Receiver Isaiah Johnson (6-3, 190, West Palm Beach, FL Dwyer) made big news on Friday when he committed to the Florida Gators but Johnson knew prior to Friday’s visit what he was going to do.
“I already knew before I came up there that I was going to commit,” Johnson said. “I had visited last time but I just wanted to let it sink in and discuss it with my mom and the people close to me. I just wanted to make sure it was the best decision for me and we decided it was the decision for me to go to Florida so that’s why I went ahead and committed.”
Johnson, who visited Florida last weekend with his mother, said that head coach Jim McElwain and his staff made him comfortable and that helped the Gators land the big play receiver.
“When I got to Florida they made me feel right at home, it wasn’t awkward at all,” Johnson said. “The coaches showed me love and there was no pressure there. The coaches are going to take care of you there and everything there is good for an athlete. There’s no reason not to go to Florida.”
McElwain and offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier have been telling Johnson about the need for receivers at Florida and Johnson knows what he has to do if he wants to play as a freshman.
“I feel like I can come in and play early and the coaches tell me that I can play early but it depends on me,” Johnson said. “They tell me that if I learn the offense and work hard then I can play a lot. They said it was all up to me.”
Friday was the first chance for the Dwyer prospect to watch a live practice and he was impressed by the tempo and how the Gators receivers coach coached up the position.
“I loved the practice, they ran a fast pace practice and the receivers got a lot of reps,” Johnson said. “I know that I’m going to get better everyday out there. Coach [Kerry] Dixon was coaching the receivers hard and he knows what he’s doing out there. He was talking a lot.”
After practice when Johnson told Dixon that he was committing the Gators’ coach was very happy to hear the news according to the receiver.
“Coach Dixon said he was excited that I was going to be a Gator,” Johnson said. “He said that I’m going to do great things at Florida and he wants to help me get better. He said he was ready for me to get there.”
Now that Johnson has committed to Florida he wants to help the Gators get a better class and he his eyes on another receiver from South Florida.
“I’m going to recruiting some guys,” Johnson said. “I got to get my boy Binjimin Victor down there with me. We can be two big receivers together.”
Before Johnson ended his conversation with Gator Country he wanted to leave one last message to Gator fans.
“Watch out for big things coming to Florida,” Johnson said. “I want to be the next big receiver that coach McElwain coaches.”
INSIDERS TAKE: Johnson said that he doesn’t have any other visits planned and that he’s solid to Florida. This is a huge pickup for Florida because Johnson is a big receiver with good hands and he will fit right into what McElwain and company are looking for at the position.