Jordan Castell[/autotag] before the month closes out.

Castell visited Florida and Tennessee in June and quickly moved up his commitment date to July 30. He named a top three of the Gators, Volunteers and Alabama Crimson Tide but hasn’t been to Tuscaloosa since the end of January.

That has many in Gator Nation believing that Castell will be picking up an orange and blue hat on Saturday, and the experts agree. On3’s recruiting prediction machine has UF as the 96.2% favorite less than a week out and 247Sports has six crystal balls logged in favor of the Gators. That’s about as sure as it gets, but we did just see four-star offensive tackle [autotag]Payton Kirkland[/autotag] pick Texas, a school he never visited, over Florida last weekend.

Nothing is official until the decision is in, but Florida seems to be in an ideal spot to add another name to the class of 2023 this week.

Florida football misses out on big in-state 4-star offensive tackle

Florida hosted four-star offensive tackle Payton Kirkland on several visits, but he ended up committing to a school he never even got a chance to tour.

Gator Nation had its eyes on three members of the class of 2023 on Saturday but none of them ended up committing to the orange and blue when all was said and done. Four-star safety [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] picked Georgia over Florida in the morning and four-star linebacker [autotag]Malik Bryant[/autotag] pushed back his commitment, leaving four-star offensive tackle [autotag]Payton Kirkland[/autotag] to decide between his top five of Florida, Alabama, Miami, Michigan State and Oklahoma.

Kirkland shocked everyone and chose Texas, a program that not only failed to make his top five in March but also failed to get him on campus during the recruiting process. Florida hosted Kirkland for an official visit and plenty of unofficials, but that didn’t matter much once Steve Sarkisian’s staff swooped in at the last minute.

Andrew Ivins of 247Sports spoke with Kirkland as he made the announcement on the site’s YouTube page. He said that the decision wasn’t an easy one to reach but it was ultimately what he felt was best for him. [autotag]Arch Manning[/autotag], the nation’s consensus top recruit, committing earlier in the month couldn’t have hurt the Longhorns’ chances with Kirkland, either.

Florida was considered a major player in Kirkland’s recruitment given the frequency in which he turned up on campus. He would have been the Gators’ highest-rated offensive line commit and things went their way. UF still has four-star interior offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] and three-star offensive tackle [autotag]Bryce Lovett[/autotag] to fall back on.

Kirkland is ranked No. 274 overall on the 247Sports composite and is No. 25 among offensive tackles in the class of 2023. If Billy Napier plans on adding another tackle to the class, he’s running out of blue-chip options. Samson Okunlola, Monroe Freeling and Tyree Adams are the only recruits ranked higher than Kirkland that Florida has both offered and had reported contact with.

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Florida misses out on nation’s No. 2 safety recruit to rival

Can’t win ’em all but you hate to see a talent like Aguero head to your biggest rival.

The nation’s second-ranked ranked safety prospect in the class of 2023, [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] out of Lynn (Massachusetts) St. John’s Prep, announced his commitment on Saturday afternoon. While Florida football was in the final mix for the coveted recruit’s talents, the four-star defensive back chose its biggest rivals, the Georgia Bulldogs.

According to On3’s Chad Simmons, 6-foot, 195-pound safety had the Gators and Miami Hurricanes right behind the ‘Dawgs, but that the way Kirby Smart’s staff approached his recruiting put UGA over the top.

“I’ve been a priority. To be honest, I already knew that,” he told Simmons. “From the head coach all the way down to the equipment manager, it’s everybody just showing me love. It just felt right to be honest.

“The players even told me like, ‘Listen, you’re a priority to these coaches. They wanted to get you… They want you.’ And then, I’ve just seen the way they treat. When I come down there, they show all love. It’s all love from everybody.”

Aguero is currently ranked No. 34 overall and No. 3 at his position nationally according to the 247Sports composite, while the On3 consensus rates him as a four-star at Nos. 42 and 5, respectively. He held five crystal ball projections from 247Sports and had an 80.7% chance of being signed by Georgia according to On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine ahead of his decision.

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Nation’s No. 2 S Joenel Aguero makes college decision

Nation’s No. 2 ranked S commits to the G!

Joenel Aguero, the nation’s No. 2 ranked safety in the class of 2023, has made his college decision.

Aguero chose the Georgia Bulldogs over Florida, Ohio State and Miami live on CBS Sports HQ.

Out of Lynn, Massachusetts (St. John’s Prep), Aguero ranks as the nation’s No. 28 overall player and the No. 2 ranked safety, per 247Sports.

The University of Georgia offered Aguero a scholarship in Feb. 2021.

The elite defensive back has taken several visits to Georgia this spring and had an official visit on June 10.

He becomes Georgia’s 17th commitment in the class of 2023.

2023 Recruiting Profile: Can Florida land 4-star safety Joenel Aguero?

One of the top safeties in the class of 2023, four-star Joenel Aguero, has UF in his top four and will announce his decision on July 23.

One of Florida’s top out-of-state targets is four-star safety [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] out of St. John’s Prep in Danvers, Massachusetts. He’s set to make his college decision on July 23 and will choose among the Gators, Georgia Bulldogs, Miami Hurricanes and Ohio State Buckeyes.

Georgia is considered the heavy favorite with a 93.6% chance on the recruiting prediction machine, but Florida has done its best to compete with the Bulldogs for the former IMG Academy defensive back. Aguero has shown interest in reuniting with former teammate [autotag]Kamari Wilson[/autotag] in the Gators’ secondary and has developed decent relationships with safeties coach [autotag]Patrick Toney[/autotag] and cornerbacks coach [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag].

[autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and Co. hosted him on an official visit in June, but it was sandwiched between trips to Georgia and Ohio State, and Miami ended up getting the final visit. Mario Cristobal has been on a tear lately, so this would be a nice win over both UM and UGA for Napier if he can pull it off.

Here’s all you need to know about the blue-chip defensive back.

Gators land in top 10 for this 2024 4-star defensive back

Tavoy Feagin is ranked just outside of the top 50 in the class of 2024, and he has Florida in his top 10 early on.

With over a year left in his recruitment, one of the top-ranked defensive backs in the class of 2024 has narrowed things down to 10 schools and Florida made the cut.

Four-star cornerback [autotag]Tavoy Feagin[/autotag] named Florida, Alabama, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, North Carolina, Ohio State and Oklahoma as his current top schools but also noted that his recruitment was still open to other programs. Feagin was by Florida for an unofficial in late March and noticed a big change in the way the program is run under Billy Napier.

With [autotag]Corey Raymond[/autotag] on staff, it should at least be difficult for the Carrollwood Day (Tampa) cornerback to say no to his home state’s top program. That said, Feagin is ranked as a safety by 247Sports and could play either position in college. Florida’s recently prioritized the secondary, adding [autotag]Kamari Wilson[/autotag] and [autotag]Devin Moore[/autotag] in the class of 2022 and possibly [autotag]Cormani McClain[/autotag] and [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] in this cycle.

Beating out the likes of the Buckeye, Bulldogs and Crimson Tide isn’t easy, but Florida at least has the advantage of proximity. However, Florida State and Miami are both still in the race, so he hasn’t picked a favorite among the three just yet.

The 247Sports composite ranks Feagin fourth among projected safeties in the class of 2024 and he stands at No. 51 nationally. It’s always good to see Florida land on one of these lists, but there’s a lot of work to be done to get Feagin on board.

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These two 5-star recruits are on official visits to Florida

Safety Joenel Aguero and offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa are two 5-star recruits at the top of the class of 2023. Both are on an official visit to Florida right now.

The Florida Gators will play host to two big-time recruits with ties to IMG Academy on Tuesday. Five-star offensive lineman [autotag]Francis Mauigoa[/autotag] and five-star safety [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] are in town on official visits until Thursday, according to 247Sports.

Aguero was at IMG Academy for his sophomore and junior year before transferring back to St. John’s Prep in Massachusetts for his senior year. Ranked the No. 2 safety in the nation and No. 34 overall on the 247Sports composite has all eyes on him, especially those in Gainesville. He’s considered one of the hardest hitters in the class and was a junior All-American in 2021-22.

Mauigoa came to IMG as a junior last year after claiming an American Samoa championship in 2020 and playing in California in 2019. He’s cracked the top 10 (No. 9) of the 247Sports composite and is the top-ranked offensive tackle in the class. Landing a blue-chip tackle like this after years of failure recruiting the position would be a real nice feather in Billy Napier and Co.’s cap.

Official visits are a good sign. Players are only allotted five officials and pick them wisely. Mauigoa plans to commit in July or August and to graduate early so he can get on campus.

“The trips are going to be big for me and my family,” Maugioa said. “Once we’re done, we’ll sit down as a family and make a decision but I can say the biggest things for me are development and preparing me for the NFL, that’s always been the dream for me.”

Aguero has a commitment date set for July 23, so this visit will be big for him. Georgia, Miami and Ohio State are his other finalists. This will be his second visit to the Swamp since Napier arrived and has shown interest in safeties coach and defensive coordinator Patrick Toney. The visit should give him a better look at the program.

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Top-5 safety plans Florida official visit with decision date looming

Florida was the only team in Joenel Aguero’s top four that didn’t have an official visit planned with him when the list dropped on Monday. That’s now been corrected.

On Monday, four-star [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] named Florida to his top four ahead of a planned July 23 commitment date. The Gators were the only program left in the race with a scheduled official visit, but that’s now changed, according to Gators Online.

The St. John’s Prep (Danvers, Massachusetts) recruit had a planned unofficial visit for June 18 on his itinerary, but it makes more sense for him to turn that visit into an official one. Although he’s booked for the next three weekends, Aguero has found a three-day gap in his schedule to fit the Gators in. He’ll be in town even earlier expected from June 14-16, similar to the Tuesday to Thursday visit [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag] is wrapping up with the Gators right now.

“I am visiting Georgia this weekend,” Aguero told On3. “Then I am visiting Florida June 14-16. Ohio State is next June 17-19 and then I will go to Miami June 24-26.”

That gives the former IMG Academy prospect a little under a month to mull things over and figure out where the best landing spot is for him. The On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine favors Georgia considerably at 92.9 percent. Ohio State is second with 2.3 percent and Florida is third at 2.0 percent. A good visit could change those numbers, and Aguero has expressed a desire to reunite with [autotag]Kamari Wilson[/autotag]. He’s also high on the coaching staff, defensive coordinator and safeties coach [autotag]Patrick Toney[/autotag] in particular.

The On3 consensus ranks Aguero No. 40 overall in the class of 2023 and as the No. 5 safety in the country. The 247Sports composite has him a bit higher at No. 34 overall and No. 2 at his position.

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Four-star safety has Ohio State in final four

The No. 3 safety in the country will visit Columbus in November. #GoBucks

Joenel Aguero is the No. 3 ranked safety in the 2023 class according to 247Sports composite rankings and has Ohio State firmly in the mix after cutting his list to four. Aguero attends St. Johns Prep in Lynn, Mass.

Joining OSU as finalists are  Florida, Georgia, and Miami. Georgia is seen as the leader to land Aguero having several crystal ball predictions in its favor. However, the four-star safety’s recruitment is still open and Ohio State will have the last say.  Aguero is scheduled to be in Columbus on November 25 when the Buckeyes take on TTUN.

As of now, Ohio State has two at the safety position committed in the 2023 class. Malik Hartford, the No. 12 safety, and Cedrick Hawkins, the No. 18 ranked safety in the class.

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