Conliffe and his mother like the Florida Gators recruiting pitch

The biggest need in the Florida Gators recruiting class down the stretch is defensive tackles and the Gators have several targets remaining on the board at the position.

One of those targets is defensive tackle Elijah Conliffe (6-4, 305, Hampton, VA. High) who took his official visit to Florida this weekend.

“It was good, it was a really good time,” Conliffe said of his Florida visit. “I got to hang around some of the players, some of the coaches and see all of the facilities. I had the chance to talk with all of the coaches.”

While on the official visit, Conliffe was hosted by another defensive tackle who just enrolled in a school and he was talking about what he likes at Florida to the defensive tackle.

“My host was Kyree Campbell and Jonesy [Richerd Desir-Jones] was also with us,” he said. “Kyree was telling me that he’s really enjoying being there and he likes it. He said that he would like to have me playing beside him down there. All of the players were real welcoming to me.”

Defensive line coach Chris Rumph explained to Conliffe how the Gators see him fitting into the defense if he chooses Florida.

“Coach Rumph said that they really need defensive tackles and that I’m in a really good position to come in and play,” Conliffe said of Rumph’s message to him. “He thinks that I’m more of a nose guard and he was showing me some film of how I would fit into that position.”

Head coach Jim McElwain also expressed a big need for Conliffe at Florida but also talked up the Gators education.

“He was pretty much telling me the same thing, that they have a need for defensive lineman,” he said of McElwain’s message to him. “He was also talking to me about education. He said that Florida is one of the best educations you can get and they showed me around the academic building.”

This was the first time for Conliffe to visit Gaiesville so he had to see a lot in a short time but he feels like the trip was a success for him and his mother.

“I liked everything down there, I got to see a lot of things that they had to offer,” Conliffe said on if he got to see everything he needed to see. “My mom got to see everything too and she got to meet all of the coaches. She liked it and she liked how informative the coaches were with her.”

Now that Conliffe has visited the Gators, Florida just has to sit back and wait as they battle three other teams for the tackle’s signature.

“Florida is up there for me,” he said. “I’m committing on January 31st and I’ll be choosing between Penn State, Tennessee, Florida and I guess Louisville. I’m going to visit Louisville this weekend.”

 

INSIDERS TAKE: Most people including myself believe that the decision will come down to Florida and Tennessee for Conliffe. The Gators made a big impression on the defensive tackle this weekend but Conliffe doesn’t tip his hand as to which way he’s leaning. Chris Rumph is expected to visit Conliffe on Tuesday.

Andrew Spivey
Andrew always knew he wanted to be involved with sports in some capacity. He began by coaching high school football for six years before deciding to pursue a career in journalism. While coaching, he was a part of two state semifinal teams in the state of Alabama. Given his past coaching experience, he figured covering recruiting would be a perfect fit. He began his career as an intern for Rivals.com, covering University of Florida football recruiting. After interning with Rivals for six months, he joined the Gator Country family as a recruiting analyst. Andrew enjoys spending his free time on the golf course and watching his beloved Atlanta Braves. Follow him on Twitter at @AndrewSpiveyGC.