This spring has been a busy one for Jon Sumrall and his coaching staff as they’ve hosted a lot of prospects on campus while also going through spring practice.
Defensive lineman Tyler Alexander (6-3, 315, Wellington, FL. Palm Beach Central) was on campus last week and says he was able to see a lot of things including spring practice.
“My second Florida visit was great,” Alexander said of his visit to Gainesville earlier this spring. “I got to experience even more this trip than last. Watching practice was my highlight.”
Defensive line coach Gerald Chatman stood out to Alexander because of the way he coaches up his position and also how his position practiced.
“I really like the way Coach Chatman and Coach Patterson coach up their defensive line,” he said. “What stood out to me about the current defensive linemen was their physicality. They’re all in top shape and very strong and it made practice very violent.”
Alexander also had the chance to see what being a student athlete is like at Florida and he was impressed by the facilities.
“I also got to tour the campus, stadium house apartments and the academic center,” Alexander said on what else he got to do on the visit. “The campus is beautiful, but the stadium house and academic center really blew me away. The stadium house has a rooftop pool and every amenity you could want, it was crazy nice. The academic center was also very nice, it’s huge, state of the art and filled with staff to help the athletes excel in their studies. They really have it all to set athletes up for success.”
One thing that is important to Alexander is the strength and conditioning and he was impressed by the Gators staff.
“I also had an in-depth discussion with the director of nutrition and also Coach [Rusty] Whitt from player development,” he said on meeting with the strength staff. “The nutrition director broke everything down to me on how they develop the athlete’s bodies and how it works hand in hand with strength and conditioning. They’re very scientific with it.”
This visit was also a chance for Alexander to meet with the staff again and he says that relationship is growing daily.
“I also had a lot of time to talk to the current players, Coach Chatman, Coach [Brad] White and Coach Sumrall,” Alexander said. “At this point the entire staff all feel like family. I speak to multiple coaches and support staff from Florida literally every day. I can’t wait to get back up there for the spring game and again for my official visit.”