There were a lot of big name 2017 prospects on campus for Saturday’s game against South Carolina for the Florida Gators but there were also some big time 2018 prospects as well.
One of those guys was 2018 defensive end Xavier Thomas (6-3, 249, Florence, SC. Wilson) who visited the Swamp for the first time on Saturday.
“It was a great visit, I’ve watched the Gators a lot,” Thomas said. “It was a great environment, the crowd was loud and the defense looked really good. It was a good time.”
Thomas paid close attention to the defensive line and he was impressed by how well the Gators played on Saturday.
“I’ve heard that they had a lot of starters injured so I liked how they adjusted to that,” he said. “They kept playing and just got the job done. I noticed that they were doing some defensive line stunts. They were creating some one on one match-ups.”
The 2018 defensive end is ranked as one of the top players in the country for next year and the Gators have pushing the Florida brand to him.
“The coaches have been telling me that this is a special place and they’re building a whole new facility too,” Thomas said. “They tell me that Florida will also help you in life after football.”
Defensive line coach Chris Rumph is from the South Carolina area and he has built a good bond with Thomas early on.
“Coach Rumph is a great defensive line coach,” he said of Rumph. “He’s my primary recruiter and his sister in law teaches at my school. We have a tight relationship.”
The Gators also have a small connection with Thomas as the defensive end has a lot of family in the Gainesville area.
“My family came with me, my whole side of the family that lives here [Gainesville] is with me,” Thomas said. “My whole family here has been die hard Gators fan actually before Tim Tebow.”
Since Thomas has a lot of family in town, the defensive end says he plans to get back to Florida for more visits.
“I will definitely be coming back down here for another visit,” he said. “The only other visit I have for this season is for the South Carolina/Clemson rivalry game. I’ll take more visits for junior days.”
The 2018 defensive end didn’t want to name any leader but he says a few schools are sticking out to him at this time.
“Florida, Clemson, South Carolina, Alabama and Georgia stick out,” Thomas said. “I don’t have any leaders or anything.”
INSIDERS TAKE: Thomas’ mother graduated from Florida and most of Thomas’ family lives in Gainesville. Right now South Carolina and Clemson have had him on campus the most but look for the Gators to get on campus more.