Saturday the south endzone was full of prospects but the attention wasn’t just on the class of 2015 prospects but on the class of 2016 as well and several big time players from that class visited the Florida Gators.
One of the 2016 prospects in attendance was defensive tackle Nyles Pinckney (6-3, 290, Seabrook, SC Whale Branch) who was down with his family and they walked with their ears ringing from the crowd noise.
“The visit was real good,” Pinckney said. “I enjoyed my time down there and my family enjoyed it as well. I liked the game too. The atmosphere was good and the crowd as whole was into the game the whole time. It was probably the loudest game I’ve ever been too.”
Pinckney has been to Florida once before last spring but Saturday gave him the chance to see what a Florida Gators gameday was all about.
“This was my second visit to Florida but first ever for an actual game,” Pinckney said. “It definitely lived up to my expectations. When I went down there the first time I noticed how big the stadium was and on Saturday I could see why it was so big. I could see myself playing in it one day.”
Defensive line coach Brad Lawing has been recruiting Pinckney for over two years now and on Saturday the two got the chance to talk in person about why Lawing wants the defensive tackle so bad.
“I got to talk to Coach Lawing after the game was over,” Pinckney said. “Hey said that he would like me to be a Gator and that he wanted me to keep working hard and getting better. Coach Lawing said that I would be a great fit into the defensive line at Florida.”
While Florida was on the field against LSU Pinckney played close attention to how the defense played and he walked away feeling good about how Lawing’s linemen played.
“The defense played well at the beginning before LSU got a big play,” Pinckney said. “Overall they played good but they just had a few penalties. The defensive line got a lot of pressure on the quarterback during the game and had some sacks.”
Pinckney still has over a year and a half before he has to make a decision but he says that five schools are recruiting him harder than the others.
“Florida is definitely in the mix for me,” Pinckney said. “Right now Florida, North Carolina, Clemson, South Carolina and Florida State are recruiting me the hardest right now.”
INSIDERS TAKE: Pinckney is one of the top defensive tackles in the country for next year and the Gators have been recruiting him hard for a while now, which will help the Florida Gators out next year. Lawing and company will continue to try and get the defensive tackle down to Gainesville for more visits.