Napier more than impressed with newest addition at linebacker

By
Gentry Hawk
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Depth at the linebacker position isn’t where it needs to be if you’re the Gators after multiple players have entered the portal or graduated. With the hopes that Florida can eventually add to that depth, Billy Napier views Jaden Robinson as a player who could have a major impact on this defense as he’s been a force to be reckoned throughout his high school career.

“Jaden is another guy that has a phenomenal family — mom, dad, his grandmother. Really good people and certainly a lot of fun to be around. Jaden Robinson, I think he scored a defensive touchdown seven weeks in a row in high school football. Think about that for a second. Seven weeks in a row, this guy scores a defensive touchdown,” Napier said on Robinson. “Very difficult to do. Very instinctive player. He’s got a knack. He’s tough. Excited about him being here early. Certainly got a critical need at inside backer, and he’s going to help that.”
The 6-1, 222 pound linebacker held 24 offers coming out of Columbia High School, with teams like Kentucky, Maryland, LSU and Michigan showing heavy interest. In the end the recruitment battle for Robinson came down to Florida and South Carolina, with Florida getting Robinson’s commitment in August, and his signature just a couple days ago.

“Jaden is one of my favorite players in the class. Jaden is a guy that, you know you watch his junior tape, he’s playing safety. He’s playing apex. He’s out in space. He shows up at camp, and we get him at 6’1″, 221. He’s kind of grown into his body,” Napier said on Robinson.

“They played him at will linebacker in the camp, and we had a chance to watch him. It became pretty evident that he could play linebacker. Comes from a great program, a great area. There’s a certain passion that comes with being from the area, if that makes sense. So as many of those guys that pass the evaluation that we can get on our team, the better. I think, if you look back at the history, when Florida’s been good, they’ve had the better players in the surrounding areas that have come here to play. So we want to continue that trend.”

As a senior, Robinson averaged 11 tackles a game while racking up 32 solo tackles on 144 total tackles at Columbia High School. The 4-star linebacker deserves the praise he gets with the violence he displays on the football field.

With only four other young linebackers on Florida’s roster that Billy Napier has recruited, there’s room for Jaden Robinson to make some noise early on in his career.

This defensive group for Florida is very young, and given Teradja Mitchell officially enrolls on campus, he would be Florida’s oldest linebacker that seeks playing time with Derek Wingo next in line. The path for Jaden Robinson to have continued success at Florida is wide open.

Gentry Hawk
Gentry Hawk
Gentry Hawk is a student at the University of Florida studying sports journalism. He is a writer and reporter for GatorCountry. You can find most of his work on Twitter @gentryhawkgc, or right here on Gator country.

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