Recruiting Mailbag: June edition

Wesstump: What is your personal feeling about who will be in our OL class? I know you don’t have a crystal ball so I understand this is just a guess. Thanks!

AS: I really like the way the Gators offensive line class could end up and I think it has the potential to be a good one. Right now, I like where Florida is at for Martez Ivey, Jalen Merrick and Abdul Bello. Those three guys I feel like Florida leads for at this time. Guys like Tyree St. Louis, Christian Pellage, William Sweet and Javon Patterson are names to keep an eye on moving forward. Florida would like to have a class featuring 5-6 of these guys.

 

Kellykool: Do we have a punchers chance with Kendrick Norton?

AS: Absolutely. Right now it’s battle between Florida and Auburn and interesting enough, both of those teams have guys committed to them from Trinity Christian. I think Norton likes Brad Lawing a lot, but again, I think it depends on the season this year.

 

Animagator: I (along with Andy Rooney) am worried most about LB and OL. How do you think we fare with those positions? Any guesses at the classes for each?

AS: I like where Florida is at with these two positions despite only have one commit on the OL. Florida is in great shape with linebackers Adonis Thomas, Roquan Smith, Tevon Coney and Jeffrey Holland. Those 4 guys are absolute studs at the position and while I don’t think Florida lands all 4 of them I think 3 is a real possibility. After those guys Florida has a few other guys mixed in that are good but not great players that could help fill needs.

 

Lloydperkins53: AS…..I head up the Georgia Super Seven Players every year and am in communication with Roquan and Adonis…..and they both seem real positive towards Florida…..do you think we land them both? Also, there is an abundance of DL’s in Georgia this year….and the state is covered up in college coaches recruiting them…..are we in on any of the DL’s?

AS: Roquan is a Florida/Georgia battle right now but if Florida lands Adonis Thomas then the Gators chances improve even more. Roquan had a great visit to Florida last week and that helped a lot. As far as defensive line goes Florida is on one of those guys in Austin Bryant but the rest of them are leaning elsewhere.

 

Mr-B Gator: AS….what about the RB position?
Who do you think we end up with….or have a good chance with?

AS: I continue to like Florida’s chances with Ray-Ray McCloud and after that it’s kind of up in the air. This weekend is a big visit for Dexter Williams to Florida.

 

Mdmcgarry: Who do you see as having a strong interest in the Gators at the receiver position?

AS: Unlike most years Florida has a lot of receivers interested in them and are actually having to slow play some of them due to bigger fish still left in the pond. Some guys that I think we need to pay attention to are Tyron Johnson from New Orleans who is visiting soon and while he likes LSU a lot right now he talked about Florida a lot at a recent event. George Campbell, Deon Cain, Ryan Davis and Antonio Callaway are also a few names to monitor closely.

 

Nicklegators: Who was Joker Phillips having lunch with and can we still recruit that person ?

AS: Yes Florida can still recruit this particular player but I don’t have 100 percent confirmation on the player so at this time I won’t name him because I don’t want to make an accusation that I don’t know is true.

 

Gator_nica: We seemed to be in it on a bunch of players ranked every high (CeCe, Cowart, Holland, ect..) Is that still the case?

AS: Yes it is. Martez Ivey and George Campbell are other high ranked players that Florida is in on but again this season has to be a success.

 

Jimzgator: Asked the question earlier about Jeffrey Holland’s grades ?

AS: This would be news to me honestly.

 

Gotime51: If lighting strikes and Holland, Coney, Thomas and Smith all want in, do we take them all?

AS: Heck yeah. Those 4 are guys that could help the defense a ton.

 

Wesstump: Do we have any silent commits? I know they are silent for a reason. What I’d like to know, are they offense or defense? Maybe you might even tell us what positions are involved. If not, what you could tell us would be fine.

AS: A few guys have told Florida that they want to be Gators but I wouldn’t say they are silent commits because they are still out visiting other places. Two guys are on the offensive line and two on defense but again they are visiting so I don’t consider them silents.

Gatordon: What positions are the coaching staff focusing on the most?

AS: Linebacker and offensive line the most this year. A lot of that is because of the depth at those positions.

Gatordon: Any decisions expected in the near future?

AS: Friday Night Lights in late July is always a time we see a recruits pop or sometimes even more than one so we will monitor that time closely.

Kdm: Any chance that any of the big fish (Jefferson, Cowart, Holland, Campbell, Ivey, etc) commit sooner rather than later or are we going to have to prove it on the field before any of these guys are going to be willing to pull the trigger?

AS: Prove it on the field is my guess right now. I just don’t see any of them committing right now.

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. Not sure why any of the good questions were disregarded but can you speak on how Joker Philips resignation will effect recruiting, in particular with George Campbell who spoke closely with him?

    • No questions where disregarded. The question about Joker was answered but no recruit is going to be overly affected by Joker’s departure right now. If Chris Leak doesn’t develop a relationship with these guys than you can see a problem in February.