Gators Recruiting News & Notes, 10/11

It's been sort of a quiet week on the recruiting trail. Not a whole lot of Florida-related notes to write about, or anything of note from the national perspective that grabbed my attention. However, here's a couple of tidbits to chew on as we head towards an excellent slate of games on Saturday:

– Rivals reported earlier this week that Auburn commit Tre Williams (6-2, 225, Mobile, Ala./St. Paul's) will use an official visit to see check out Florida. Is there anything to see here? Maybe, but it's unlikely. Williams name has been continuously been mentioned in connection with UF for months. But nothing has really came of it. Unless Williams makes more than one visit to Gainesville before National Signing Day, this is likely just a trip to have something to compare Auburn with.

Throw in the fact that Nyles Morgan (6-2, 230, Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee) has expressed interest in taking an official visit to Florida as well, and the linebacker board has expanded a bit for the Gators. Raekwon McMillan and Clifton Garrett remain the top two prospects on the board for Florida. But all four players have to be considered long shots for the Gators at this point. So, this begs the question: assuming the Gators miss on all four of these guys, will they elect to take a guy like Dwight Williams (6-1, 205, Gardena, Calif./Junipero Serra)? Or will they make a late run at one of the in-state linebackers instead? There are some impressive looking players from around the Sunshine State. Josh Black, Jakob Johnson, Xavier Preston, Sharieff Rhaheed are among the in-state prospects worthy of an offer, in my view (Johnson could also get a look at defensive end or in a role similar to that of Ronald Powell). It should also be noted that current commitment Justus Reed could also get a look at playing linebacker or a hybrid role not all that dissimilar from current UF player Neiron Ball.

There's still a long ways to go. The need for numbers isn't there after signing four linebackers last year, but I still expect the Gators to add someone to the fold at the position for the Class of 2014. The only question now is, who will it be?

– Five-star WR commit Ermon Lane of Homestead was ejected for reportedly throwing a punch in a 45-0 win over Palmetto on Thursday night.

Ermon Lane talking with #Homestead AD Newsome and HC Coffey after being ejected in the first. pic.twitter.com/vjOMouz2vr
— Chris Green (@cgreensdnl) October 10, 2013

If the ejection is upheld as is, Lane would face a six-week suspension, which is the typical measure handed down by the FHSAA for such an incident. An appeal in the matter is likely, given the circumstances however, as Lane claims he was simply trying to jar the ball loose from an opponent while playing safety on defense. A reasonable argument, I suppose, without having been there to personally witness the incident, myself.

However, if the six-week suspension is upheld, Lane has very possibly played his final game at the high school level.

– The mystery player of Florida's 2014 class to date has been Casper (Wyo.) Natrona County lineman Taven Bryan. This of course, is owed mostly to the fact there have only been a handful of major recruits to come out of Wyoming over the past couple of decades (with Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Brett Keisel likely being the only one you've ever heard of). While stats on Bryan are hard to come across (he mostly plays offensive line at the high school level), there are a few notes to pass along in regards to his team.

A good analogy for the natives here, is that Natrona County would be to Wyoming, what Lake City Columbia is to the state of Florida. The Fillies were the winningest program in state history coming into the season, with an all-time record of 550-271-27 (good for a .665 winning percentage). They are the defending 4A state champions and have won or split 16 titles in their illustrious history.

However, Natrona has lost three games so far this season. All by a single point, and all three in overtime (the season-opener saw the Fillies drop a 42-41 decision to Cheyenne East in triple overtime, in fact). After beginning the season 3-3, they now have a tough road ahead following an early-season slump that has seen the program match their loss total over the previous three seasons in just six games this fall.

Bryan, a first-team Class 4A All-State selection as an offensive lineman a year ago (4A is the largest classification in Wyoming prep football), will be Florida's first ever signee from the state of Wyoming, to my knowledge. While he's projected as a player who could end up on either side of the football, he might just be the guy out of this class who ends up as the prospect who projects best at the center position for the Gators moving forward (a spot offensive line coach Tim Davis has said he wants to address in every recruiting class). Or maybe he does, in fact, end up the second coming of Keisel in the Swamp. Time will tell on that one.

– And if you missed it yesterday, Kevin Bronson has possibly emerged as on the board for Florida as a big end or quick tackle prospect for this recruiting class after the Gators came up short on a few names early on in the process of the Class of 2014.

UF Recruiting News & Notes, 9/26

A quick rundown on the most pressing news items from the recruiting trail for the Gators this week:

– The Gators' most critical official visitor last weekend for the Tennessee game just happened to be 6-foot-5, 235-pound rush end Lorenzo Carter, considered a consensus five-star recruit. Florida continues to make a real push for the highly-touted athlete out of the metro-Atlanta area:

"It went beyond my expectations," Carter told Rivals.com of the visit he and his parents made for the Florida-Tennessee game. "I love the way they do their defensive scheme. Their defense is just so energized. I loved it. They have some young players, so they'll be there when I'm there. I think that would just be great to add on and get a chance to play for a dominating defense in college."

Florida has had the momentum with Carter since he made an unofficial visit to Gainesville in the summer, but they will have to find a way to keep that going over the coming months, as the staff burned their official visit on the blue-chipper quite early. Getting at least one more return visit (if not more) will be a major key for UF moving forward in the pursuit of Carter.

– For a guy who isn't even committed to Florida, Jamal Adams has done an awfully good job singing the praises of UF to other recruits. The 6-foot, 205-pound safety out of Carrollton, Tex. made his official visit to Gainesville a weekend after going to Texas A&M for the Aggies' showdown with Alabama. It appears the Gators are still on track with the national top-100 player:

So much great food this weekend 😍
— Jamal Adams (@ThaJudgeKO) September 23, 2013

Adams even spent some time trying to get highly-touted linebacker Clifton Garrett to picture the possibility of the two playing in the Swamp together one day:

pic.twitter.com/Sg1JnvTDMV
— Clifton Garrett CG3 (@CG340) September 22, 2013

Adams is still expected to take visits to Ohio State, Ole Miss and Texas before making a projected November decision. But this one appears all but done for the time being.

– The Gators have tried to gain traction for the aforementioned Garrett. In fact, Garrett is one of only two linebackers (Peach State five-star Raekwon McMillan being the other), for whom the Gators are making a major push for in the Class of 2014. By all accounts, Garrett had an enjoyable time in Gainesville last weekend. However, LSU is still the runaway favorite for the 6-foot-2, 228-pound prospect out of Plainfield, Ill. Barring a major change, expect Garrett to play out his college days in Baton Rouge.

– Tight end Deandre Goolsby (6-4, 230, Derby, Kan.) was the fourth official visitor for Florida over the weekend. As this blog has previously noted, tight end is becoming a major position of need for the Gators in the Class of 2014. Goolsby hasn't done many interviews, so it's hard to tell exactly what he's thinking. Goolsby has already made an official visit to Oklahoma, and will head to Columbus this coming weekend. His other two official visits will likely be Kansas State (Goolsby is a KSU legacy) and Arkansas, although neither has been scheduled for the time being.

With Goolsby having family ties to the Wildcats, Kansas State figures to be a major factor. I also suspect Oklahoma is a very real threat as well. In the end, Florida seems to have positioned itself well. What it will come down to the for the Gators is very simple. Will distance play a major role in Goolsby's decision? If so, then Florida will likely have to look elsewhere for a second tight end in the 2014 cycle.

– Not that any recruitnik-types were pegging Dwyer WR Johnnie Dixon to Florida at this point. But in case anyone was holding out hope that the 5-foot-11, 190-pound athlete could still ultimately end up in Gainesville, it's time to move on.

Asked good Dwyer source if #Canes are obvious for Johnnie Dixon: "I don't know. #Bama #NCState and #OhioState are for real."
— Jeff Greer (@jeffgreer) September 26, 2013

Miami is considered the favorite here, but Alabama and Ohio State are making a push as well. And don't rule out N.C. State, where Dixon's former teammate Jacoby Brissett is in line to push for the starting quarterback job next fall.

Florida-Tennessee: The Visitors

It really goes without saying, this is going to be a big visit weekend in the Swamp for the Gators as Tennessee comes to town. Six official visitors in total are expected, along with dozens of top prospects from the 2014 class and beyond. For today's purposes, we'll ignore the sophomores and juniors and limit our focus to the top seniors expected on campus.

Official visitors:

– DB Jamal Adams (6-0, 205, Carrollton, Tex./Hebron): Once thought to be a luxury item in this class for Florida, the need for Adams has risen slightly in recent weeks with the move of Valdez Showers to safety (along with the Gators' spotty play at the position against Miami.) Florida still appears to be in the driver's seat for Adams heading into this week.

– DE Lorenzo Carter (6-5, 235, Norcross, Ga./Norcross): As expected, Florida's summer lead for Carter appears to have evaporated. But that was to be expected as Alabama and Georgia turn up the heat for the five-star pass-rusher. Florida gets a chance to draw first blood in terms of the official visits. The UF staff has to hope they can "wow" Carter big time on the trip – certainly enough to make him want to come back for that home finale against FSU in November.

– LB Clifton Garrett (6-1½, 225, Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield South): Garrett made an unofficial visit to Florida, albeit briefly, over the summer. While the Gators hope to make a push for Garrett this weekend, LSU will be tough to over take for the talented linebacker.

– TE Deandre Goolsby (6-4, 235, Derby, Kan./Derby): It goes without saying that the tight end position has been an issue through two games for the Gators. Although Florida has a commitment from C'yontai Lewis, UF needs an upgrade here. Goolsby would presumably provide that.

– WR Speedy Noil (5-10½, 180, New Orleans, La./Edna Karr): Top-flight athlete has excelled as a QB on the prep level but will transition to the slot in college. Noil and his teammate Willis are trying to get people to buy into the notion that LSU is slipping for their services on Twitter. We'll see if there's any truth to that notion when they visit Gainesville this weekend.

– DE Gerald Willis (6-3, 275, New Orleans, La./Edna Karr): There really aren't many prospects out there better suited to replace Dominique Easley than Willis. Very similar players and skill-sets (even though Willis doesn't seem nearly as deranged.) Florida has been involved with Willis for two years now. If any team can pry him out of the Pelican State, UF figures to be the school.

Unofficial visitors:

Among the prospects originally expected in Gainesville this weekend was offensive lineman David Sharpe (6-6, 290, Jacksonville Providence). There now seems to be some debate over whether or not Sharpe will be at the SEC opener for Florida this weekend. If he doesn't show up, there may be a reasonable explanation. But for UF, they can't like the direction this one seems to be heading in. As Clemson and Georgia seem to have all the momentum at this point. What is stranger to me, and this is entirely an outsider perspective, I may be completely wrong here – but I just don't see the sense of urgency in Florida's pursuit of Sharpe. Obviously they want him, they are recruiting him. But I just don't see the same amount of gusto from the Florida staff in going after Sharpe as I do, say, Lorenzo Carter. Clemson and Georgia have built the in-roads with Sharpe's family. Florida hasn't. Florida gets a bye week last week, they don't send a coach to Sharpe's game (although Nick Washington was there, so I guess that counts for something.) Florida has all the momentum in the world coming out of the spring with Sharpe. Now it's all heading the other way, and I can't help but wonder if Florida has played a hand in that as well. I guess we'll see.

  

Alright, rant over. Other names expected in include Alabama RB commit Bo Scarbrough (6-1½, 220, Tuscaloosa, Ala./IMG Academy), Virginia Tech WR commit Javon Harrison (6-1, 180, Lakeland Kathleen) and top-rated line prospect Cory Thomas (6-6, 270, McCalla, Ala./McAdory).

Bo Scarbrough says he will unofficially visit Florida for the Tennessee game next week. #Gators #Bama
— Derek Tyson (@DerekTysonESPN) September 14, 2013

For now, Scarbrough remains a major luxury item for the Gators. The numbers really don't suggest Florida needs a second back in this class, but UF will continue to recruit Scarbrough because, a.) He's that good, and b.) Why not?

Harrison's coach, Irving Strickland, indicated to the Lakeland Ledger that he and Harrison were simply coming up to "watch a game," and that there wasn't anything else to be read into this visit aside from that. Certainly, I can understand coach and prospect having that mindset going in. But it doesn't take much to get the wheels turning in recruiting. Getting Harrison on campus is a win for the UF staff, as it potentially gives them another skill option on the board for 2014.

As for Thomas, Mississippi State continues to lead Florida and others. But this is a recruitment where Florida appears to be quickly gaining some footing as UF commitment C'yontai Lewis is leading the charge to help deliver Thomas to Gainesville.

RT "@idunklewis: Cory gone be a Gator🐊 w/m watch.." #Gators TE commit C'yontai Lewis talking about DE Cory Thomas. Both will visit for Tenn.
— Zach Abolverdi (@ZachAbolverdi) September 16, 2013

Two other names that have been thrown around as potential visitors for this weekend include Clemson receiver commit Artavis Scott (5-10½, 180, Tarpon Springs East Lake) and Alabama lineman Jordan Sims (6-4, 335, Homewood, Ala./Homewood).

Homewood (Ala.) OL Jordan Sims planning a decision soon, says #Auburn and #Florida are recruiting him the hardest http://t.co/W4BhIPKL1P
— Justin Hokanson (@JHokanson) September 17, 2013

Sims, in particular, could be rising in terms of importance with Florida apparently sliding for David Sharpe. But, of course, it's always tough to be one of the Alabama powers for an in-state.

At any rate, this is a big weekend for the Gators. Both on the field as they look to rebound from the Miami game, and in recruiting as they will look to impress a host of recruits in attendance. We'll keep an eye on all of these guys and the wire as the weekend draws nearer.