The Florida Gators picked up their first commitment for the Class of 2027 on Saturday just hours after hosting junior day on campus.
Defensive back Amare Nugent (5-11, 178, Fort Lauderdale, FL. American Heritage) committed to the Gators over Auburn and Florida State among others.
This was the third trip to Gainesville for Nugent but he says this one was different because he was able to meet the new coaching staff.
“It went pretty good,” Nugent said of his visit to Florida on Saturday. “We’ve been building a relationship over the phone but being up here, it feels good. I just wanted to meet the new staff, so I was just excited to come up here and meet them.”
New defensive backs coach Brandon Harris has known Nugent for a while now so there relationship is already a strong one.
“It’s very strong,” he said on his relationship with Brandon Harris. “You know, he’s a guy from South Florida, just like me so the relationship is very strong. He was happy to have me up here this weekend, so it’s been a pretty good day.”
One thing that stood out to Nugent on Saturday was the chance to meet head coach Jon Sumrall in person.
“Just me and Coach Jon Sumrall speaking,” Nugent said on the highlight of the trip. “He’s a great coach, I mean, the resume speaks for itself.”
Getting to see everyone in person and put a face with the voice was the biggest takeaway from Saturday for Nugent.
“It just made our relationship stronger,” he said on what he got out of the trip. “You know meeting in person instead of being over the phone helps build the relationship more and I was able to meet the whole staff.”
Nugent is the first commit in the Class of 2027.