Florida Gators freshman cornerback Ben Hanks III stepped onto campus at 180 pounds, the lightest scholarship defensive back on the team entering spring camp. After a productive offseason in the weight room, Hanks III now weighs 192 pounds.
“He came in and he was little, I said ‘hey bro, you got to get in that weight room’,” safety Jordan Castell said on Hanks III’s progress. “He’s just been taking meetings and stuff seriously. He’s another young guy who sits behind me and he’s just a guy that loves to learn.”
Hanks III came in as the No.6 cornerback and No.38 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class, according to 247Sports. There’s an adjustment period from high school to college, even for highly touted prospects. Defensive backs coach Deron Wilson saw near immediate growth from the Overtown, Florida native.
“Ben Hanks is an extremely talented young player. He is still learning to play college football, but he is really really talented and he has grasped the concept of a college football player,” Wilson said during spring camp. “If you look at from day one of spring ball to day 14, he is a totally different player. Body is different, mindset is different, so he continues to grow.”
Fast forward to fall camp, Hanks III is not only impressing his teammates with improvements off the field, but on the gridiron as well.
“Ben Hanks had a day today, he made a lot of plays on the ball,” Castell said after Florida’s 7th practice of fall camp.
“He did great this summer,” safety Bryce Thornton said on Hanks III. “Being in the weight room and gaining some muscle. And just with instincts of football now. He’s always been good. I saw his tape in high school. Now he’s just showcasing it.”
Florida has put an emphasize on building depth within the secondary throughout fall camp. While Devin Moore, Dijon Johnson, and Cormani McClain are expected to compete for the starting cornerback roles, the depth behind them is wide open. Ben Hanks III is someone who could step up and find his way on the two-deep.
“Just amazing strides. He definitely intensified it. He matured as a freshman as all of us have to go through,” cornerback Devin Moore said on Hanks III. “Just applying the things he learned from the spring, and this being like his second and third time reviewing it, going over it, you can definitely see that he’s way more comfortable out there, playing way faster and making some great plays.”