Florida Gators defensive line coach Chris Rumph during the Gators win over kentucky - GatorCountry photo taken by David Bowie
Florida Gators defensive line coach Chris Rumph during the Gators win over kentucky - GatorCountry photo taken by David Bowie

One of the biggest needs for the Florida Gators in 2018 is a defensive lineman and several of those big targets are out of state targets.

Defensive lineman Coynis Miller (6-2, 300, Birmingham, AL. Jackson-Olin) is one of those big targets and he says he talks to the Gators staff a lot.

“I talk with them just about everyday,” Miller said on how much he talks with Florida. “I talk to either Coach [Chris] Rumph or Coach [JaJuan] Seider the most. But I also talk to other coaches some.”

Defensive line coach Chris Rumph has made it a point to explain to Miller how big of a need he is to the Gators in 2018.

“He’s just a laid back guy and he tells me everyday that he needs me,” he said on his talks with Rumph. “He tells me my chance of playing early is high because they need linemen.”

Rumph has told Miller who plays all over the place in high school that he can pick his spot in Gainesville.

“He says I can play anywhere on the defensive line,” Miller said on where Rumph wants him to play. “He says that I’ll most likely be a defensive tackle but that I can play wherever I’m best at.”

Running backs coach JaJuan Seider has also been talking with Miller a lot and explaining why Rumph is a coach he should play for.

“He just always talks to me about Coach Rumph,” he said on what Seider tells him. “He tells me that he [Rumph] knows so much about the game and that I should come play for him.”

Despite never visiting Florida before, Miller says that his interest level is very high but he just needs to do one thing.

“It’s high,” Miller said on his interest level in Florida. “I just like the way the coaches talk to me and tell me about the university. Now I just have to get down there and check it out.”

The Gators will get that first chance to host Miller in the coming weeks and it will be a rather long visit.

“I’m visiting them this month,” he said of his visit to Florida. “I’ll be down there July 21st, 22nd and 23rd.”

Heading into the visit, Miller admits that the Gators have a little work to do to catch another team.

“No leader right now,” Miller said. “Louisville has been standing out to me though.”

 

INSIDERS TAKE: Miller likes Florida a lot but this visit will be huge in July for both sides. Miller says that he will most likely decide before the season starts but he isn’t 100 percent set on that.

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.