Shanahan picks up an offer from the Florida Gators and his ties to the program

The last few weeks, the Florida Gators coaching staff has started hitting the 2023 recruiting class hard by sending out several new offers on an almost daily basis.

2023 offensive lineman TJ Shanahan (6-5, 300, Orlando, FL. Timber Creek) was one of those to pick up an offer after he talked with offensive line coach John Hevesy.

“I got the offer from the offensive line coach, Coach Hevesy,” Shanahan said on the coach who offered him. “He said how he’s fond of my background as he recruited my cousin that is now playing for the Giants, Jon Halapio. So he knows a little bit about my background also saw a few reps with me against one of their recruits, Bryce Langston. That was kind of what pulled the trigger as far an offer.”

With Shanahan’s ties to the program, hearing the news from Hevesy was big to him last week.

“It really means a lot, watching Jon playing in the Swamp and now Florida being an early offer, it just means that much more,” he said on what the offer means to him. “I was very excited to get the offer from such a great school.”

Hevesy explained to Shanahan what the Gators like about his game and the two plan to continue to build a relationship.

“One thing he said that stands out in my game was my ability to work,” Shanahan said on what Hevesy told him. “I’m still building a relationship with Coach Hevesy so the call was more of a getting to know myself and my background.”

Shanahan is pretty familiar with the Gators history and likes what he knows but he’s eager to learn more about Dan Mullen and his staff.

“I like how Florida is always a national championship caliber team,” he said on what he likes about Florida. “I wouldn’t say I know a lot about Florida but I would like to build a relationship with some of the coaches and find out what the Gators, the Gators.”

The 2023 offensive lineman isn’t ready to name any leaders but Shanahan says a few schools are after him hard lately.

“It’s very early in the process but I really like the University of Florida,” Shanahan said of schools recruiting him hard. “Some schools that are recruiting me hard as of right now are Tennessee, Michigan State, Penn State, Utah, Oklahoma and USC.”

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.