Tag: unofficial visit

Elite class of 2026 TE talks first visit with Florida Gators

The Gators are firmly in the mix for one of the top tight ends in the class of 2026. Four-star recruit Kaiden Prothro recently made his first visit to The Swamp.

One of the class of 2026’s top tight-end recruits, [autotag]Kaiden Prothro[/autotag], made his first trip to The Swamp last weekend to watch the Florida Gators defeat the Kentucky Wildcats, 48-20.

Prothro got some face-to-face time with Florida tight ends coach Russ Callaway and saw DJ Lagway lead a young Gators offense to a dominant win. As a result, Prothro is high on Florida and considers them a contender moving forward in his recruitment.

“I feel like Florida is going to be one of those top programs in my recruitment,” Prothro told Gators Online. “They’ve always been up there in the top and they have a pretty good offense going on right now.”

The Gators will host Prothro again in November when the LSU Tigers come to town. However, he also has plans to visit Florida State and is high on Auburn, Alabama and Georgia, too.

Recruiting Summary

Prothro is a consensus four-star recruit, ranked the highest by ESPN at No. 13 overall. The 247Sports composite puts him at No. 27 overall and No. 3 among tight ends in the class of 2026, while the On3 industry ranking is slightly less bullish on him at Nos. 50 and 3, respectively.

The On3 recruiting prediction machine gives Georgia the best odds to land Prothro at 25.4%, followed by Auburn (17.9%), Ole Miss (15.3%) and Georgia Tech (6.5%).

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Florida DB commit planning official visits ahead of signing period

Demetres Samuel Jr. reclassified when he committed to Florida leaving little time for him to schedule and official visit with the Gators.

Florida successfully flipped Heritage (Palm Bay) safety [autotag]Demetres Samuel Jr[/autotag]. from Syracuse over the summer, but a reclassification from the 2026 grad class to 2025 means he only has so much time left to get his official visit in.

Blake Alderman of 247Sports spoke with Samuel after Florida’s recent win over Mississippi State and reported that UF is likely to host him on an official visit before national signing day.

“It’s going to have to be in-season, but probably will do those sometime around November since signing day is closer to the start of December now,” Samuel said. “Sometime when my season is done. I am going to definitely do one with Florida. Then some others, definitely UCF, definitely Syracuse and I may do one to Alabama.”

It’s not ideal for Samuel to take multiple trips in the months before the early signing period, but it sounds like Florida has a good chance to keep him in the fold. Besides the verbal commitment, Samuel sees an opportunity to play early in Gainesville.

“They are running a little shallow on the depth chart with some guys hurt, but that’s why they went out and wanted to get me,” he said. “I see they run a lot of man, and like to play a lot of press man.”

Samuel also backed Florida head coach Billy Napier, adding that he’s blocking out the social media noise. He’s still high on Florida and says that he would have decommitted already if he had any doubts about the program.

Recruiting Summary

Samuel is a consensus four-star recruit ranked the highest by On3 at No. 123 overall on the site’s standalone rankings. The 247Sports composite has him at No. 242 nationally and No. 21 among safeties in the class of 2025, while the On3 industry ranking is slightly more bullish at Nos. 207 and 18, respectively.

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Florida WR commit provides positive update on status with UF

Florida might lose a commitment or two before the 2024 season ends, but wide receiver Naeshaun Montgomery says he’s still high on UF.

Despite witnessing a loss for Florida on Saturday, Gators wide receiver commit [autotag]Naeshaun Montgomery[/autotag] left Gainesville with a positive outlook on his future with the program.

“I’m feeling really good,” Montgomery said to Blake Alderman of Swamp247 regarding his commitment. “They have a good offense, as a program they are doing good, and I believe in them.”

Montgomery paid close attention to [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] during the game. Lagway will be the primary quarterback starting next season, and there’s plenty of excitement about playing with him.

“In limited snaps that (Lagway) had today, he did good,” he said. “He threw a touchdown, and then he had a few good plays. Definitely the future is going to be great.”

Montgomery got to speak with wide receivers coach Billy Gonzalez before and after the game, offering some insight on how the coaching staff handles a tough loss.

“They didn’t really get the ball that much because Texas A&M had the ball the majority of the game,” he said. “(Gonzalez) is proud of the receives and the way they played.”

Montgomery plans to return to The Swamp for the UCF game. He says the noise surrounding Billy Napier isn’t enough to begin considering decommitment, but Power Four teams such as Auburn, LSU and Penn State remain in contact with him.

Recruiting Summary

Despite earning a three-star grade from both 247Sports and On3, Montgomery is a four-star recruit, according to both major composite rankings.

The 247Sports composite puts him at No. 179 overall and No. 18 among wide receivers in the class of 2025, while the On3 industry ranking has him at Nos. 253 and 34, respectively.

Florida is the overwhelming favorite to sign Montgomery thanks to his verbal commitment to the program. The On3 recruiting prediction machine gives the Gators 94.9% odds of landing Montgomery during the signing period, followed by LSU (1.4%) and Penn State (1.0%).

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Florida DL commit lays out travel schedule, future official visits

A commitment doesn’t mark the end of a recruiting race, and Florida is going to have to keep pushing to keep defensive lineman Joseph Mbatchou in the fold.

Verbal commitments don’t mean a thing until a national letter of intent is signed.

Billy Napier and the Florida Gators know that fact all too well, and it’s why they’ve prepared for continued competition in the recruiting race for Grayson High (Loganville, Georgia) defensive lineman [autotag]Joseph Mbatchou[/autotag].

Since committing to Florida on July 31, Mbatchou, a Cameroon native, has picked up offers from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, South Carolina, Texas and USC.

With offers also come visits. Mbatchou is set to take official visits to Auburn, Georgia State, South Carolina and Texas, according to 247Sports. Florida is responding accordingly.

Mbatchou will attend Florida’s season opener against Miami on Saturday — it will be his first game inside The Swamp — and he also has an official visit lined up for the LSU game on Nov. 16.

The Gators also have the advantage of being the first team to offer Mbatchou. Napier and Co. believed in him before everyone else did, and that kind of endorsement goes a long way. Everyone crowds around the guy who finds the needle in the haystack.

“I talked to Coach (Gerald) Chatman, Coach (Mike) Peterson, and Coach Napier, and they felt like genuine people to me,” Mbatchou said. “I like the academics, the facilities, I like everything about Florida, so I committed. We’re just going to go from there. See what happens during the season.”

Recruiting Summary

Mbatchou is a three-star recruit everywhere but ESPN, where he has yet to receive a grade. The On3 industry ranking puts him at No. 1,195 overall and No. 121 among defensive linemen in the class of 2025, while the 247Sports composite has him at Nos. 1,248 and 133, respectively.

The On3 recruiting precision machine gives 98.7% odds for Florida to land Mbatchou, which is mostly because he’s verbally committed there. No other teams are listed in the race (right now), but Auburn feels like a team to watch moving forward.

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Five-star DL committed to Auburn planning on visiting Florida

Plenty of high-profile recruits are planning on attending Florida’s season opener versus Miami, including five-star Auburn DL commit Malik Autry.

There is still hope that Florida will be able to flip five-star defensive lineman [autotag]Malik Autry[/autotag] from the Auburn Tigers, but it’s going to take some in-season success to get over the finish line.

Autry committed to Auburn in February 2023, but he’s kept his recruitment open and Florida has played host to him often. Most recently, Autry was in town for an official visit in June, and he plans to return for Florida’s season opener against Miami, according to Swamp247.

“Florida has just been consistent,” Autry said in the early part of the summer. “I’ve been there probably six times …  Every time I go down there, they communicate a lot. I talked to all of them all the time. They’re probably the school that communicates with me the most out of all the staffs.”

Completing the flip will not be easy, though. Auburn has the home-state advantage with Autry, and he plans on being on campus often throughout the season. If the Tigers can win meaningful games in front of him, they have little to fear.

There’s also the Ohio State Buckeyes to worry about if you’re Florida. The Buckeyes have emerged as perhaps the stronger candidate to flip Autry with familiar talented already under commitment. He was in Columbus over the summer for an official visit, and there’s a chance he will make it to the Michigan game at the end of the season.

Florida faces the toughest schedule in the country this year, so things could change quickly for Autry if the Gators string together a couple of impressive wins. However, a four or five-win season probably won’t inspire him to ditch an almost two-year commitment.

Recruiting Summary

Autry is a consensus four-star recruit who has earned a fifth star from 247Sports. The On3 industry ranking puts him at No. 75 overall and No. 7 among defensive linemen in the class of 2025, while the 247Sports composite has him at Nos. 104 and 13, respectively.

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Florida hosts 4-star Alabama WR on encouraging first visit

The Florida Gators hosted Alabama-based wide receiver Cederian Morgan for the first time this week.

Landing an Alabama-based recruit isn’t the easiest task for Florida with two in-state SEC programs to compete with, but the Gators made decent progress with  Benjamin Russell (Alexander City, Ala.) wide receiver [autotag]Cederian Morgan[/autotag] on Thursday when he visited the Swamp for the first time.

Florida toured Russell around the school and let him sit on some of the team’s summer OTA, according to Blake Alderman of Swamp247.

“I saw a lot of things, and I learned a lot of things,” Morgan said to Alderman. “I love the coaching staff, and how they bond with their players.”

Meeting with position coach [autotag]Billy Gonzalez[/autotag] was big for Morgan. Florida’s wide receiver coach pitched the idea of early playing time with the Gators likely to cycle out some players at the end of the season. Gonzalez’s assistant, Chad Lucas, is from Alabama and spent plenty of time with Morgan.

Morgan is listed at 6-feet-4-inches on 247Sports, which would make him the tallest receiver on Florida’s roster. Even more, three of the four receivers taller than 6-foot are fourth-year players or older.

Auburn and Alabama are the two in-state giants to overcome, but Clemson, Florida State and Missouri have all received mention from Morgan. He’s visiting both in-state schools this weekend.

Recruiting Summary

Morgan is a four-star recruit on both major composite rankings — 247Sports composite and On3 industry ranking — however, On3’s standalone rankings and Rivals both consider him a three-star recruit.

The On3 industry ranking puts him at No. 122 nationally and No. 17 among wide receivers in the class of 2026, while the 247Sportscomposite has him at Nos. 152 and 23, respectively.

247Sports National Recruiting Analyst tom Loy submitted a crystal ball projection in favor of Alabama for Morgan on June 5 with medium (6 out of 10) confidence.

The On3recruiting prediction machine favors Auburn right now, giving the Tigers 39.9% odds to land Morgan. Alabama (18.3%), Clemson (15.7%) and Florida (13.1%) round out the top four.

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Gators set to host elite EDGE committed to USC on official visit

Perhaps the best edge rusher in the 2025 recruiting class was in Gainesville this week, and he left town with plans for an official visit.

One of the top flip candidates on Florida’s recruiting board is Warner Robins High (Georgia) edge defender [autotag]Isaiah Gibson[/autotag], who made a verbal commitment to play for the USC Trojans.

Gibson’s pledge to USC came just a week ago, but he already had plans to visit Florida for the first spring scrimmage of the year. He says that he has no plans to de-commit, but Gibson left Gainesville with another official visit on the schedule, according to Swamp247.

“I just set it,” Gibson said of his official visit. “I just set it for the third week. I have Georgia the first week, second week South Carolina, third week will be Florida, and then after that is OU (Oklahoma).”

Recruiting Summary

Gibson is a consensus four-star recruit who will push for five-star status. 247Sports is the highest on him, ranking Gibson No. 17 overall and No. 1 at his position. On3 is almost as bullish, putting him at Nos. 24 and 2, respectively.

ESPN (135, 13) and Rivals.com (244, 17) aren’t as high on him, but he still ranked No. 37 overall on the On3 industry ranking.

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Gators host Auburn DL commit for multi-day visit in effort to flip

Defensive lineman Malik Autry has been committed to Auburn for over a year, but that isn’t slow the Florida Gators down from pursuing him.

Florida’s first spring scrimmage on Saturday was also an opportunity for recruits to stop by and check out the Swamp, including Auburn defensive line commit Malik Autry.

The Tigers earned a verbal commitment from Autry over a year ago, but the Gators are among the teams continuing to push for him. In fact, Florida might be the positioned team to flip Autry, according to a report from 247Sports.

“I’m committed to Auburn, but they’re (Florida) right behind Auburn,” Autry said. “It’s just all a matter of time. After OV’s and everything like that.”

Florida will join Oregon, UCF and USC in hosting him on an official visit over the summer. The Gators get him on June 7.

“I’ve seen everything for the most part,” he said. “Just seeing if everything is consistent, and having a good time, and then going from there.”

The hope is to have things figured out after those official visits. He doesn’t want to take a flip decision into the season.

Recruiting Summary

Autry is a four-star recruit by 247Sports and Rivals’ measures, but ESPN and On3 think he’s a three-star talent.

The On3 industry ranking, which considers all four services, has him listed as a four-star at No. 244 overall and No. 17 at his position, while the 247Sports composite has him even higher at Nos. 184 and 23, respectively.

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Four-star 2025 running back sets June official visit with Florida

The Florida Gators are getting one of the top running backs in the class of 2025, Ousmane Kromah, on campus for an official visit.

Florida uses more than one running back in its offense every year, so pursuing a second rusher in the 2025 class makes a lot of sense, especially when it’s a player as talented as Lee County High’s (Leesburg, Georgia) [autotag]Ousman Kromah[/autotag].

The Gators plan on hosting Kromah at least two more times, including an official visit according to Swamp247. The hope is to get him on campus next week for an unofficial and the official is already penciled in for the weekend of June 14.

Miami (May 31), Florida State (June 7) and Georgia (June 21) are the other official visits on his summer travel schedule right now. He’s running out of slots for the summer, but in-season trips could be added if he’s still undecided.

Recruiting Summary

Kromah is a consensus four-star recruit ranked the highest by On3 at No. 67 overall. His good marks across the board have him even higher on the On3 industry ranking at No. 65 nationally and No. 4 among running backs in class. The 247Sports composite is even higher on him at Nos. 62 and 4, respectively.

Florida State is the favorite to land a commitment from Kromah, with 31.6% odds on the On3 recruiting prediction machine. Georgia (22.2%), Florida (14.4%) and Miami (12.0%) round out the top four.

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Florida impresses 4-star safety on first visit to Gainesville

Four-star safety Jaylan Morgan left his first visit to the Swamp impressed with the Florida Gators coaching staff.

Florida made a strong impression on Rockvale High (Murfreesboro, Tennessee) safety [autotag]Jaylan Morgan[/autotag] during his first visit to the Swamp on Thursday, according to Gators Online.

Will Harris, Florida’s new secondary coach, stopped by Rockvale in January, and the Gators offered him shortly after. This visit was a chance for him to meet the rest of the staff though.

“It was great,” Morgan said. “I’d say it definitely was one of the best visits I’ve been on. Loved the coaching staff. It was my fist time meeting everyone instead of just Harris.”

Morgan is likely to return to Florida on an official visit, but he hasn’t locked in a date just yet.

Recruiting Summary

Morgan earned a four-star grade from 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals.com, but On3 thinks he’s a three-star talent. The 247Sports composite puts him at No. 234 overall and No. 20 at his position, while the On3 industry ranking has him at Nos. 239 and 20, respectively.

The Tennessee Volunteers are the overwhelming favorite to land a commitment from Morgan with 91.5% odds. Vanderbilt (2.8%), Alabama (2.4%) and Ole Miss (1.0%) round out the list.

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