Billy Napier has made it a priority to bring alumni of the Florida Gators around the program including having several former players on his coaching staff.
This year, several former players have sons who are being recruited by the Gators including receiver Vernell Brown III (5-11, 170, Orlando, FL. Jones) who recently visited Gainesville in late January.
“Things are going good,” Brown said of his recruitment with Florida. “I speak with them multiple times a week. Mainly it’s with Coach G [Billy Gonzales] and Coach [David] Doeker and I had a good [visit], it was different than any other visit then I’ve been on to Gainesville.”
Receivers coach Billy Gonzales and assistant receivers coach David Doeker have made it known to Brown how badly he’s wanted in Gainesville.
“The message has been consistently how they want to coach me,” he said on the message from Gonzales and Doeker. “And that they want me to be a part of their program. We have a good relationship and I like that we can talk about not only football but life as well.”
Brown whose father played at Florida and was on staff in Gainesville says that he knows his family history, but he’s focused on making the right decision for his future.
“It doesn’t mean anything,” he said on if being a Florida legacy will play into his decision. “I know my family were Gators, but my process is my process and it’s about figuring out what is the best fit for me.”
While Brown plans to look at all schools closely, he says the Gators are a team that offers a lot of things that only a handful of schools can offer.
“Florida is one of my top schools,” Brown said on where Florida stands for him. “It’s Florida, one of the premiere programs and schools in the country. Its brand and tradition are unique. There are only a handful of programs that are like that around the country and Florida is definitely one of them.”
Several schools have been recruiting Brown hard so far including the instate schools and the receiver says he hopes to make a decision by the start of his senior year.
“There are a couple of schools recruiting me hard,” Brown said of his recruitment. “If the picture is clear enough, I hope to have a decision made by the end of the summer.”