On Saturday, the Florida Gators hosted several top prospects in the country including a top-five player in the country.
2025 defensive lineman Elijah Griffin (6-5, 285, Savannah, GA. Christian Prep) was on campus and enjoying getting to be around the coaching staff.
“It was a great overall trip, I had a fun time,” Griffin said of his visit to Florida on Saturday. “Just kicking with Coach [Billy] Napier, Coach James, and Coach G [Gerald Chatman], spending the day with him for the first time. It’s a real environment and I loved it.”
Saturday was the first time for Griffin to meet new defensive line coach Gerald Chatman and he walked away impressed by the Gators’ new assistant coach.
“He seems very humble, nice guy,” he said of his first impressions of Chatman. “Cool, I feel like he can develop me as a player with all of the success he has had in the past few years. He seems like a really good guy, nice guy.”
One of the things that stood out to Griffin was the Hawkins center where the Gators’ athletes go for the academic side of things.
“The facilities for sure but I would honestly say the academic center,” Griffin said on what stood out to him about the visit. “That’s more important to me because football only last so long. You have to look at the different things they bring to you, not just the football aspect wise but academic wise.”
The academic center impressed Griffin and his mother and that was a big part of the Gators’ pitch to him.
“Everybody’s pitch is different, there’s the academics,” he said on Florida’s pitch to him. “Not everybody looks at academics, I look at academics.”
After visiting Florida, Griffin has interest in the Gators but right now he’s just taking visits and taking things slow.
“I really can’t put a rank because I’m giving everybody a fair shot,” Chatman said on where Florida stands for him. “It’s just a blessing, I thank God for it, not everybody can experience this. I’m taking it day by day.”
Up next for Griffin will be another visit and this time it will be to an ACC school.
“Next week I’m heading to Clemson,” he said on what’s next for him.