Gaillard welcomed with “open arms”

It has been said hundreds of times the last few years by Will Muschamp that the SEC is a line of scrimmage league. The Gators are looking for defensive lineman this year to be able to make Florida a dominant force on the line of scrimmage.

On Saturday Florida hosted Fayetteville (N.C.) Pine Forest defensive tackle Lamont Gaillard and two of his high school coaches.

“It was good, I like it a lot,” Gaillard said. “Everything really stood out to me like the facilities and the campus. I really liked the way they presented the academics to me and how the coaches treated me and welcomed me in. I know that if I choose Florida that I will have a backup plan due to the education program there.”

When the 6-foot-4, 312-pound Gaillard arrived on campus, he was met by head coach Will Muschamp and gave Gaillard a good feeling.

“I really got a good vibe from coach Muschamp,” Gaillard said. “He is a good guy and he kept telling me he wanted me and how I would be great fit on the defensive line there. He said I could make a big impact there. He really made me feel at home, I got a different feeling from Florida because of the way the players and coaches welcomed me with open arms the whole visit.”

New defensive line coach Brad Lawing has been making a big impact on the recruiting front since the time he started. Lawing clearly made a good impression on Gaillard.

“Coach Lawing taught me a lot during my visit,” Gaillard said. “He told me some little things that he saw on my tape that I was doing wrong and how to fix those mistakes. Coach really knows how to coach defensive lineman and he coached some of the best players. I believe he could help me a lot if I choose Florida.”

Next up for Gaillard is visits to Georgia and Alabama, but the talented prospect says he may be back to Florida soon.

“Florida is very high on my list and I’m going to try and come back on my spring break,” Gaillard said. “My spring break is the beginning of April so I’m going to try.”

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.