Grading Florida football recruiting class: How did the Gators fare on early signing day?

Posted by Admin December 4, 2024 Football

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Florida football rode the momentum of three straight wins to close the 2024 season to an equally strong close to its 2025 early signing class on Wednesday.

The Florida Gators signed 23 players, including 14 four-stars and 11 players ranked in the top 300 of the 247Sports, On3 Sports and ESPN individual rankings.

“Today’s a culmination of a lot of hard work,” Florida football coach Billy Napier said. “I think it truly takes a team of people. Really excited about the players that we added to the team today. Certainly not only the players, but the families, the circle of influence that kind of chose our process, our group of people, our organization, our philosophy, our formula.”

UF’s class stood at just 11 commitments in early November before UF athletic director Scott Strickin gave Napier a vote of confidence that he would return for a fourth season. That announcement, and a three-game winning streak that included back-to-back wins over No. 22 LSU and No. 9 Ole Miss, spurred a flurry of commitments. UF was able to get players to flip from rivals Florida State, Georgia and Tennessee.

“We just showed promise,” Napier said. “I think that the vote of confidence, the stability, then how our team competed, you pair that with the hard work of our staff, I think ultimately that’s why we were able to close.”

Overall, UF’s class is ranked 10th overall by ESPN and Rivals and 11th per On3 and 247Sports and included three defensive backs ranked in the top 100 nationally

How does Florida football recruiting class rank?

247Sports class rank: No. 11 overall, No.8 SEC

Top signees: WR Vernell Brown III, No. 6 wide receiver No. 39 overall; CB Ben Hanks No. 7 cornerback, No. 53 overall; DE Jayden Woods, No. 7 edge rusher, No. 75 overall.

Biggest miss: WR Dallas Wilson, Florida tried to get the five-star receiver from Tampa Bay Tech to flip his commitment on National Signing Day, but Wilson opted to sign with Oregon instead.

Grade: B. It’s another solid class for Florida, as the Gators finished strong after being ranked as low as 51st in the cycle in early November. Florida added depth at receiver, in the secondary and on both lines of scrimmage.

Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1