Florida Gators football lead for South Florida OL

The Florida Gators football team is still looking for offensive linemen and the good news is that there are several good prospects in the class of 2017 to play on the line that reside from the state of Florida.

Gators head coach Jim McElwain and his staff have already done a great job of recruiting 2017 offensive lineman Kai-Leon Herbert (6-4, 262, Plantation, FL American Heritage) as he says the Gators are the team talking to him the most.

“Florida, Tennessee, Michigan, NC State and some schools that haven’t offered me are also recruiting me hard right now,” Herbert said of the schools after him. “Florida is recruiting the hardest right now. I usually talk to Coach [Mike] Summers and to Coach [Randy] Shannon some too.”

Over the summer Herbert had the opportunity to meet Florida Gators assistant football coach Mike Summers and Summers has been sure to keep helping Herbert get better on the field despite not pressuring him.

“Coach Summers just tells me that he doesn’t want to pressure me or anything and that he just wants me to take my time but that he wants me,” he said of Summers message to him. “He tells me that on the field he wants me to keep doing what I’m doing but that he wants me to work on my foot work and keeping working hard.”

Linebackers coach Randy Shannon is the area recruiter for Herbert and he has been sure to let the offensive lineman know that he’s wanted in Gainesville.

“Coach Shannon tells me that everything will come together but to just be patient and take my time,” Herbert said. “I like that they aren’t pressuring me because we are building a good relationship. Really I’m building one with everyone at Florida right now.”

One thing that Herbert likes about the Florida Gators football program is that they have a staff that truly likes their players and Herbert believes that they have the players’ best interest first.

“They definitely care about the players they recruit and that they want on their team,” he said. “They really are trying to build good relationships with the kids that are going to be future Gators. They seem like they type of coaches to help you out and do stuff to help you be successful.”

The American Heritage prospect has over a dozen offers but he says that one school leads and that another commit is recruiting him hard to one school.

“Florida is still my leader right now and I’m trying to get up for the Florida/Tennessee game and a couple of other ones this season,” Herbert said of his leader. “I have Jake [Allen] still recruiting me every other day and he just tells me that we can link up at Florida again.”

 

INSIDERS TAKE: The Florida Gators have a big edge in Herbert’s recruitment right now and the more times he gets up to Gainesville the better things will go for the Gators. Herbert is one of the top offensive tackles in the state for 2017.

 

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.