Florida Gators offer and visit excites Unije

2018 seems like a long ways away but the Florida Gators have been putting in a lot of work with that class this summer in preparation to get a head start on the competition.

Many 2018 prospects were on campus last week for football camp including offensive lineman Reuben Unije (6-5, 303, Bradenton, FL. IMG Academy), who got the full tour treatment on Thursday.

“It was nice, it was straight and I had a good time,” Unije said of his visit to Florida. “I got to see the facilities and they were pretty nice. I got to meet and talk to all of the coaches and I enjoyed my talks with them.”

Unije, who grew up in South Georgia, picked up a Gators offer last month and it was an offer that grabbed his attention in a big way.

“I grew up a Florida fan and rooting for them, I was excited to get the offer,” he said. “They were the first football team that I ever watched. One of my goals was to always get an offer from Florida. When I got the offer it was a big offer. They won 10 games last year and they’re on the rise.”

Last week Unije got the chance to meet with offensive line coach Mike Summers and the two talked about Florida on and off the field.

“Coach Summers says that I fit perfect into their offensive scheme,” Unije said. “He said that Florida is a family and that the alumni is great. He said the Gator network is big for after football and that I’m needed here.”

Summers and Unije also got the chance to talk about the Gators offense and how the offensive lineman would fit into the Gators offense.

“He told me that I’m a tackle in college,” he said of Summers’ message. “He ran through a few plays for me and explained what I would do in those plays. He said he wanted me to know what to expect if I do come to Florida.”

Last week was the first time for Unije to meet Florida head coach Jim McElwain and they had an interesting first conversation.

“The first thing Coach Mac ever to said was me ‘I hope you know you’re going to be a Gator’,” Unije said of Mac’s message. “He always talked to me about how Gators were and how I looked good in the Orange and Blue. We have nice conversations.”

The Gators fan in Unije is planning to be in Gainesville a lot now that he’s closer to town and that includes games this fall.

“I plan to get to as many games as possible this year,” he said. “That’s a goal of mine now that I’m at IMG.”

INSIDERS TAKE: The Gators are a heavy favorite for Unije after he visited the Gators twice in a six-day period. Unije will be someone that the Gators will focus on hard this fall and next spring.

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.