will announce his commitment on June 16th. He visits UF this weekend. As it stands, On3 lists Ole Miss as the leaders with the Gators slightly behind. However, Florida will get the last crack at Chukuyem before he announces his commitment with a visit planned the weekend of June 13. He previously visited Ole Miss on May 30 and Cincinnati on June 5. He is also scheduled to visit FSU on June 20.
Commit on the 16th but plans to visit FSU on the 20th? Unless he commits to FSU, I don't really get it unless the Holes promised him a bag of some sort regardless?
I'm getting fired up about Offensive Line recruiting. I think UF has a pretty darn good group of coaches to develop offensive linemen. ALOT is being made about "3 Stars" on the offensive line. My particular view is that if the Gator staff "likes" what they see and pursue accordingly, like the two young men we just signed, I have no issue with the star rating. Personally, I think for many following recruiting, "stars" are a bit of an "ego" thing. I get it, and hey, the 5 star guys clearly look darn good at the H.S. level, but that guarantees nothing. How they actually play in the system for the Gators is what counts. I thjnk UGA just signed a 3 star offensive lineman, yesterday?, the day before? You know, that recruiting powerhouse. UF has some good ones on the board, Chukuyem, being one of them, OJO, among others. Despite the board barbs and criticism's about (NOT) landing offensive linemen ranked in the top 100 players in the country category, by the rating services, UF seems to be doing OK. The current line is ranked quite high by most services and publications, and UF has a first team All American center putting on the cleats. We swayed him from FSU and I don't remember him being a 5 star "phenom" coming out of H.S. Anyway the proof will be revealed on the field. The QB and the running backs are in place. Expectations are high for the receiver room. I'm fired up!
To me, it’s such a crap shoot but with the way we develop our OL, we can afford to take OL who aren’t immediate plug and play guys. Once the OL rotation became solidified a few games into last year, the offense became NOTICEABLY better (benching Waites at RT and keeping George exclusively at RG). When you take guys who aren’t counted on to contribute immediately on the OL, very rarely will they hit the portal too unless they’re pushed out or impatient which i’m fine with. We basically have our 5 for 2026 on the roster which i’m happy about
I even think it is more important how good George was at guard, than how much he suffered at OT. He had tons of key blocks throughout the year in his correct position.
George’s development last year from the Miami game to the hell the UK game was amazing. I was shocked he dipped his toes into the portal after last season but glad he came back. You’re right, he was a blocking machine at RG. I want to see Harris make a BIG leap this year at LG too. He’s been solid but now is GO time for him what we reallllly need, and it’ll be hard with the schedule difficulties, is some blow outs so our back ups can get game reps. We realllly need it
Well put Bobby, I would like to see Caden get some reps, I think he may offer some decent depth (I hope), he certainly has the size, but can he demonstrate the footwork and technique? He's been coached up awhile now, time to show something!
him and Kearney, I hope we can get them on the field this year. I wonder if we will slide the USC transfer we got last season to a guard spot if he doesn’t beat out Kearney for the C spot next season. Jones Harris Kearney ? Lovett seems like the OL for the 2026 season….as of now imo
We can run a lot of backups in, so we should if we can. We are deep. I expect we can trust Manuel, Lovett, Jones, and maybe even Westphal at OT. Inside we can probably trust Lovett, Kearney, and maybe Waites and Zandamela.
Class of 2023(December?), so came to campus Summer 2024? I'm confused. RS SO- This could be his third Summer/Fall practice but I my timeline must be off. It would be really nice to see him step up and prove he's a great OL LSU didn't get.
He was pretty much injured his whole first year, so in practice reps he is probably only at the level of Wangoy, Portnjagen and Zandamela. He a has a lot to prove. And I don't expect him to grab a starting spot over someone like Lovett or Manuel, but I don't think he has underperformed, just bad luck.
Napier does drop Caden's name occasionally when the subject turns to the offensive line. 4 star when he was recruited, hopefully he's ready to contribute in the fall.
Agreed. Staff and fans would love to see him contribute this year then more his JR season. That's okay. We expect that from OL/DL.
