Nussmeier impresses a Texas receiver

Thursday was the first day the Florida Gators coaching staff hit the road for the spring evaluation period and the coaching staff was all over the southeast visiting several different prospects.

Receiver Tyrie Cleveland was the first receiver to receive a visit and offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier was the coach that stopped by to see him.

“It went great with coach Nussmeier today [Thursday],” Cleveland said. “He really can’t talk to me because of NCAA rules but he’s able to talk to my coach about me some. He stayed for a little while.”

Nussmeier had a lengthy conversation with Cleveland’s high school coach and there were a lot of positive thing to talk about regarding the playmaking prospect.

“He told my coach that Florida is fired up about me and that they’re real interested in me,” Cleveland said. “He watched me workout and then he watched my quarterback [Dillon Sterling-Cole] throw some while I was at track practice.”

This was the first time for Cleveland to meet any of the Florida Gators coaching staff it was a good first impression according to the receiver.

“It was great seeing Coach Nussmeier and he seems very outgoing,” Cleveland said. “My coach said that he seemed like a laid back guy that was going to be cool with is players. It was nice to see him.”

Cleveland admits that it was great seeing Nussmeier on Thursday but he has the best relationship with receiver coach Kerry Dixon, as the two are building a good relationship.

“I’ve been talking to coach Dixon all the time since he offered me,” Cleveland said. “He has been telling me that he really wants me to be a Gator and that he can’t wait until I’m able to come out there and see things for myself. He said that I need to meet the rest of the coaching staff because I’ll like those guys too.”

Now that Florida has visited Cleveland, the receiver says he and his quarterback plan to return the favor and visit the Gators in the coming months.

“We’re going to take a visit to Florida together,” Cleveland said. “We are going to take the visit this summer and we are also planning some other visits together too.”

 

INSIDERS TAKE: Cleveland has a lot of interest in Florida but now the ball is in his court, as the Gators are waiting on him to visit Gainesville. Nussmeier and Dixon also plan to visit Cleveland again in a few weeks.

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.