Florida Gators offensive hot board

Florida Gators coach Jim McElwain will hit the road recruiting on Monday and he will be in the hunt of players to fill out the Class of 2015.

Gator Country is going to do a break down of the prospects that Florida is likely to pursue under McElwain and we are going to breakdown them down into multiple parts focusing on the playmakers on the offensive side of the ball first.

To be clear this is just Gator Country’s opinion and not the opinion of the Florida Gators coaching staff.

Since we broke down the quarterback position on Sunday, I’m going to start with the running back position.

Running backs

Running back Nyheim Hines(5-8, 178)- Hines hasn’t visited Florida since last summer but he has said he would like to officially visit Florida. Hines and his twin sister who run tracks want to attend the same school but the Florida Gators are also pursuing his sister. Right now North Carolina State is the team to beat for Hines.

Running back Jordan Scarlett (5-11, 205)- Scarlett is committed to Miami but there have been some whispers that he’s interested in the Gators and that should only increase with the role that McElwain has played with several top NFL backs.

Running back Dexter Williams (5-11, 195)- Another Miami commit Williams — much like Scarlett —  is wavering from Miami but the Gators have seem to have fade for him but can McElwain reenergize him? That’s the big question and something time will only tell.

Running back Ray-Ray McCloud (5-9, 176)- It’s crunch time for McCloud as he’s an early-enrollee but I expect Coach McElwain will visit him this week in hopes of getting an official visit next weekend. It’s going to be tough to flip the Clemson commit but McElwain will give it a shot.

 

Receivers

Receiver Deon Cain (6-1, 190)- Cain and McCloud are best friends and are committed to Clemson. Flipping McCloud would help with Cain but the Gators also can sell early playing time to Cain. The good news is that Cain isn’t an early enrollee so Florida has a little more time here.

Receiver Ryan Davis (5-10, 161)- Davis was at nearly every home game for Florida and has built quite the bond with Chris Leak. Davis knows that he can play early at Florida and that’s something that will help Florida at the end of the day IMO.

Receiver Da’Vante Phillips (6-1, 206)- I know everyone believes he’s a Florida State lock but the Florida Gators may try and get back in with Phillips now that Will Muschamp isn’t the coach. Phillips likes Florida State a ton and it will be tough to pull it off but the Gators at least give him a call.

Receiver Auden Tate (6-4, 199)- Tate was at Florida’s home game against South Carolina and he has been talking to the Florida Gators a lot lately. Tate wants to play receiver in college and with McElwain as the coach maybe the Gators can convince Tate to give Florida a second look.

Receiver Van Jefferson (6-1, 166)- Jefferson is committed to Georgia but he has been talking to Florida a lot and he’s very intrigued by the opportunity to play early at Florida. Jefferson wants to play as a freshman and he knows Florida gives him the best chance to do that but will it be enough is the question.

Receiver Antonio Callaway (6-0, 185)- Callaway is friends with Treon Harris and that has led Florida to being a top contender for him. Callaway hasn’t taken many visits though so things will get tougher for Florida once he takes visits.

JUCO receiver Isaac Whitney (6-4, 185)- Whitney is possibly visiting Florida this coming weekend for an official and right now Florida and USC are battling it out for him. If Florida can get him on campus I believe the Gators have a good shot at him.

 

 

Tight ends

Tight end Devonaire Clarington (6-5, 224)- Things aren’t good for Clarington off the field and that will likely keep Florida from pursuing him but that could change if McElwain’s likes him enough.

Tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe (6-4, 220) –Imatorbhebhe is begging for McElwain to call him if the Gators decide to go that route then I think Florida will have a great shot at landing him.

I also expect that Florida will try and land a JUCO tight end in this class but at this time I’m not sure of who that will be.

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.

2 COMMENTS

  1. The list of players above sounds like one that UF would have a good chance to get after a good year. After a mediocre year that led to the coach being fired, I think it’s time to lower expectations. It’s like wanting champagne on a beer budget.

    • Most of these guys like Florida a lot and are just wanting a reason to commit to Florida. The negativity went out the window with Will Muschamp.