ORLANDO- The Florida Gators have five commits in the Under Armour All-American game including offensive lineman Richard Gouraige (6-5, 271, Tampa, FL. Cambridge Christian) who dreamed about this game since he was a kid.
“I’m very blessed, growing up I always wished to be able to be here and play,” Gouraige said of being an All-American. “Being here with the best of the best. I’m very blessed for this opportunity and I just want to soak it all in. Everyday just cherish it really.”
Gouraige was one of two Gators commits who didn’t sign on December 20th but the offensive lineman did take an unofficial visit to Gainesville the last visit weekend of December to meet Dan Mullen and offensive line coach John Hevesy.
“It went good, me and Coach Mullen got along well,” he said of his unofficial visit to Florida. “I talked to Coach Hevesy a little bit. It was a great visit overall.”
The offensive lineman has been a frequent visit to Florida this year and he says things weren’t really different under Mullen.
“Nothing really different, Florida is still Florida,” Gouraige said. “I still want to get to know Coach Mullen and Coach Hevesy and all of the new coaches.”
One thing that remains the same is that Gouraige is feeling like a priority to Florida after Hevesy spoke with him during his unofficial visit.
“That I’m still a priority for Florida,” he said on Hevesy’s message to him. “He still wants me to come to Florida and that he wants me to play for him. Just basically that I’m the right fit for his system and stuff.”
There have been a lot of talk of where Gouraige will visit in January but the offensive lineman says that he doesn’t have any visits set up right now.
“I’m not sure right now, I’ve got to talk to my mom and everybody,” Gouraige said on official visits. “I have to find out where the right visits to take and stuff. It’s just family stuff that will be make together.”
Despite not signing, Gouraige says he remains committed to Florida but admits he’s looking at everything before signing.
“I mean, I’m still committed, but I still wanna look at other options and make sure I’m making the right decision for me and my family,” he said. “ I just wanna make the best decision for everybody around me.”
We would be blessed to have him in Orange and Blue. It would also be one of the best decisions he could make for his future.
Go Gators