GAINESVILLE, Fla. — When the early signing period commences Wednesday, roughly two-thirds of Florida’s class will join the fold. It’s sizing up to be an impressive haul, currently ranked No. 7 by the 247Sports Composite, which would be the Gators’ highest finish since 2013.
Some thoughts on where the class stands now and where it could be trending by next spring, when borderline qualifiers and transfer portal entries tell the complete tale.
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The quarterbacks: With four-star Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and three-star Jalen Kitna ready to sign, the Gators addressed the pending depth vacuum. (With Kyle Trask departing, the roster will be down to two scholarship quarterbacks, Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson).
Compared to Georgia landing Brock Vandagriff and Alabama flipping Jalen Milroe away from Texas, this tandem lacks splash. Sort of a good-not-great feel. But Del Rio-Wilson validated Florida’s expectations and displayed some natural gifts with a strong showing at the Elite 11 in July. And when I profiled Kitna this fall, we saw a kid who looked like the son of a longtime NFL quarterback — cerebral and fundamentally sound. Both kids possess the intangibles Florida likes.
The Marshall plan: Five-star cornerback Jason Marshall has the speed and length combo that instantly could elevate Florida’s secondary next season. The nation’s No. 27 prospect overall, the 6-foot-2 Marshall has analysts debating whether he’s the top corner in this class compared to Alabama commitment Ga’Quincy McKinstry.
Marshall was dynamic enough to star on offense during Miami Palmetto’s recent playoff run that ended in the Class 8A state semifinals. He’s a whole-package player — athletic, physical, rangy — who’s indicative of how Florida wants to upgrade the back end of its defense.
Playing the numbers: Florida has 26 commitments, with Clemson transfer Demarkcus Bowman making 27, which creates a numbers crunch against the NCAA’s annual hard cap of 25 initial-counter signees.
However, because a midyear enrollee such as Bowman can count backward against the 2020 class, the Gators might have room to add up to 28 players total.
The NCAA might grant Florida relief on one more count-back spot after the departure of Issiah Walker. The four-star offensive tackle enrolled last January but was on campus for only a short stint before transferring to hometown Miami in May.
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A freak athlete from juco: Florida hasn’t signed a junior college player the past two cycles. Tight end Lucas Krull and offensive lineman Noah Banks were the last two, from the 2018 class.
The Gators are bringing in Diwun Black from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College this time around, an outside linebacker who the 247Sports Composite ranks as the nation’s No. 1 juco prospect. He signed with Florida in 2019 but failed to qualify, necessitating the layover in junior college.
Black’s athleticism at 6-3 and 230 pounds affords him the versatility to play multiple spots, so the Gators will figure out where he fits when he gets here.
Justus served: Strongside defensive end Justus Boone, a four-star commitment from Sumter, S.C., measures 6-5 with long arms and a motor that recruiters love. Currently at 250 pounds, he could blossom into a defensive tackle with push-the-pocket skills.
Ranking just outside the nation’s top 300 prospects, he might prove to be under-recruited despite offers from Georgia, Oklahoma, Virginia Tech and home-state South Carolina.
On the nose: Could a three-star prospect hold the key to Florida’s 2021 class? It could if Desmond Watson becomes an A-gap space-eater.
The 6-5 defensive tackle from the Tampa suburb of Seffner is listed at 380 pounds but reportedly tops 400. He mixes enough athleticism with bulk that Alabama, Georgia and LSU seriously recruited him.
Florida desperately wants size on the interior to combat these massive offensive lines Alabama and Georgia have assembled. Watson could be a zero-technique nose tackle who holds down the middle if the Gators shift to a 3-4 look.
His overall national ranking of 369th doesn’t scream game-changer, but given Florida’s scheme and its need, he’s as important as anyone the Gators are signing this week.
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The big guys up front: Florida has five offensive line commitments, only two of whom plan to sign this week. Four-star guard Yousef Mugharbil and three-star center Jake Slaughter are viewed as steady players who could step in after a developmental year.
Mugharbil committed to the Gators over Penn State, North Carolina, Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee. The Ocala product Slaughter holds 16 offers from Power 5 schools, including Florida State, Auburn, Miami, Ole Miss and Missouri
With the Gators’ other offensive line pledges — tackles Javonte Gardner, Adrein Strickland and junior college guard Deyavie Hammond — slotted to sign in February, this is a group ripe for movement.
Cliffhangers: Florida remains in the hunt for five-star offensive tackle Tristan Leigh, who attended the LSU game last weekend. Ranked No. 11 overall, he could dramatically shift the narrative of this Gators class, but the Virginia native also is a prime target for Oklahoma, LSU, Clemson and Ohio State. He plans to commit Jan. 2 on “NBC’s All-American Bowl: Declaration Day,” a program that has taken the spot of the All-American Game that was canceled due to COVID-19.
Schools won’t have to wait as long to learn about five-star outside linebacker Xavian Sorey of IMG Academy in Bradenton. The nation’s No. 20 overall recruit is planning to choose between Georgia, Florida and Alabama on Wednesday and has kept coaches at all three programs guessing of late.
Other early-bird signees: Corey Collier, a Miami Palmetto teammate of Marshall’s, plans to sign Wednesday. He’s a physical four-star safety, as is Pennsylvania recruit Donovan McMillon, who committed to the Gators over a host of SEC, Big Ten and ACC schools.
Christopher Thomas, coming off a stellar senior season at Fort Myers-Dunbar, is scheduled to enroll early, as is cornerback Jordan Young, linebacker Chief Borders, receivers Daejon Reynolds and Marcus Burke, and tight end Nick Elksnis.
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Some holdouts: Four-star linebacker Jeremiah Williams of Birmingham, who initially spurned offers from Auburn, Oklahoma and LSU, announced he won’t sign early. “I’ll be signing in February to make sure I’m making the right decision,” he tweeted late Monday night.
Among other Gators commitments projected to wait until the February signing period are four-star defensive end Tyreak Sapp, four-star athlete Charles Montgomery and three-star safety Dakota Mitchell.
(Photo of Dan Mullen: Frederick Breedon / Getty Images)