A lot of elite prospects that attend the Florida Gators football camp over the next few weeks will not work out during the camp.They will instead just observe and meet the coaches.
Defensive end Darius Whitfield (6-0, 268, Mobile, AL St. Paul’s) was one of those elite prospects on campus on Saturday and he was joined by two of his friends.
“It went great, it went really good,” Whitfield said. “Me and [Lamical] Perine were just watching and chilling. We really wanted to watch my cousin Justin [Hosea-Williams] work out. The visit went well though and Justin did well.”
When Whitfield and Florida running back commit Lamical Perine arrived at the Swamp on Saturday they were greeted by cornerback Chauncey Gardner, who acted as their unofficial host.
“Chauncey is a real cool guy and he was just showing us around,” Whitfield said. “He was just showing us where everything was and where to go. He was telling us about the program. He was recruiting me some too. He kept telling me to come be a Gator.”
Defensive line coach Chris Rumph has been the coach that has led the charge in recruiting Whitfield thus far, and on Saturday they got to work together.
“Man, Coach Rumph is a real cool guy,” Whitfield said. “I was down there with him during the camp and me and him were going through some drills together. He was showing me some things to work on. I wasn’t going full speed but he wanted to see how I moved my hips and stuff.”
Rumph is known for his recruiting skills and he laid out a message to Whitfield that was crystal clear to the lineman.
“He said that I have a good chance to play early if I just come in and do what I’m supposed to do,” Whitfield said. “He said be ready to play if I come to Florida because they throw freshmen in there in games.”
When Whitfield visited Florida this spring, head coach Jim McElwain was away at a speaking tour, but on Saturday the two got to meet one another.
“Coach Mac is a cool guy,” Whitfield said. “He was just really happy that I was able to make it down again. The first time I came down there I didn’t get a chance to meet him but this time I got to sit down with him and everything.”
In July Whitfield and his two friends will make the six-hour drive east again to visit Florida for another camp.
“All three of us will be back down there for Friday Night Lights,” Whitfield said. “I’m not sure if I’m going to camp or not but we will be back.”
Despite being very pro-Florida on Twitter the defensive lineman says that nobody is standing out to him and he’s waiting awhile to decide.
“I have a top eight but everything is open right now,” Whitfield said. “I plan to keep everything open right now.”
INSIDERS TAKE: Florida has a great shot here with Whitfield but he’s in no hurry to make a decision and plans to wait until closer to signing day to decide. Expect Whitfield to be on campus at Florida a lot with Lamical Perine this summer and fall.