An in-depth look at the Florida Gators recruiting class of 2018

Everyone knows how good the Florida Gators recruiting class of 2018 is on paper and is in recruiting rankings heading into the season.

Well, GatorCountry.com wanted to go a little deeper and let the fans know just how good these prospects are that have committed to Florida.

GatorCountry brings you the stats from these commits from their time in high school so far.

We also look at the accomplishments that these guys have earned so far heading into their senior year of high school.

Several of these prospects did not have stats that could be found but that doesn’t take away of how good of a player they are.

Lets dive right into how good these prospects really are.

Quarterback Matt Corral (6-2, 196, Long Beach, CA. Poly) – is a U.S. Army All-American, invited to the Opening, and a member of the Elite 11. Corral was named a 2017 preseason Max Preps second-team offense as he heads into his senior year with some really solid career stats. So far he’s 401-625 passing with 7,683 yards and 74 touchdowns. He has just thrown 15 interceptions and has added 816 rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns.

Other big offers for Corral include USC and Georgia.

 

Running back Dameon Pierce (5-11, 205, Bainbridge, GA. High)- was named to the Class AAAAA first team- All State in 2016. Heading into his senior year, Pierce was named to the AJC Super 11 team in the preseason of 2017. The running back has carried the ball 715 times for 4,656 yards and 60 touchdowns in his career and added 41 catches for 447 yards and one touchdown.

Other big offers include Alabama, Auburn and Georgia for Pierce.

 

Running back Iverson Clement (5-11, 199, Mount Holly, NJ Rancocas Valley)- Clement has put together 286 rushes for 1,994 yards and 28 touchdowns in two years as a starter. The talented athlete has also been a good receiver and has caught 25 catches for 195 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Other big offers for Clement include Michigan and Ohio State.

 

Receiver Jacob Copeland (6-0, 192, Pensacola, FL. Escambia) – The Under Armour All-American was also named to the preseason team in his area. Copeland has 88 rushes for 560 yards and 8 touchdowns while adding 85 catches for 1,648 yards and 14 touchdowns in his career.

Other big offers for Copeland include Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and LSU.

 

Receiver Tyquan Thornton (6-3, 165, Miami, FL. Booker T. Washington)- Thornton had 27 catches for 342 yards and four touchdowns as a junior playing receiver. Off the football field Thornton won the Class 2A state championship in the 400 meters with a 47.09 second time last year. Thornton has also won two state championships in football.

Other big offers for Thornton include Georgia and Miami.

 

 

Receiver Ja’Marr Chase (6-1, 195, Metairie, LA. Archbishop Rummel) – Chase was invited to the Opening where he put huge state in the 7-on-7 tournament. He was also named to the All-State honorable mention in 2016 and named to the 2016 All-Metro First team after having 23 catches for 634 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior.

Other big offers for Chase include Auburn, Florida State, LSU and TCU.

 

Receiver Corey Gammage (6-2, 188, Delray Beach, FL. Atlantic)- As a junior Gammage had 12 catches for 344 yards and four touchdowns, which led to him being named to the second team all-area in 2016.

Other big offers for Gammage include Auburn and Miami.

 

Receiver Jalynn Williams (5-10, 188, St. Petersburg, FL. High) – The two sport athlete plays both basketball and football in high school. As a junior Williams had 53 catches for 399 yards and six touchdowns and was named a member of the Home Team 25 for the class of 2018 by the Tampa Bay Times.

Other big offers for Williams include Miami and Ohio State.

 

 

Tight end Kyle Pitts (6-5, 235, Warminster, PA. Archbishop Wood) – The tight was invited to the Opening after winning a state championship as a junior. Pitts finished his junior year with 28 catches for 394 yards and six touchdowns.

Other big offers for Pitts include Alabama, Georgia, Miami and Ohio State.

 

Tight end Dante Lang (6-5, 220, Boca Raton, FL. High)- Pitts played mainly defensive end as a junior and racked up 70 tackles and 20 sacks but moved to tight end this offseason. After putting together a good 7-on-7 season and a good camp season he was named the number 7 player on the Palm Beach Post Big Board for 2018.

Other big offers for Lang include Arkansas.

 

Offensive lineman Curtis Dunlap (6-4, 368, Bradenton, FL. IMG) – The offensive lineman was named a first team All-American on Max Preps junior All-American team after his 2016 season. This year Dunlap was invited to the Opening and finished as one of the top five offensive lineman at the Opening. Now he’s an Under Armour All-American and was named to the 2017 preseason Max Preps second-team offense.

Other big offers for Dunlap include Miami, Oklahoma, Tennessee among others.

 

Defensive end Taylor Upshaw (6-5, 240, Bradenton, FL. Braden River)- As a junior Upshaw had 17 tackles, 4.5 tfl, 2 sacks, 1 fumble recovery and 1 caused fumble. Also his junior year was the first year of football for Upshaw who is the son of former NFL defensive lineman Regan Upshaw SR.

Other big offers for Upshaw include Clemson, Oklahoma and Tennessee.

 

Linebacker David Reese (6-2, 213, Vero Beach, FL. High)- Reese played linebacker and safety last year and combined 39 tackles, nine tackles for a loss, 3 sacks and a fumble return for a td. The Gators commit was named the number two player in the TC Palm preseason rankings.

Other big offers for Reese include Alabama, Florida State, Georgia and Miami.

 

Safety Deontai Williams (Ellisville, MS. Jones County JC) – Williams was a two time state champion at Trinity Christian in high school. Williams was a high ranked prospect before deciding to go to JUCO.

 

Defensive back Randy Russell (5-11, 180, Opa Locka, FL. Carol City)- Russell is a guy that play anywhere in the defensive backfield and is posed to have a big year.

Other big offers for Russell include Georgia, Miami and UCLA.

 

Athlete Amari Burney (6-1, 215, Clearwater, FL. Calvary Christian)- Burney participated in The Opening, and was named to the 2016 Second team All-Pinellas County. As a sophomore Burney had 91 tackles, two interceptions and five fumble recoveries on defense. On offense he had 20 catches for 404 yards and seven touchdowns. Burney also had two defensive touchdowns. Burney can play receiver or safety.

Other big offers for Burney include Auburn, Florida State, Miami, Michigan and Ohio State.

 

Cornerback Divaad Wilson (6-0, 180, Miami, FL. Northwestern) – Wilson is one of the top defensive backs in his area and is poised to have a big year.

Other big offers for Wilson include Georgia and Miami.

 

 

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.