Tag: Will Norman

Florida picks up crystal ball prediction for this 4-star DL

Billy Napier is this close to getting the IMG Academy pipeline flowing in year one as Florida’s head coach.

Billy Napier recently added another IMG Academy recruit to Florida’s list of 2023 commits in offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] and is looking to continue establishing the pipeline between UF and the Bradenton program. The next Ascender on the Napier’s list is four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag] and the folks at Swamp247 feel strongly enough about the Gators’ chances that they submitted a crystal ball prediction in favor of the Orange and Blue on Thursday.

Blake Alderman submitted the prediction with a confidence level of six out of a possible 10. There’s only one other crystal ball submitted so far and it comes from FSU insider Josh Newberg in support of the Penn State Nittany Lions. Norman named the Gators in his top five along with PSU, LSU, Michigan and Texas A&M at the start of the month and it seems that UF is pulling out in front of this one.

Of those teams that made the recent cut in Norman’s top schools, the Gators have seemed to be pressing the hardest for him. Some intel Swamp247 has received is that another school that has recruited Norman for most of this year feel he is leaning to the Gators. Sources close to the Florida program are also feeling good on where they stand in this recruitment. — Swamp247

The next step for Florida would be to get Norman on campus again, this time on an official visit. Those trips could make the difference for Norman and shake things back up before his planned decision prior to the start of his senior year. That said, Florida’s official visits have almost uniformly impressed recruits since Napier took over, so it should only help to get him into the Swamp. The question is whether or not other programs can impress him more.

The 247Sports composite ranks Norman as the No. 88 overall recruit in the country and the No. 11 defensive lineman in the class of 2023. Adding him and Harris after landing [autotag]Kamari Wilson[/autotag] last season would solidify Napier as the bridge between Gainesville and IMG.

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Recruiting update: Texas A&M lands in 4-Star Defensive lineman’s “Top 5”

Recruiting update: Texas A&M lands in 4-Star Defensive lineman’s “Top 5”

Texas A&M Football has made a lot of noise lately from a recruiting standpoint during the last couple of days, first with the news that 2023 4-Star wide receiver Johntay Cook made the announcement that the Aggies would be a part of his “Top 5” college choices, and now, 2023 4-Star defensive lineman Will Norman has announced his “Top 5”, which consists of LSU, Michigan, Florida, Penn State, and Texas A&M.

Will Norman, standing at 6’5″, 290lb, attends the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, known for producing some of the top athletes across the board, and has become a recruiting hub for a number of SEC programs, including the Aggies. As one of the top 100 players in the 2023 class according to 247Sports, Norman’s size, athleticism, and versatility on the defensive line make him a fit for most SEC teams, giving the reasoning behind three of them landing in his top 5 choices.

Texas A&M has become well known for its strength in recruiting at the defensive line, signing a multitude of the 5-star defensive linemen this past year, and plans to continue owning the defensive line market for years to come, only rivaling that of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Adding a player like Norman would be a huge addition to the 2023 class, and would continue the recruiting momentum going forward.

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Gators earn a pair of recruiting predictions over the weekend

Florida’s 2023 recruiting class still only features two commitments, but that could change soon.

Corey Bender of Gators Online submitted a pair of On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine picks in favor of Florida on Friday. Four-star offensive lineman [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag] and four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag] are the two names he expects to end up with the Gators when all is said done.

Both recruits are rated four stars on the On3 consensus and come out of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. Harris has been linked with Florida recently, picking up a handful of crystal ball predictions from the 247Sports staff as well. He’ll decide on May 7 and has already named the Gators as one of the five finalists in his recruitment. Bender said that a source close to Harris told him that it would be a “real shocker” if the 6-foot-3-inch, 327-pounder ended up elsewhere.

With that in mind, Bender logged his prediction with a 75% confidence level, the highest of the three picks cast in favor of UF. The RPM has Harris at a 95.5% chance to land in Gainesville. He’s the No. 384 overall recruit on the On3 Consensus and the No. 27 interior offensive lineman.

Norman is the higher-ranked recruit of the two at No. 123 overall and No. 17 among defensive linemen, but Bender’s confidence level is only at 50% with him. Florida has been aggressive in recruiting the in-state blue-chipper and are sitting on top of things along with LSU and Texas A&M. Norman’s opinion of Florida has become more favorable with every visit, and Billy Napier and Co. are only ramping things up as the summer approaches.

Norman could decide over the summer or as early as May, and Bender believes that the Gators have done enough to get the call if things ended today. There is, however, a game-changing offer out there that could affect the climate of Norman’s recruitment. If Dabo Swinney and Clemson come knocking, Florida could face some serious competition.

If the Gators can nab both of these guys over the summer, the recruiting class will look a lot stronger than it does right now. Napier needs a big haul in 2023, and these could be some of the first dominoes to fall in his plan.

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The stars are coming out for Florida’s Orange and Blue game on Thursday

The stars will be out for Florida head coach Billy Napier’s first spring game on Thursday.

Head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] has proven the doubters wrong. Many fans and media members thought the decision to move the Orange and Blue game from Saturday to Thursday to achieve a recruiting advantage was a mistake that would end up backfiring. Despite having the game held on a weekday, Napier and the Gators have managed to bring in three 2023 five-stars and 15 four-stars along with a boatload of top prospects from the 2024 recruiting class.

The Orange and Blue game visitors’ list is headlined by five-star cornerback [autotag]Cormani McClain[/autotag], offensive lineman [autotag]Francis Mauigoa[/autotag] and athlete [autotag]Samuel M’Pemba[/autotag]. This will all be their second visit to the Swamp under Napier. Swamp247 is also reporting that they have an eye out for five-star cornerback [autotag]AJ Harris[/autotag] that could also visit, but he and his family have not finalized their plans yet.

Maryland defensive lineman [autotag]Darrell Jackson[/autotag] isn’t a high school prospect, obviously, but Swamp247 reported that he will be visiting the Gators Thursday after entering his name into the transfer portal last week.

Florida will bring in a lot of talent on Thursday hailing from the trenches like offensive linemen [autotag]Payton Kirkland[/autotag], [autotag]Lucas Simmons[/autotag], [autotag]Knijeah Harris[/autotag], defensive linemen [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag], [autotag]Derrick LeBlanc[/autotag], [autotag]Jordan Hall[/autotag] and [autotag]Tomarrion Parker[/autotag].

The Gators are looking to sign several top pass catchers this cycle with a lack of playmakers currently on the roster. Some of the most talented wideouts include [autotag]Hykeem Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Aidan Mizell[/autotag] and [autotag]Tyler Williams[/autotag].

Other top targets expected are four-star running back [autotag]Treyaun Webb[/autotag], safety [autotag]Joenel Aguero[/autotag] and [autotag]Kenton Kirkland[/autotag].

The stars will be out in full force for the Gators’ Orange and Blue Game on Thursday.

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This top-100 DL will be in attendance for Florida’s Orange and Blue Game

Four-star defensive lineman Will Norman has set reservations to visit Florida’s Orange and Blue Game later this month.

Florida, head coach [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and defensive line coach [autotag]Sean Spencer[/autotag] received massive news on Tuesday when four-star defensive lineman [autotag]Will Norman[/autotag] tweeted that he’ll visit them again for the Orange and Blue Game. The IMG prospect is ranked as the 86th-best prospect nationally and the 12th-best player at his position.

The Gators made major head way in Norman’s recruitment after a strong visit back on Jan. 29. They recently made his top seven that he released on March 29.

“My visit to Florida really changed things for me,” Norman said, according to On3. “It was really a fast start with the relationships. Their coaches are off to a great start with me. Florida made me feel like one of their athletes and they definitely moved up into my top five. They are one of my top schools. I will be back there.”

It’s great for Napier and his staff that Norman stuck to his word and will return for the spring game even though it’s going to be held on a Thursday compared to a Saturday.

Norman said he wants to find a place where he feels comfortable and Florida checks off that box because of Spencer, off-the-field analyst [autotag]Jamar Chaney[/autotag] and others. He likes how they are genuine with him.

He plans to visit Texas A&M this weekend and has made trips to Florida State, Auburn and Penn State so far this year. Norman has not revealed when he would like to make a decision but wants to take official visits to each one of his top five schools.

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Billy Napier hoping to have continued success at IMG Academy

Billy Napier already broke the IMG Academy course at Florida, and he’s hoping to land more recruits from the in-state program in the years to come.

Billy Napier’s first big moment as Florida’s head coach came when he landed one of the top safeties in the nation, IMG Academy’s Kamari Wilson, during the early signing period.

Wilson immediately brought star power to the Gators’ 2022 recruiting class, and his signing broke a decade-long IMG Academy curse despite the elite high school program being located in Bradenton. Following the announcement, Napier said that the plan was to keep a relationship with IMG Academy and to bring in more recruits from the in-state gold mine.

Napier took another step in building that relationship this weekend by hosting two of IMG’s top recruits. 2023 four-star defensive lineman Will Norman and Desmond Ricks, the top cornerback in the class of 2024, were unofficial visitors at Florida over the weekend before the dead period begins on Monday.

Norman wants to be committed by the start of his senior year, and he’s not short on offers. Auburn, Florida State, Kentucky, LSU, Michigan, Oklahoma and Texas A&M are just a few of the names competing for him, but Norman claims that no one is out in front just yet.

Landing a four-star or five-star recruit from IMG in each of his first three years would be quite the feat for Napier considering Florida’s track record with the school. He’ll have help from Wilson who loves recruiting top tier-talent to play alongside him, especially if they’re from his alma mater.

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Recruiting update: Class of 2022 and 2023 players to watch

Penn State recruiting: Two players on the radar for 2022 and 2023

Penn State didn’t end their season the way they wanted to, but the future is still bright in Happy Valley. The past few days have been a whirlwind of emotions with big coaching changes around college football.

Penn State fans can take a big sigh of relief, as James Franklin will be staying put for the next 10 years. As previously mentioned, this is a huge plus for recruiting.

Let’s take a look at some players on the radar for the Nittany Lions.

The first one is four-star 2022 safety in Larry Turner-Gooden.

Gooden is another two-way player that could potentially be finding his way to Happy Valley to join Cristian Driver, another fellow WR/S playing under James Franklin from the 2022 class.

Gooden recently announced his top five schools, with Penn State making the list. He will be announcing his commitment on January 8th at the All American game.

He would be a be another versatile addition to the 2022 recruiting class, which continues to get better.

The next one is a four-star defensive lineman from Bradenton, Florida in Will Norman.

Norman can excel both as an interior or on the outside. He also recently released his top 10 schools, with two Big Ten schools making the list, including Penn State.

Both of these players would be big additions to Penn State’s defense.

The secondary is potentially losing a good amount after this season, but they have a good amount of young talent coming in.

As for the defensive line, they are continuing to develop their current underclassmen, and Norman would be a versatile recruit that could provide help anywhere on the defensive line.

Penn State’s future continues to look bright, and guys like Gooden and Norman would be nice additions to a strong defense in Happy Valley.

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Michigan State Football Offers 2023 DT Will Norman

Michigan State football has recruited a lot of players from New Jersey in the past few years. You can add 2023 DT Will Norman to that list.

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Michigan State football has recruited a lot of players from New Jersey over the last couple of years. Between Geno VanDeMark, Kevin Wigenton,  and Chase Bisontis, all of them are from New Jersey. Now they have sent out an offer to 2023 defensive tackle Will Norman.

Norman, who is 6’6″ and weighs 250 pounds, attends Woodbury High School and his hometown is Camden, New Jersey. He is currently unranked and has no stars to his name.

Norman has received offers from Boston College, Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Penn State, Rutgers, Tennessee, Texas A&M and West Virginia.

He fits the type of player that Mel Tucker has been recruiting since he took over as the head coach of the Spartans. Norman is a tall and agile defensive lineman and has shown the ability to play the edge or inside the guards. Norman has the explosiveness at both positions like a certain NFL superstar in Aaron Donald. Expect Norman to be a high end prospect and will have around 20-30 division one offers.

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