Billy Napier and the rest of the Florida Gators coaching staff have tried to rebuild the Florida brand and fix the broken relationships that the last staff made.
Defensive lineman Tomarrion Parker (6-4, 255, Phenix City, AL. Central) was one of those guys who noticed a new atmosphere around the program on Thursday.
“I got to see the new vibe from the Florida team,” Parker said of his visit to Florida on Thursday. “I will be back in the summertime with my teammate AJ Harris. I’m looking forward to it.”
Parker didn’t feel like a priority to the last staff, and it turned him away from the Gators but the new staff has fixed that and Thursday’s visit made him feel wanted by Florida.
“I definitely did,” Parker said on if this visit was different and better than the last one. “The last staff, I didn’t talk to no coaches, nobody talked to me. I didn’t feel like I was wanted there. It really tarnished with how Florida was with me. When the new staff came in, at first, I had a bittersweet taste because of the old staff but AJ [Harris] kept telling me you have to go visit Florida, they’re different so I gave them a chance and they blew my mind.”
Defensive line coach Sean Spencer explained to Parker on Thursday just how he would fit into Florida’s defense.
“They want me to come here and play defensive end,” he said on the message from the staff. “Rush the passer, they said my play style and how my personality is, it will fit Florida just fine. They want me to come here and play.”
While watching the spring game on Thursday, Parker watched the defensive line and Spencer closely and he liked what he watched.
“It was definitely good, you seen a lot out of them,” Parker said on his thoughts on the defensive line play. “Coach Spencer is teaching them a lot, definitely a lot to learn and I can’t wait to build that relationship more.”
Parker admits that he’s still building a relationship with Spencer, but he likes the energy that he brings to the table.
“We’re still building a great relationship,” he said on his relationship with Spencer. “It’s cool, he’s a real good guy. He tells me about his time with the New York Giants and he sends me clips of him getting hyped with his players. It’s fun to see that you have a coach that will get hyped with you.”
After Thursday’s visit, Parker says the Gators have jumped into his top group of schools with two other big-name schools.
“My top five is no longer, Florida is definitely one of my top schools now,” he said. “They jumped all the way up. Between Ohio State and Florida, are my top two schools right now. They’re showing me that they want me. Alabama is doing a great job as well.”
Parker wanted to make a decision this spring or summer but he says that will now be pushed back as he wants to take more visits.
“I’m going to take it slow and probably take some official visits first,” Parker said on when he wants to decide. “Two during the summer, I know I have Penn State set in June. I will do an official visit to Florida.”