The pair join a list which is also expected to include Florida offensive line commitment Nolan Kelleher (6-5, 300, Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) and a pair of priority targets in TE Bryce Dixon (6-4, 230, Ventura, Calif.) and DE Lorenzo Featherston (6-7, 220, Greensboro, N.C.) on official visits, along with a host of other players making the trip to the Swamp on their own dime. The reports on Dixon and Featherston come from 247Sports, by the way. Behind the Tennessee game two weeks ago, and the Florida State finale to close out the regular season slate, Arkansas should prove to be the other "big" recruiting visit weekend for the Gators this fall.
– While two Louisiana targets for UF confirmed their visit plans, another has dropped off the board. To no one's surprise, really, Davon Godchaux finally went public with a commitment to the Bayou Bengals on Monday. The 6-foot-4, 260-pound defensive line prospect was considered a long shot for the Gators, but the Florida staff was hoping to get him on campus for an official visit later in the season.
2014 Plaquemines DL Davon Godchaux commits to #LSU with quotes http://t.co/ncMEOvTYqA
— Jimmy D Smith (@JimmyDetail) October 1, 2013
– It appears Georgia made quite a splash with top linebacker prospect Raekwon McMillan this past weekend. The Bulldogs really impressed the five-star prospect out of Hinesville, Ga. during an official visit to Athens, where he watched the home team take down LSU, 45-42, in a nationally televised contest on CBS. UGA appears poised to make a strong run at McMillan down the stretch, while Clemson and Ohio State still top his list of schools.
“My trip to Georgia was a great visit,” McMillan told the AJC on Monday night. “I got there early Saturday morning and left there late on Sunday night. Georgia really gave me a good reason to stay in-state, and really helped their chances with me going to Georgia.”
Of note on this particular visit, McMillan and blue-chip defensive end Lorenzo Carter – also a major target for Florida – were in Athens together this weekend. The two have expressed an interest in playing football together at the next level, making Florida and Georgia their most likely destinations if they want to carry out that particular destiny.
Timing of visits is always an interesting subject. Carter used his first official to Gainesville for the Tennessee game two weeks ago, and McMillan used his first official visit on the UGA trip. McMillan's final visit is slated for Florida (and the FSU game) in November. Perhaps Will Muschamp and his staff are banking on the two wanting to hang out at a game together once again, assuring that they get at least one more shot at Carter on campus during the fall? It's definitely something to consider.
In any case, I will quickly concede that nothing directly from McMillan himself to date has indicated that Florida has a great shot at landing his services. But he has made a few visits to Gainesville this year; UF is the closest campus to his hometown of Hinesville at right around three hours a trip (Georgia is over four hours away, while a ride to Clemson totals nearly five hours); and the Gators do get that critical final official visit from McMillan. I've seen this staff pull in kids with odds seemingly just as long. While I'm not projecting the Gators to get McMillan at this time, I don't believe anyone should write off their chances, either.
– Very much in a similar vein to big offensive tackle David Sharpe, another in-state prospect pegged to end up at Florida early on who has been trending away from the Gators in recent weeks is Cardinal Newman WR Travis Rudolph. News on the Under Armour All-American has been largely mixed for several months now, but it appears one team is really starting to make a move for his services:
Source: #FSU very confident about landing 2014 WR Travis Rudolph.
— Jeff Greer (@jeffgreer) October 1, 2013
With as volatile as Rudolph's recruitment has been to date, there's no reason for Florida to stop recruiting the 6-foot-1, 190-pound prospect out of West Palm Beach. However, there seems to be a bit more of feeling of traction with FSU here. That the move they've made through the summer and with a hot start behind freshman QB Jameis Winston is very much solid. It's easy to see why, then, that the Gators have started to once again kick the tires on Lakeland Kathleen receiver Ja'Von Harrison, who unofficially visited Gainesville for the Tennessee game. Harrison maintains he is solidly committed to Virginia Tech, but he seems to at least be leaving the door slightly cracked for Florida to potentially make a late run at his signature with his actions.
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